Page 108 of Black to Light

“Angel, Cowboy, Holo, Dog, and Javier were checking the lower floors,” Michelle reported in next. “They’re probably out of range of the local network comms. I know there’s no reception in the parking area, and they were going to check that first.”

“Nick?” Dexter asked. “Anyone have eyes on Nick?”

Black spoke up before anyone else could.

“He’s not here,” he said, blunt. “I sent Tanaka, Mika, and Ace to do recon on Rania Gorren’s house, in case we decided to go forward with the surgery on her tonight. Although that’s a moot fucking point now that we don’t even have the girl,” he growled under his breath.

Black glanced around, seemed to notice the silence, then looked at Dexter. “They’re probably not back yet. They should be soon.”

Kiko’s eyebrows rose. So did Jax’s.

“I want someone to go down and find the downstairs team,” Black said next, before anyone could speak. “They might’ve found something and couldn’t call it in for some reason. I want everyone accounted for… including them.” He waited as Rueben pulled out his phone, then looked at Kiko next. “Call Nick, too, Kiks. See if they’re on their way back. He may not be able to answer, but I think we need to risk it.”

Kiko nodded, once, and pulled out her phone.

She scrolled through, found Nick’s name in her contacts, and hit his cell number.

It didn’t ring, though.

She got a strange beeping noise instead.

“My phone’s not working,” she announced. “Can someone else try?”

“Mine’s not working either,” Rueben said from the corridor.

Black scowled. He’d just yanked his own phone out of his back pocket when Mika suddenly ran into the guest bedroom.

She was wearing all black, her eyes shockingly wide, her face pale. Mika’s boyfriend, the tall Texan human, Ace, ran in behind her, close on her heels.

His eyes looked even wider than hers.

“They’re down in the parking lot!” Mika said loudly, her voice shaking. “We just got back! Nick’s with them––”

“You found what?” Black snapped. “Who?”

“Cowboy, Holo, and Dog,” Ace said, answering for Mika in his deep, Texas-accented voice. “Out cold on the asphalt when we drove in… we nearly ran over them. Nick was trying to revive them when we left. We tried to call the new doctor, Vanessa, and Nick tried calling 9-1-1. None of the phones are working. What thefuck’sgoing on?”

Kiko stared between them, half in disbelief. Neither Ace nor Mika were the panicking type. Seeing them both panic right in front of her was unnerving.

Then she thought of something else.

“What about Angel?” she asked. “You said Cowboy, Holo, and Dog. Angel and Javier should have been there, too. They were all together.”

Ace stared at her, uncomprehending, like she’d been speaking Russian.

He swallowed then, his eyes wide and panicked. “They weren’t there.”

“You’re sure?” Dex asked. “They weren’t in some other part of the garage, or––”

“I’m telling you, they weren’t fucking there!” Ace said.

Kiko felt the blood drain from her face.

Miriam walked forward, stepping between her and Jax. “What do you mean they weren’t there?” she asked Ace, her voice cold. “Did you check everywhere? What about outside?”

Ace blinked at her, almost like he was afraid.

“Nick and Mika looked, doc. Nick smelled Angel, and––”

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