Rhyme was about to turn to the whiteboards when he glanced at the webcam window.
Something had changed.
He frowned and maneuvered his chair closer, alarmed.
Someone else seemed to be in Sachs's town house. Could it be? It was hard to tell for certain but as he squinted he saw that, yes, a man was there, hiding in a dark hallway, only twenty feet or so from Pam.
Rhyme squinted, moving his head as far forward as he could. An intruder, his face hidden by a hat. And he was holding something. Was it a gun? A knife?
"Thom!"
The aide wasn't within earshot. Of course, he was taking the trash out.
"Command, dial Sachs, home."
Thank God the ECU did exactly as instructed.
He could see Pam glance at the phone beside the computer. But she ignored the ringing; the house wasn't hers--she'd let voice mail take a message. She continued speaking into her mobile.
The man leaned out of the hallway, his face, obscured by the brim of his hat, aimed directly at her.
"Comma
nd, instant message!"
The box popped up on the screen.
"Command, type: 'Pam exclamation point.' Command, send."
"Pamex lamentation point."
Fuck!
"Command, type, 'Pam danger leave now.' Command, send."
This message went through pretty much unchanged.
Pam, read it, please! Rhyme begged silently. Look at the screen!
But the girl was lost in her conversation. Her face was no longer so carefree. The discussion had turned serious.
Rhyme called 911, and the operator assured him that a police car would be at the town house in five minutes. But the intruder was only seconds away from Pam, who was completely unaware of him.
Rhyme knew it was 522, of course. He'd tortured Malloy to get information about all of them. Amelia Sachs was the first on the list to die. Only it wouldn't be Sachs. It would be this innocent girl.
His heart was pounding, a sensation registering as a fierce, throbbing headache. He tried the phone again. Four rings. "Hi, this is Amelia. Please leave your message at the tone."
He tried again. "Command, type, 'Pam call me period. Lincoln period.' "
And what would he tell her to do if he got through? Sachs had weapons in the place but he didn't know where she kept them. Pam was an athletic girl, and the intruder didn't seem much larger than she was. But he'd have a weapon. And, given where he was, he could get a garrote around her neck or a knife into her back before she was even aware of his presence.
And it would happen before his eyes.
Then at last she was swiveling toward the computer. She'd see the message.
Good, keep turning.
Rhyme saw a shadow on the floor across the room. Was the killer moving in closer?