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“Call Harold over.”

“You heard him, Newt,” I said.

The man never argued. “Hey, Harold, can you come over here a second?”

Harold sighed, snapping the cell phone shut. “What is it now, Newt?” He was almost even with Edward when he noticed that Newt’s gun was gone. I was still hidden behind the larger man’s body; even the blade was hidden in the cloth of his pants. “What the hell?”

Bernardo pulled one of the gold chopsticks out of his hair, and it was a blade that ended in Harold’s arm. Edward hit him in the gut, doubled him over, and disarmed him. He stood over him with the rifle. Olaf and Bernardo were on their feet. I don’t know what the plan would have been next because we heard the sirens. Police sirens.

“Did you call the cops, Harold?” Edward asked.

“Don’t be an ass,” Harold said.

“Anita,” Edward said.

“I didn’t call them. I’ve still got a .45 pointed at you, Newt. Don’t get cute.” But I withdrew the blade very carefully and stood up. I kept his gun pointed at his back, but I was beginning to doubt I’d have to shoot anybody. The sirens were almost here.

The three guys came out of the house with their guns in plain sight. They looked to Harold, saw him on the ground, and Edward had the rifle to his shoulder and was sighting down the barrel at them. Their eyes flicked to the cops coming at a fast pace, and back to Edward. They threw their guns down and laced their fingers on their heads without being told. I doubted it was the first time they’d had to do it.

It was an unmarked car with a marked car following it. They skidded to a stop on opposite sides of the black truck and four cops spilled out. Lieutenant Marks, Detective Ramirez, and two uniforms I didn’t know. They had guns pointed but looked a little unsure who the bad guys were. Couldn’t blame them. We had all the guns.

“Detective Ramirez,” I said. “Thank God.”

“What’s going on?” Marks said, before Ramirez could answer me.

Edward told them that Harold and his men had jumped us and were trying to question us about the mutilation murders. Marks found that fascinating. Edward had known he would. Yes, Ted Forrester would press assault charges. Any good citizen would. There were enough handcuffs to go around, barely.

“There are two more out there somewhere,” Edward said in his best helpful voice.

“There’s one unconscious in the wash that way,” I said.

Everyone looked at me. I didn’t have to pretend to be uncomfortable. “He was chasing me. I thought they were going to kill the others.” I shrugged and winced. “He’s alive.” It sounded like an excuse even to me.

They called for more men to search the area. They called for an ambulance for Harold, Newt, and Russell, when they found him. I’d sat down on the ground, waiting for everyone to do their jobs. I was using both hands to prop myself up. Now that the emergency seemed to be over, I wasn’t feeling so good.

Marks was yelling at me. “You left the hospital against doctor’s orders! I don’t give a damn, but I want a statement. I want to know exactly what happened at that hospital.”

I looked up at him, and he seemed to be taller than he was, farther away somehow. “Are you saying that all the lights and sirens were because you were mad at me for not giving a statement before I left the hospital?”

A flush spread up his face, and I knew that that was exactly it. One of the uniforms called, “Lieutenant.”

“I want that statement today.” He turned and walked away. I hoped he stayed there.

Ramirez knelt beside me. He was wearing his usual, shirtsleeves rolled back, a striped tie at half-mast, around an open collar. “You all right?”

“No,” I said.

“I went to the hospital today, and you were already gone. That night, the elevator had been turned off because of the fire alarms. I had to double back and get the stairs, and come up behind you. That’s why I was late. That’s why I wasn’t there for you.” For it to be almost the first thing out of his mouth, it must have been bugging him. I liked that.

I managed something close to a smile. “Thanks for telling