Tori was in her car, her hands tense on the wheel when the phone call came in. “Javi?” she answered.
“Hey. I’m at that address. Mr. Martin isn’t here.”
“Any sign of him?” she asked, breezing through the night-time streets, her stomach churning.
“None.”
“His phone? Running it. Coordinates sent to you.”
She glanced down. Arty Martin wasn’t at his home. He was a few miles away… at someone else’s address.
Tori frowned. She did a quick search, while steering with her free hand. The house belonged to a married couple—Alice and Brent Copperfield. Alice was smiling in her photo…
And she looked remarkably similar to Janice, the boss at Early Response.
Tori stared.
What did Janice have to do with this?
She hesitated, then decided now wasn’t the time to play coy. She placed the call.
Janice picked up on the second ring. “Agent Spark?” the voice said, weary. “What can I do for you?”
The glow from the dashboard illuminated Tori’s features. She hesitated, frowning for a moment. “I’m sorry for bothering you again…” Tori paused. What was the best approach? Cautious or direct?
Was Janice involved?
Tori’s instincts said no. The woman had been helpful. At least… not willingly involved. Or, perhaps knowingly.
The city's skeleton loomed in the rearview. Tori navigated the labyrinth of streets, her headlights slicing through the darkness, casting long, creeping shadows that seemed to reach for her as she passed.
Her car hummed a steady rhythm against the silence, a solitary beacon moving through the desolation. The road ahead was a patchwork of repairs and neglect.
“Hello? Agent Spark, are you there?”
Tori took a deep breath, the weight of the decision heavy on her shoulders. There was no point in beating around the bush. She had to confront Janice directly.
"Janice, I need to know the truth about your connection to Arty Martin," Tori's voice was firm but not accusatory. She needed answers.
There was a pregnant pause on the line before Janice finally spoke, her voice strained with tension. "Arty?”
A pause hung on the line, heavy and expectant. Janice exhaled, a sound that conveyed the weight of reluctant confessions yet to be spoken.
"Arty... he's complicated."
"Complicated how? I need to know what he means to you."
Janice's breath hitched, a telltale sign of inner turmoil. "He was part of my past, a chapter I thought I closed." Her voice dipped, a quiet murmur against the backdrop of Tori's focused breaths and the steady hum of the engine.
"Janice, I need more," Tori urged, her voice a low growl of impatience. The car's dashboard illuminated her face in intervals, revealing a stern jaw set with determination.
"Arty... he liked me. He liked me a lot." Janice's words tumbled out as if dislodged by the force behind Tori's demand. "Asked me out several times."
"Several?"
"More than several," Janice corrected, her tone wavering between confession and discomfort. "He was persistent, but..."
"But what?"
"There was something off about him." Janice's admission hung in the air, a specter of unease that seemed to reach through the phone and settle in the car with Tori.
"Off how? Strange isn't enough, Janice. I need to understand."
"His intensity. It didn't feel normal. It scared me." Janice's voice shrunk, as if the memory itself could cast a shadow over her even now. "I had to end it, Tori. It wasn't right."
"End what exactly?"
"Whatever you'd call our brief thing. It barely started before I felt... I don't know, threatened?"
"Threatened."
"Maybe that's too strong. But yes, threatened by the sheer force of his attention. It was unnerving."
"Enough to walk away. Enough to run."
"Run," Tori echoed, her curiosity a living thing in the tight confines of the car. "Then what happened?"
A pause stretched out, filling with the hum of the engine and the whispered hiss of tires on asphalt.
"Janice."
"He didn't take it well." The words came reluctantly from the speaker. "After I ended things, he... he made threats."
"Threats?" Tori's knuckles whitened on the steering wheel.
"Against himself. Said he couldn't go on if we weren't together."
"Did he ever act on them?" Tori's voice was laced with both worry and suspicion, her mind racing ahead to the implications.
"No, but..."
"But what?"
"It was enough to scare me. I kept thinking, what if he did? What if one day he..."
"Janice, this is important. Did he have a history of this kind of behavior?"
"Arty was always intense, but after the breakup, it went to a whole new level."
"Great," Tori muttered under her breath, a chill creeping up her spine as she realized the depth of Arty's emotional turmoil. Her concern for her own safety spiked, the darkness outside suddenly seeming more oppressive, more threatening. She pictured Arty, unstable and unpredictable, a shadow not just in her investigation but now in her life.
"Janice, why didn't you report him?" Tori's disbelief sharpened her words.
"I... I just couldn't." Janice's voice trembled. "His brother worked with us, the connection to the company..."
"Sympathy?"
"More than that. It was complicated. I felt responsible, maybe I could help him. I knew I’d really hurt him. So… I wanted to help."
"By staying silent?"
"Arty, he needed understanding, not a police record."
"Understanding doesn't protect his next target."
"Next target? Wait… he’s involved in all of this? What do you mean?”
"Arty's fixation. It shifted."
"Shifted how?"
Tori's grip on the steering wheel tightened, every muscle coiled. "Professional women. Something about them reminds him of you."
"Reminds him... Oh God… What are you saying to me, Agent Spark?”
"He sees you all as... stand-ins. To do what he wants to again and again."
Janice was breathing rapidly now. She sounded genuinely afraid.
Tori said, “I’ve got to go.” She hung up.
Tori’s heart thrummed against her ribcage, a relentless drumbeat that echoed the urgency pulsing through her veins. She kept glancing at the GPS marker on her phone. She neared the location, the darkness enveloping her car like a shroud as she wove through the desolate streets. Each streetlight she passed flickered hesitantly, casting an eerie glow that seemed to mock her quest for answers.
The GPS chimed its final direction, a curt tone that marked the end of her guided journey. Her hands, ghostly under the dashboard lights, gripped the steering wheel.
She skidded down a street, tires leaving rubber on the road.
Tori's heart raced as she arrived at the location where Arty was last seen. The rundown home loomed in front of her, its windows broken and boarded up. The street was deserted, not a soul in sight. She hesitated for a moment, scanning the area for any signs of movement.
The address for the Copperfields was on the street next to this one. The GPS had moved. Arty had moved.
But why here?
As she stepped out of the car, the night air was thick with tension. Tori's instincts were on high alert, every nerve in her body tingling with anticipation. She cautiously approached the entrance of the building, the sound of her own footsteps echoing in the silence.
The door creaked open with a bone-chilling squeal, revealing a dark corridor that seemed to stretch into infinity. Tori took a deep breath and stepped inside, her hand hovering over her weapon.
The interior was as dilapidated as the exterior, debris scattered everywhere and an overpowering stench of decay lingering in the air. Tori moved forward slowly, her eyes darting from corner to corner, searching for any sign of Arty.
Suddenly, a noise echoed through the hallway, a shuffling sound that made Tori freeze in her tracks. She strained her ears, trying to pinpoint the source of the noise. It was coming from further down the corridor.
With cautious steps, Tori advanced towards the sound. Her heart hammered in her chest, the adrenaline coursing through her veins. As she turned a corner, she saw a figure huddled in the shadows.
"Arty?" Tori called out, her voice ringing in the stillness of the building.
The figure stirred but didn't respond. Tori took another step.
Then the figure burst away, scrambling on the ground, the raccoon’s claws skittering as it left behind a bag of trash it had purloined from a neighbor’s yard.
Tori let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding, her heart still racing from the sudden movement. Her nerves were taut, her senses heightened in the darkness. She knew she had to stay focused; Arty might still be nearby.
Moving cautiously, Tori continued down the corridor, her footsteps deliberate and calculated. The beam of her flashlight swept over the debris-strewn floor, casting eerie shadows on the walls. She called out Arty's name again, her voice echoing through the empty building.
A faint sound reached her ears, a muffled murmur that seemed to be coming from a room at the end of the hallway. Tori's grip on her weapon tightened as she approached the door, her pulse pounding in her ears.
With a deep breath, Tori pushed open the door, stepping into the dimly lit room beyond. Her flashlight illuminated a figure huddled in the corner, his back pressed against the wall.
"Arty?" Tori's voice was firm, commanding attention.
The figure looked up, eyes wide with fear and confusion. It wasn’t Arty. It was the woman from the address across the street. Tori recognized her from her DMV photo. Alice Copperfield.
She flashed her badge. “FBI,” she said quickly. “You’re safe. FBI!”
Alice's eyes were filled with a mix of terror and relief as she saw Tori standing in the doorway. Tori noticed the bruises on Alice's arms, the fear etched into her features. She knelt down beside her, trying to assess the situation.
"What happened? Are you okay?" Tori's voice was laced with concern, her mind already racing to connect the dots between Alice and Arty.
Alice hesitated for a moment before speaking, her voice shaky. "He… he was here. He came looking for me."
She knew she had to act fast. "Where is he now? Did he hurt you?"
Alice shook her head, tears glistening in her eyes. "He… he said he needed my help. He was desperate. I didn't know what to do."
Tori helped Alice up, her mind calculating their next move. She needed to find Arty before he caused any more harm. "We have to get out of here. Can you walk?"
Alice nodded, leaning on Tori for support as they made their way towards the door. And just then, a quiet click.
The door was shut.
Tori frowned. She tried the lock.
It wouldn’t open.
A slow, creeping dread crawled down her spine.
She turned to Alice, who was clutching her arm in fear. Tori's mind raced as she assessed the situation. They were trapped, and Arty could be anywhere in the building. Her hand instinctively moved to her weapon, ready for whatever might come their way.
The dim light in the room cast long shadows that seemed to dance ominously around them. Tori guided Alice to a corner, trying to shield her from any potential danger. She whispered reassuring words, hoping to calm the trembling woman.
Suddenly, a creaking noise echoed through the hallway outside the room. Tori's senses sharpened, every nerve on edge as she prepared for what might come next. She gestured for Alice to stay put and cautiously approached the door.
With a deep breath, Tori pressed her ear against the wood, listening intently. The shuffling footsteps grew louder, closer. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, each beat a thunderous drum in the stillness of the building.
As the footsteps stopped just outside the door, Tori braced herself for what was to come.
Her gun pressed against the wood, tense and ready. Her finger on the trigger.
“I recognize you!” a voice suddenly called through the door.
She felt a chill.
“You’re the one who shot my brother…”
“Arty?” Tori said firmly. “Is that you? This doesn’t have to end this way.”
“Did you give Jason that chance?” the voice replied through the door, a sneer curdling the words. “I don’t think so… I was going to just do it to Alice… but now you… You can be buried here too.”
And then came the sound of retreating footsteps.
Buried here? What did he mean?
Tori tensed waiting. But the door remained locked. She tried the handle again. It didn’t budge.
“Buried here?” Alice whispered.
Tori turned. “What is he talking about?”
“I… I don’t know. he was raving. Ranting. my children!” Alice said hurriedly. “They’re at home! Did he hurt them?”
Tori shook her head. “Not his MO.”
Alice was trembling. “He said he was going to make an earthquake of his own.”
“W-what?”
Alice just shrugged. “He’s insane. He came for me when my husband was at work. I—I don’t know what to do! Is the door really locked?” her voice was trembling. She reached out and tried the door herself.
It still wouldn’t budge.
Tori's mind raced as she considered their options. They were trapped, with the threat of Arty looming over them. She knew she had to keep Alice calm, to think clearly in this moment of crisis. But the mention of Alice's children being at home ignited a new sense of urgency within her.
"We need to find a way out of here," Tori said, her voice steady despite the fear gnawing at her insides. She quickly assessed the room, looking for any possible means of escape. The windows were too high and boarded over, there was no other exit in sight.
Just then, a faint rumbling sound reverberated through the building, causing both women to stop in their tracks.
“It’s a truck,” Tori said suddenly. She spotted the headlights flashing across the window.
"What's he going to do?"
“I don’t know. Nothing good, though,” Tori said.
JAnice’s warning echoed in her mind. Arty had threatened to hurt himself… There was no telling what he was capable of. No telling what he might do to get his perceived vengeance.
Tori had to think fast.
She had to act faster still.
Her hand was still resting on her radio, where she’d been transmitting the conversation. But backup would take time to arrive.
She glanced towards the boarded windows once more, then cursed.
“Help me pry these loose,” she said. And she rushed to the wooden blockade.