He could see Sam had a thing for Melina, so what had she been doing out on the street? Was she trying to help the girls? Was she looking for someone?

He searched her name on the internet and was caught off guard when an article popped with her name and real profession. Melina Shepard. Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

“Holy shit.”

He sat back, feeling as if a lightning bolt had struck him. What had TBI been doing on the street corner that night? He drummed his fingers on his injured leg.

Did they suspect he was in the Nashville area? Had someone actually missed his other girls? Or had it been a fluke? They had to know or suspect something. Random stuff like that did not happen.

He turned to another set of cameras and activated the feeds from his three houses. The first two were as he had left them, isolated and untouched. But the third. “Shit, it’s swarming with cops!”

He touched the screen but drew back as more cops strolled into view. He had been on the property two days ago, and it had been perfectly undisturbed.

He rubbed his thigh. He knew the TBI agent had gotten a good look in his van, and he had enjoyed the first blush of fear and panic in her eyes. But then she had stabbed him, and his temper had exploded. He had assumed she was a streetwise whore, not a cop hunting him.

Since the cancer, he had become very aware of time slipping through his fingers and his eventual loss of control over his life. Perhaps because of the cancer, he was less panicked than he would have been a decade ago. His time might be running out faster now, but he still had enough to make his Vivian submit.

He returned to the Mission’s personnel files, but Melina, who was not a paid employee, was not listed. However, Sam was paid staff, and his contact information was on file.

“Meh-lina.” He liked the sound of the name. Rolled off the tongue. He studied the man’s face. “I bet Sam can tell me where you live.”

If this man did not know where Melina lived, then the lovely Sarah Beckett certainly did. All he had to do was get one of them alone, and given the persuasive skills of a hand drill, either one would be willing to tell him everything he wanted to know about Melina.

Now the question was, Who could he go after first?

When in doubt, set it on fire. Bonnie had used a little harmless arson over the years to create the perfect distractions. Today, she figured she would do the same.

As she slipped into the yard adjacent to the Shepard house, she tried not to think about the money Sonny had spent. Shit. But she should not be surprised. She had raised the boy, and if the shoe had been on the other foot, she would have spent the money.

She kept telling herself that as she opened their trash can. She dumped lighter fluid into the can, stepped back, and tossed in a match. The flames shot upward like a blowtorch onto the adjacent privacy fence.

She walked out the other gate and toward her car, parked across the street. She knew running would draw unwanted attention. Sinking low in her seat, she watched as Mr. Shepard hobbled out of his house with his wife on his trail. Good people were so damn easy to predict.

Mrs. Shepard sprinted as best she could as her husband leaned on crutches with his cell phone pressed to his ear. The water splashed out of the hose, but it was barely enough to contain the growing flames.

When Mrs. Shepard was fully distracted, Bonnie got out of her car and hurried toward the house. Inside the front door, she followed the sound of cartoons and found Elena sitting on the couch eating Goldfish.

“Come on, baby, we got to go,” she said softly.

“Where are we going, BB?” Elena asked.

“Ice cream. I promised you an ice cream. Don’t worry, Mrs. Shepard said it was okay. She said I just need to have you back in about an hour.”

She did not give the girl a chance to answer as she gathered her up off the couch and dashed outside. The difference between Elena and Melina was marked. Melina would have been screaming her head off, whereas Elena was quiet and compliant.

“I don’t want to go,” the child said meekly.

“It’s okay. We’ll be back before you know it.”

“Why is there a fire?”

Bonnie hustled the kid into the car, which was outfitted with a baby seat. She had stolen the car from a shitty apartment complex late last night. Even if the owner had called in the theft, she figured she had a couple of hours before the cops were really looking. That would be plenty for what she had in mind. The car seat strap clicked in place. Bonnie patted the kid on the head and slammed the car door.

In the distance, shouts and alarms blared as Bonnie punched the accelerator and the two took off. Mrs. Shepard had turned her back on Elena for less than five minutes. But for people like Bonnie, five minutes was a lifetime. Hell, in seconds she could swipe a wallet, pinch a purse, or drive off in a stolen car. She had done all those things to near perfection.

Bonnie glanced in the rearview mirror at Elena’s small face, tight with worry. As she drove, she rummaged in a grocery bag where she had stashed a teddy bear. She tossed it toward Elena. It hit the seat beside her.

“I got that for you, baby,” she said. “It’s like your teddy bear.”

“It’s not mine,” Elena pouted. “And I want mine.”

“We won’t be gone long enough for you to miss your bear.” What the hell was that little creature’s name. Jimmy? Timmy?

“Are we really getting ice cream?” Elena asked.

“We are going to see Sonny first,” she said.

She angled the car around a sharp corner and then took another quick turn. By now the Shepards would have realized the fire had been a distraction and Elena was gone. Those two were the type to unleash all sorts of hell in her direction. Just her damn luck that all those years ago Melina had been rescued by the Mod Squad.

“I don’t want to see Sonny,” Elena said. “He has mean eyes.”

“He isn’t mean, kiddo. He’s a big ol’ teddy bear, and if you scratch his tummy, he’ll laugh.” She glanced in the rearview mirror and saw the girl’s frown. No matter. She could scream until she passed out for all she cared. It would be up to Sonny to convince the girl he could be nice, and then the three of them could get on with their lives.

Elena sank down in her seat, staring into the smiling face of the toy bear. “I want Mrs. Shepard.”

“How can you want her, baby? I’ve been taking care of you for almost a year.”

“I don’t want to be in cars anymore,” Elena said. “I don’t like it.”

The kid’s face scrunched up and tears welled in her eyes. Jesus. Not the tears and the screaming. Some of Melina had already rubbed off on this kid.

“I’ll buy you two ice creams, and I’ll have them put a cherry on top just like you like.”

The pouting lip did not tremble as much. “With sprinkles.”

“With sprinkles, baby.”

Elena sniffed.

Like everyone else, the kid had her price. Elena wanted sprinkles. Sonny wanted Elena. Bonnie was sure Sonny could scrape together enough money to keep them all happy for a while.

Melina anxiously awaited Dean Guthrie’s mug shot as her computer came alive. She tapped her fingers on the keys, willing the machine to move faster just as Ramsey stepped into her office.

The home screen was nearly finished populating the icons when her cell phone rang. It was her mother. Her mother was not the type to call in the middle of the day and chat. If her mother called during work hours, she picked up.

“Mom, what’s wrong?” Melina asked as her gaze rose to Ramsey’s.

“Elena is missing. Our neighbor’s trash can caught on fire, and Dad and I went to put it out. I was spraying water on the flames while he called 911. He went back in the house to check on Elena and discovered her gone.”

“Did you hear Elena scream or yell?” Melina asked.

She was doing her best to remain calm and to think like a cop, but Ramsey’s eyes darkened as he closed the distance quickly. He didn’t say a word, but his gaze locked on her like a laser.

“No, I never heard a peep out of her,” her mother said. “The television was still on when I came inside, and her cup of Goldfish was still sitting on the end table.”

“Was there any sign of struggle?”

“No.”

“Could she have gone to a neighbor’s? Are there other children in the neighborhood or someone with a puppy?”

“Not that Elena would have known about.”

The girl had left the house without a sound, and she was nowhere to be found nearby.

“How long has she been gone, Mom?”

“Ten minutes.”

“Have you seen Bonnie again?”

“No.” There was a pause. “But I was distracted by the fire. There was so much confusion.”

“Mom, I think Bonnie must have her,” Melina said. “Bonnie bribed her with something to keep her quiet just long enough to get her out of the house.”

“I can’t believe I was so stupid. I should have known the fire was a decoy.”

“Bonnie’s devious, Mom. And she’s been conning people for decades. You can’t blame yourself for wanting to help.”