“That car was outside our house last night.”
The room fell silent.
Bear felt the blood drain from his face.
“Last night?”
She nodded.
“I saw it through the window.”
“Did you tell your mom?”
“Yes.”
“What did she say?”
“She told me to stay away from the windows.”
Bear looked at Mason.
Mason was already reaching for his phone.
They moved Lily away from the window and closed the curtains.
Bear sat beside her.
“You did the right thing telling us.”
Lily gripped her stuffed rabbit.
“Are they going to find me?”
Bear looked directly at her.
“They might try.”
Her face crumpled.
He continued before fear could take hold.
“But now they have to get through all of us.”
Lily looked toward the hallway.
“Even the man with the gray hair?”
Bear followed her gaze.
Doc stood outside the room, speaking quietly into his phone.
“Yes,” Bear said. “Even him.”
But as he said the words, he wondered whether he could still make that promise.
The detective arrived shortly after ten.
His name was Daniel Price, a man in his early forties with tired eyes, a plain dark jacket, and the calm manner of someone accustomed to walking into situations where people were frightened and nobody agreed on what had happened.
He showed Bear his identification, asked to speak with Lily in the presence of a trusted adult, and arranged for another officer to begin checking on Sarah Bennett.
Bear watched carefully as Price spoke with the girl.
The detective did not rush her. He did not interrupt when she struggled to remember a detail. He asked simple questions and gave her time to answer.
When Lily described the black SUV, Price wrote down everything she could remember.
When she explained the note hidden inside her brace, he asked whether she would allow him to photograph it.
Lily looked at Bear.
Bear nodded.
“Only if you're comfortable with it.”
She agreed.
Price photographed the note and the two pictures, then examined the date on the newer photograph.
“Eleven days ago,” he murmured.
“That's what it says,” Bear replied.
Price looked at him.
“Do you recognize the location?”
“No.”
“The woman?”
“No.”
“And the man?”
Bear's jaw tightened.
“My younger brother.”
Price looked up.
“You said he was deceased.”
“I was told he was.”
The detective paused.
“Have you seen an original death certificate?”
“Yes.”
“Do you have a copy?”
Bear reached into his vest and took out a folded document he had carried for years. He had brought it to the diner because Sarah had placed a copy inside Lily's backpack, but he still kept the original in a small envelope in his motorcycle saddlebag.
He handed it over.
Price studied the document carefully.
“Where was your brother treated?”
“St. Vincent Regional Hospital in western Pennsylvania.”
“Did you personally see him after the accident?”
“No.”
“Did you identify his body?”
“No.”
“Were you present when the death certificate was issued?”
“No.”
“Did you attend a funeral?”
“No.”
Price looked up.
“Why not?”
Bear felt the old grief returning.
“His wife said she wanted a private burial. The hospital said the injuries had been severe. The county office said everything had been handled according to procedure.”
“And you accepted that?”
Bear's voice became rough.
“I didn't accept it. I eventually ran out of people willing to answer my questions.”
Price looked back at the paperwork.
“That's not the same thing.”
“No,” Bear said. “It isn't.”
The detective turned the document over.
He studied the lower section, then frowned.
“Do you recognize this signature?”
Bear leaned forward.
At the bottom of the death certificate was a physician's name.
Dr. Raymond Mercer.
Bear felt a strange coldness settle over him.
He looked toward the hallway.
Doc was still outside.
Price followed his gaze.
“Is there a connection?”
Bear didn't answer immediately.
“Ray Mercer,” he said at last. “We call him Doc. He's been riding with us for seventeen years.”
Price looked at the signature again.
“Is he a physician?”
“He worked in emergency medicine in Pennsylvania years ago.”
“Where?”
“I don't know the exact hospital.”
“Does he use the name Raymond Mercer professionally?”
“Not anymore.”
Price took a photograph of the signature with his phone.
“I'm going to need to verify this.”
Bear nodded.
“Do that.”
The detective looked toward the room's door.
“Where is he now?”
“Outside.”
Price stood.
“Please ask him to join us.”
Bear did not move.
“Before you do that, I need to tell you something.”
Price waited.
“I trust him.”
The detective's expression remained neutral.
“But?”
Bear looked at the death certificate.
“But I trusted my brother's death certificate, too.”
Price nodded once.
“Then we'll verify both.”
He walked into the hallway.
Bear remained beside Lily.
She was watching him.
“Are you scared?” she asked.
Bear looked down at her.
He considered giving her the usual answer, the one adults gave children when they didn't want to admit that the world could frighten them.
Instead, he chose honesty.
“Yes.”
Lily hugged her rabbit closer.
“Me too.”
Bear put an arm around her shoulders.
“That's all right.”
She looked up.
“Can you be scared and still help?”
Bear felt something shift inside him.
“Yes, sweetheart.”
He gave her a gentle squeeze.
“Sometimes that's the only way anybody gets anything important done.”
By eleven thirty, the diner had become an unofficial command center.
The owner had closed the back room to ordinary customers. Two officers were checking the street cameras. Mason was coordinating with the riders, and Cole had managed to obtain a clearer view of the SUV's license plate from a traffic camera near the intersection.
Doc had been questioned separately.
He denied signing the death certificate.
He also denied knowing that Michael was alive.
Price had not arrested him, but the detective had made it clear that he intended to verify every statement.
Bear found Doc standing beside the motorcycles.
The older rider was staring at the pavement.
“Did you sign it?” Bear asked.
Doc looked up.
“No.”
“Do you know who did?”
“No.”
“Then why did you look like you recognized the signature?”
Doc rubbed a hand over his face.
“Because I recognize the name.”
Bear waited.
“Raymond Mercer was my legal name when I worked in Pennsylvania. I used it on my medical paperwork. I haven't used it professionally in years.”