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mind…and then everything went dark.

Chapter Six
    “Hey, you okay?”
    Groaning, I opened my eyes only to close them against a bright light. “Hey, would you please get that flashlight out of my face?”
    “Well, you’re alive.”
    Groaning again, I muttered, “Barely.” I should have stayed out a bit longer and gotten some of that much-needed rest. “I take it the bastard got away.”
    “No one here but you, ma’am.”
    Ma’am. At thirty, I wasn’t old enough to be a ma’am. I got to my feet. The process used to be easier. Faster. Maybe I was getting too old to chase probable offenders.
    “Did you see which way he went?”
    “I didn’t see anyone but you as you went down for the count.”
    “The guy I was chasing hit me in the head.”
    “Sorry. Didn’t see him.”
    I got the feeling the officer was having trouble believing me. I looked around, swept my gaze along the riverbank. Nothing moved other than a beaver sliding into the water a few yards away.
    It was as if Snake Eyes had…well, vanished.
    “Want me to call for paramedics?”
    Moving back the way I’d come, I looked through the trees and realized the ambulance was gone. I shook my head. “I’m fine.”
    Not that I was. My head thundered and the rest of me didn’t feel too good, either. I really, really needed a shower and a bed and one of Jake’s special massages. I was determined to at least get the first.
    Thanking the officer for coming after me, I made for my car. I decided to sit for a few minutes to make sure I wasn’t concussed. I checked my eyes in the rearview mirror. Both pupils looked even.
    I tried Silke’s cell. No response. None at her home, either.
    Then I called the CPD to find out what happened to the gang members arrested at Sebastian’s event.
    “They never made it in,” I was told.
    “They escaped?” Not that it was exactly a surprise having come up against Snake Eyes myself. “How?”
    “We don’t know. The officers are getting checked out. They both said the same thing—they had an overpowering sleepy feeling. And the next thing they knew, they woke up with the paddy wagon in the middle of the street. The back was empty and the door had been opened like someone had a key.”
    An unlikely thought entered my mind only for a brief second.
    Or like magic.

Chapter Seven
    That Snake Eyes had something to do with the murder seemed pretty cut and dried.
    What wasn’t clear was why. Lots of whys.
    Why had he been at the riverfront to witness Sebastian’s escape? Why had he used a similar method to copycat the event so quickly? And why Julie Martin?
    The victim didn’t look like she had anything in common with the gang member. If he even was a gang member. That had been my assumption based on the outfits the guys had worn. Could they have been costumes? Part of the performance? Had Sebastian hired them to rob him and then, after they were caught, found a way to free them?
    Again, why?
    So many questions, so little time.
    I hopped on the expressway and headed for home. A bit of a speed freak, I hot-footed the accelerator and opened up the Camaro. The love of speed was my biggest vice. If I got stopped by a state patrolman, I would merely flash my star and explain that I was on a case. Which I was. Nice to have a legitimate excuse to push the limit.
    I tried Silke’s cell again, and when she didn’t answer, called her at home. The clock in my dash told me it was nearly one. Late but not late enough to expect someone out clubbing to give up the ghost.
    As a last resort, I tried our personal communication system. I concentrated my thoughts and used psychic airwaves to jolt my sister into responding, but Silke still didn’t answer. Weird. Either she was ignoring me or she was otherwise occupied.
    What could she be doing that she found more important than letting me in?
    Maybe knowing would be too much information…
    Once off the expressway, I slowed to legal speed. It took only a few minutes to get to my building,