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after they were killed so we may get lucky.”
     
     
     
    The ME’s business-like rundown of the situation helped Steve slip into his professional detective role, something he badly needed right then. His own kids were about the same ages as the ones that’d died here.
     
     
     
    “Okay, thanks. How much longer do you think you guys’ll be here?”
     
     
     
    “We’re almost done. Forensics will probably be another two or three hours.”
     
     
     
    “Swell, thanks.”
     
     
     
    Steve sighed. Right now he needed to stay out of the way of the MEs and forensics team. This was a middle-class complex and a bizarre killing with enough registered voters within easy reach to sway an election – they’d be allowed to go over it with a fine toothed comb.
     
     
     
    “Get me the report as soon as you’ve got it, okay?”
     
     
     
    “Sure. I’ll email you whatever I have by the end of the day. I’ll probably have the full workup by the end of next week.”
     
     
     
    He hated the delay, but going faster wouldn’t bring these people back. And odds were that the killer wasn’t going to strike again soon.
     
     
     
    “Thanks,” he said.
     
     
     
    * * *
     
     
     
    Joe put his best comforting face on and tried to project as much reassurance as he could. He didn’t have much experience with kids, but in his years in HR he’d had to deal with hysterical employees, psychotic episodes, stalking ex-husbands, and had once helped deliver a baby. He hoped he could handle this.
     
     
     
    “Hey there,” he said quietly. The girl shrank back as far as she could, trapped between the building, the trunk of the rhododendron bush, and Joe. He saw her shivering. Her fear was palpable.
     
     
     
    “My name’s Joe. What’s your name?”
     
     
     
    The girl just looked at him mutely.
     
     
     
    “Are you hurt? I think I have some…” he wracked his brain for a moment. “Spongebob band-aids.”
     
     
     
    She shook her head ‘no’. Joe wasn’t sure he believed her, but there was too much blood for it all to be hers. Her night dress was covered with it, and while she was terrified, she didn’t look injured. He tried not to think about whose blood it was.
     
     
     
    “That’s good,” he said.
     
     
     
    Joe chose his words carefully. He needed to get her out of there, to the police and ambulance and people who were actually qualified to help. That meant she needed to trust him. Unfortunately he had no idea how to do that with kids.
     
     
     
    “I get scared sometimes you know.” He looked around for a second with exaggerated movements, then leaned in a little. “Don’t tell anyone, but I have a teddy bear,” he whispered. Joe was hoping a little shared embarrassment would help bridge the gap. It didn’t hurt that it was true, and he really didn’t want anyone else to know. Alex was the only other person who knew, and he’d teased Joe once or twice about it.
     
     
     
    He saw her eyes go wide, more from surprise than fear.
     
     
     
    “I know,” he said, nodding. “His name is Mister Squiggles.”
     
     
     
    Joe saw a hint of a smile. “You won’t say anything, will you? He gets all embarrassed when people know. He wants them to think he’s an independent bear.”
     
     
     
    He got a full smile from that. “You’re afraid of something, aren’t you?”
     
     
     
    The smile faded, and she nodded. She was shivering a little. It wasn’t the cold, it was the fear. He could feel it radiating off her, and it turned his stomach a little.
     
     
     
    Joe chose his words carefully. He knew he had to get her out of the bushes. She needed help, but she felt so fragile. He was afraid she’d run if he left, and that she might break if anyone else came too close.
     
     
     
    “Can you tell me what you’re afraid of?”
     
     
     
    She leaned forward, but her voice was so faint he could hardly hear her.
     
     
     
    “Monster,” she whispered.
     
     
     
    He nodded.