Christine, it’s Alex/I said. I had butterflies in my stomach/I hate V^to bother you like this. It’s important or I wouldn’t call.’That was sure the truth. God, I hadn’t wanted to make this call.  ‘Is little Alex okay?’she asked.’Is it Nana?’
‘No, no. Everybody’s fine.’I told a half-truth.  There was a brief, uncomfortable silence. Christine and I had been engaged to be married. She was the one who had broken it off, because she couldn’t handle my life as a homicide detective. Too many bad scenes just like this one.
‘Alex, this isn’t good news, is it? Geoffrey Shafer? Is he back in the country?’ she asked. She sounded afraid and I felt for her. Geoffrey Shafer had kidnapped her.
‘No, this isn’t about Shafer.’
I told her about Kyle Craig. She knew him, liked Kyle, and I could tell she felt violated. She had been hurt badly by the monsters I had met in my work. She couldn’t completely forgive me for that, and I didn’t blame her much. I couldn’t forgive myself sometimes. Talking to Christine made me remember how much I’d loved her. Probably still did.
‘Is there somewhere safe you can stay for a while? It’s important that you go there,’ I finally said. ‘I hate to do this to you. Kyle is extremely dangerous, Christine.’
‘Oh, Alex. I came out here to be safe. I felt I was safe, but now you’re back in my life.’
She said she would stay with somebody she trusted, a friend. I asked Christine not to say who or where it was over the phone.  When she hung up, she was crying. I felt so bad for her; so terrible about what had happened. The call brought back everything that was wrong between us.
I kept calling people I cared about. I talked to everyone I could think of who had had some contact with Kyle.
I called Jamilla next. My excuse was that I wanted to remind her to be careful - even now. But I think I just wanted to talk to her. She’d been in on so much of this. Unfortunately, she was out when I called.  I left a message that I was worried about her, and to please be careful.
I warned a few detective friends - Rakeem Powell and Jerome Thurman - who were still on the DC force. I doubted Kyle would go
after them, but I didn’t know for sure.
I phoned my chief contact at the Washington Post, a .writer named Zachary Scott Taylor. Zach was also one of ............