Faith didn’t feel like sitting still in the house, so she waited for Slade’s car to disappear around a corner, then led Turk toward the neighborhood park. The night air was chilly, not quite bitingly so but close. Winter was deepening.

Because of the cold and the lateness of the hour, everyone else was inside, so Turk and Faith had the park to themselves. The only sound was the crunch of their feet in the soft snow.

Faith focused on the soft glow of the moonlight on the gentle blanket of snow, the trees rising on either side of the path—close enough to feel cozy but distant enough not to crowd her—and the calm of the winter air. Her mind slowly calmed as well, and after a few minutes, she was able to think about the case without the anxiety that plagued her earlier.

The killer was the key. It always was. Faith needed to determine what the killer’s motive was in order to figure out who the killer was.

The victims were all veterinary doctors, but all involved in very different specialties. Dr. Rachel Summers was a general practice vet. Dr. Lisa Patel was a surgeon. Dr. Mark Chen was primarily an administrator as far as Faith could see and rarely saw patients himself anymore. And Dr. Jessica Lee ran a hospice. Only Patel was guilty of malpractice. The others had clean records.

So why them? Faith didn’t believe it was just a general vendetta against vets. The victims were spread out across the Indianapolis area, miles from each other. They were chosen for a reason, but why? Why them?

She wouldn’t get an answer focusing on the victims. That much was clear.

So she focused on the killer. What did she know about the killer?

This killer preferred poison. That fit with Faith’s hypothesis that these murders were intended as some sort of absolution for the victims. The killer was being almost gentle with them. He—or she; Faith didn’t know if it was a man or a woman—didn’t want them mutilated. He didn’t want them to suffer either. Pentobarbital put people to sleep before it killed them. They had all drifted peacefully away.

Then the killer had staged them carefully and included traditional, or at least traditionally inspired offerings for the afterlife.

So this was a mercy. The killer was trying to help them.

That suggested someone deeply spiritual and someone who believed that somehow, these vets required forgiveness. That led Faith to believe that the killer considered the vets harmful to animals.

The problem was figuring out exactly what harm the killer perceived had been done. Again, it was these vets, these victims, not just any vet. So what had these victims done that made them need absolution?

She heard footsteps behind her and stilled. Turk turned around and wagged his tail. That meant it was probably someone friendly.

Jacob’s voice confirmed that a moment later. “Hey, Faith. I saw you walking away instead of coming inside. Thought I’d join you.”

He’d called her Faith, not Staff Sergeant. That meant he knew she was upset.

Yeah, that or the fact that you walked away instead of coming inside.

“Sounds good,” she replied.

They continued down the path. To their right, bright blue, green and red lights twinkled. It occurred to Faith that Christmas was only a few weeks away. It was hard to be in a festive spirit when she spent most of her time solving vicious murders.

“Except these murders aren’t vicious.”

“What’s that?”

“Oh.” Heat climbed Faith’s cheeks. “Sorry, Jacob. I didn’t realize I said that out loud.”

“No need to apologize. I can tell you’re upset. You want to talk about it? I’m not a detective, but I’m a lot better of a listener than you grunts ever gave me credit for.”

Faith chuckled. Then she sighed. “I’m just having trouble figuring out why.”

“Why the killer chose these victims?”

“Yes. It doesn’t make sense. I mean, it does make sense. I just have to figure out what sense it makes.”

“What do you think?”

“I think it’s atonement of some sort.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Atonement? Like he’s sacrificing them to save his sins?”

“Not his sins. Or her sins. Poison is usually a woman’s choice of weapon. Then again, this kind of ritualistic display of the body is usually a characteristic of male killers. Anyway, the killer’s not saving his or her own sins. This is redemption for the victims.”

“The victims? Why?”

“That’s what I need to figure out. They’re all found in pet cemetery’s in the middle of a ring of stones with a jar of honey and a bottle of wine next to their heads and sunflowers on their eyes.”

“Damn. Freaky.”

“Yes, but very gentle.”

He chuckled. “I’ve never heard a serial killer described as gentle before.”

“This one was, though,” Faith insisted. “He injected them with a sedative that put them to sleep before they died. He arranged them carefully at rest and then gave them an offering to provide the spirits. At least, I think that’s what the honey and wine are for. I looked it up, and those were traditional Celtic adornments. They’re meant for the deceased to enjoy in the afterlife, but the sunflowers on the eyes remind me of the Greek practice of placing coins placed on the eyes of the dead as a bribe to the ferryman who transported their souls to Hades.”

“Hmm. So the killer thinks he’s what? Rescuing them from themselves.”

“That’s my hypothesis. I just don’t know why them . Why Rachel Summers? Why Lisa Patel? Why Mark Chen, and why Jessica Lee?”

“I’m guessing you’ve gone through the obvious stuff: did they know each other, were they screwups, did a patient see all of them…”

“That’s what we’re checking on now. Slade’s got people looking to see if there was a patient who saw all of these doctors. Normally, that’s where we’d get our big break, but… I don’t feel so confident about that this time.”

“That sucks. I’m really sorry.”

She chuckled bitterly. “Yeah, me too. But sorry doesn’t change shit.”

“I know. I’m not making excuses. I’m just saying I feel bad that you have to deal with this. This sounds like a case that’s going to be very difficult to resolve.”

“That’s what scares me. This guy’s killing people fast. Four victims in four days. Two of them last night. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was killing someone right now.” She shivered at that thought. “And I’m still on the outside. I have the basic outline of a motive, but I don’t have the details I need to really understand what his purpose is with these deaths.”

“That sucks even more. I don’t suppose it would help if I told you that you’re doing the right thing no matter what your superiors think.”

“That’s another thing,” Faith said. “My superiors know what I’m doing now.”

Jacob’s eyes widened. “Oh, shit.”

“Oh shit is right,” Faith replied. “My new ASAC flew all the way out here to tell me that I was a terrible agent who didn’t care about any of my colleagues and I’d thrown them all under the bus by helping with this case.”

“Ouch. I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Me too. She also said I’m fired if she catches me freelancing again.”

Jacob pursed his lips. “Not to be an asshole, but isn’t that exactly what you’re still doing?”

“I can’t not help people, Jacob. I can’t just let people die because I might get in trouble.”

“Hmm… Have you thought about her perspective, though? She has the big picture to consider. She can’t just focus on this case.”

Faith bristled a little but reminded herself that there was no way Jacob could be expected to understand what he was saying. “I understand her perspective perfectly. I just don’t agree with it. I don’t get why we have to cater to so many interests aside from the public we’re supposed to protect. What happened to just doing our jobs and catching bad guys and letting the media think whatever it wants?”

He smiled wryly. “I think you’re confusing Hollywood with real life. In real life, letting the media think whatever it wants can be really dangerous.”

She sighed. “You sound just like her.”

"I know. I'm sorry. I shouldn't play devil's advocate. It just goes back to the conversation we had when you first took this case. You're a Marine, Faith. You're a grunt. Marines don't run from fights, they run toward fights. Officers have more to consider than just kill all bad guys. I guarantee you that your Boss is just as miserable trying to figure out how to manage the media as you are trying to figure out the mind of your killer and just as terrified that the media will crucify her and the rest of the Bureau as you are that the killer will strike again."

“Well, those are bullshit priorities. I don’t care if she’s brass. We should have no other purpose than protecting people.”

“There’s more to protection than just shooting bad guys, Faith.”

She looked sideways at him. “You know, you’re shit at making me feel better, First Sergeant.”

He chuckled. “Yeah. I know. I’m much better at reminding people that shit sucks than I am about hiding the shit. But I’ve found that when you can accept things for what they are, you have an easier time handling them. Even if what they are is… well, shit.”

Faith looked ahead. “I guess I’ve never gotten around to accepting that some things are shit.”

They were nearing the other side of the park now. The air was rapidly getting chilly enough to make Faith uncomfortable. Turk looked fine, but Turk always looked fine. Sometimes, Faith wished she could borrow a little of his ability to accept things the way they were.

“What more is there?” she asked.

“Hmm?”

"You said there's more to protecting people than just shooting bad guys. What more is there? If you remove the things that put people in danger, then they're safe, right? So what more is there to protect people than making them safe from the things that want to hurt them?"

He shrugged. “A lot of things. Sometimes there are things that hurt them by accident. Seatbelts protect people from car accidents. Cars don’t want to hurt people. Engines don’t want to blow up. They just do sometimes. Other times, you have to protect people from themselves. Like not letting your teenager drink and go out alone late at night. I'm not saying that your Boss is doing any of those things. I'm just pointing out that there's more to consider than just stopping predators."

Faith’s brow furrowed. Something danced around the edges of her mind. She couldn’t quite place it, but if she could just get it to coalesce in her head…

“Protecting people from themselves. I think you’re onto something there.”

“You think this killer is protecting the victims from themselves.”

“Yes. I think so. It’s not just absolution. It’s protection. That’s what the stones are for. It’s a shield against punishment. And the honey and wine are peace offerings. And the sunflowers… that symbolizes understanding. Exiting the night and stepping into the day. It’s a symbol of showing the victims why what they were doing is dangerous. Or maybe showing other people why what the victims did was dangerous.”

She quickened her pace as her mind tried to work out the details. “It’s not a perfect hypothesis, but I think I’m heading in the right direction. The killer is trying to save these victims from themselves while also warning the world not to make the same mistakes they made and get themselves hurt the same way.”

“That makes a macabre kind of sense.”

“Yeah. I need to talk to Slade. I think we need to look at people who haven’t been personally wronged but have a philosophical disagreement with the victims.”

“I leave it to your expertise, Staff Sergeant. Just so you know, though, I’ll be taking fifteen percent of the credit. Just because.”

She grinned. “I’ll allow you twenty percent of the credit, First Sergeant. Maybe twenty-one.”

He laughed. “Sounds good, Bold. Good luck.”

Faith broke into a jog back to the house, leaving Jacob behind to make his way slowly. Turk bounded along with her, looking hopefully at her as they ran. On the way, she texted Slade to meet her at a café in downtown Carmel and be ready to work. He replied a moment later that he hadn’t stopped working and would be happy to have someone else to feel miserable with him.

Faith sent a thumbs up, but she didn’t feel miserable anymore. It would be a stretch to say she felt hopeful, but she no longer felt trapped.

That was a good start.