| NINETY-SIX |

| 5 : 4 5 AM |

WHEN THE MIRROR TURNED FULLY, AND A PAIR OF WALL SCONCES blazed to life, Jessica took a few cautious steps forward, her weapon lowered. She came face-to-face with the young woman whose image she had seen in the mirror.

“You’re going to be all right,” Jessica said. “I’m a police officer. I’m here to help you.”

“I understand.”

“What’s your name?”

The girl stepped fully into the light. “My real name is Graciella,” the girl said. “Some people know me as Lilly.”

Graciella, mi amor, Jessica thought. It all began to make sense. She recalled the diary.

I still hide. I hide from my life, my obligations. I watch from afar.

Those tiny fingers. Those dark eyes.

These are my days of grace.

“Okay,” Jessica said. She knew who she was talking to. “We have to leave. Now.”

Graciella didn’t move. “This man? This man who lives here?”

“What about him?”

“He calls himself Mr. Ludo, but his real name is Joseph Swann. He killed my mother. Her name was Eve Galvez. I’m going to kill him.”

The girl held up a yellowed piece of paper. It looked like an old blueprint. “I got this from a friend of mine,” she said. “Old guy. Wicked weird, wicked old. He used to be a magician, but his insane fucking son has kept him locked in a room for the past twenty years.” She unfolded the paper. “There are things you should know about this house. Every room has a secret entrance and a secret exit to somewhere else.”

“What are you talking about?” Jessica asked. “Let’s go.”

Graciella handed her the paper—the slight shake in her hands betraying her calm demeanor—then stepped away. “I’m not going with you. I’m not ready to leave yet.”

“What do you mean you’re not ready? Where is Joseph Swann? Where is he right now?”

Graciella ignored the question. “There’s one more trick to come. It’s called the Fire Grotto.” The girl stepped back. She reached out and touched the switch plate on the wall, then touched her foot to the baseboard. “You’ve got to understand. I cannot let this rest. I will not let this rest. I’m going to kill him.”

Graciella kicked the baseboard. To Jessica’s left and right a pair of partitions dropped from the ceiling. She was suddenly enclosed in a six-by-six room. The only light was from the beam of her Maglite.

Jessica was alone.