Lansing sat down at his desk listening to the chair groan underneath him.  He hated the feeling that he was missing something most of all.  Ten women don't just come up missing.  Not in Las Vegas.  Something weird was going on.  He scrubbed his eyes, trying to will the tiredness away.  He hadn't sleep in two days and two agonizingly slow nights.  He couldn't.  His mind was picking at the mother of all bones.  Miguel Sanchez was in prison but, he couldn't shake the feeling this had something to do with him.

He sighed and picked up the notebook that he got from his father the day he graduated from college.  It was worn alright but, as long as it held together, he would keep it.  He shook his head.  This was not the time to start down that road.  He had a case to solve.

Ten missing women.  The first, 22 year old Nuri Tyson, came up missing one month ago from the parking lot of Downtown Cafe.  People don't just disappears but somehow, she did.  The cafe was full of its usual Friday crowd and she still managed to vanish without a trace.  Then, there was 26 year old Maija Selestino, a nurse with two daughters who left for work and has never been heard from since.  Gehanna Scholl, Deyanira Talbot, Cindy Luiz, Kira Blake, and Nona Flores - all women from different backgrounds who seemingly have nothing more in common other than the fact that their families were going mad with grief at the prospect of finding out their loved ones won't be coming home. 

Then, there's the case of Sonya Sanchez.  He couldn't help but feel her murder and the murder of her son tied in to all of this put, he couldn't figure out how.  Lansing was stumped and he didn't like being stumped.

He was about to get up for his fourth cup of coffee when the phone rang.  He snatched the receiver up off its cradle.

"Lansing."

"Franco, it's me."

"I thought you didn't want to talk to me."  He picked up a pencil form his desk top and rolled it angrily between his fingers.

"I never said I didn't want to talk to you."

"Oh, right.  You let Methra do that."

"Franco, stop!  You need to call Lindsey!"

"Lindsey is in school, why would I call her?"

"Just call her, for God's sake, Franco!"  I nearly screamed into the phone.

"Fine!  I'll call her!  But, when I call you back, you better take my call and you better have a damn good explanation for having me call my daughter while she's in class!"

I hung up on him without replying.  

I had a damn good reason alright only, how was I supposed to tell him that I was making him call his daughter because I had the overwhelming feeling she was in danger? 

Oh God, please, let me get there in time.

I tapped the steering wheel and fished in and out of traffic like a mad woman, glancing repeatedly in the rear view mirror, hoping a cop didn't fall in behind me.  

Paige.  I couldn't think about her, if I did, I would wrap my car around a tree and my daughter and Franco's daughter would never be heard from again.  I felt the tears so near the surface as well as the hysteria creeping around their edges just waiting for them to fall so it could take over. 

Please, please let me be wrong.  Please.

I replayed the last thing I said to her.  Be a woman.  She called me to ask for her mother's help and I told her to be a woman.  Jesus, what if that's the last thing I get to say to my baby?

I slammed my hand down on the steering wheel.  I know I cannot allow myself to start thinking like this.  At this moment, what I wanted to do most was apologize to every mother I accused of being too soft on their kids.  If I get to Kenton and Paige is there waiting for me, I swear I'll never yell at her.  I'll never be impatient with her.  I'll never......

never........... 

Oh God, I promise, never.....

My cellphone rang and I picked it up, unable to stop the flood of tears or the terror in my voice.

"Franco?  Franco, please tell me you got in touch with Lindsey."

"Her phone is going straight to voice mail."  He stopped, "Adara, are you crying?"  His voice instantly filled with concern.

"Franco, he has my baby."  I managed before I broke down completely.

"What are you talking about?  Who has Paige?  Where's Lindsey?"

"You have to meet me at Kenton, Franco.  I'll explain when you get there."

"Please don't tell me this has anything to do with all those missing women or the Flores' murder."  He begged quietly, feeling all of the strength drain from his body.

"I don't know, Franco.  Please, just meet me at Kenton.  I'm almost there."

"I'm on my way."  He promised and hung up.

I wiped away tears only so I could see well enough to drive.  I hurt from my head to my toes because I did know.  The same man who killed Nona Flores has my daughter.  He has my daughter and he has Lindsey.

"Oh God Franco.  Hurry."  I whispered and stepped down on the gas pedal.    

I arrived at Kenton, a private school on the outskirts of East Las Vegas, and skidded to a stop in front of the administration building.  I grabbed my purse and ran into the low lying building and down the hall to the main office.  Samantha Corren, Kenton's lone admininistrative assistant looked up from her typing and was about to smile until she saw my tear stained face.

"Doctor Davis?  Are you alright?"

"Paige.  Where is she?"

"She wasn't feeling well and she said you couldn't pick her up so, I think her father came to get her."

"Oh my God!"  I sobbed.

"Is everything alright, Doctor Davis?"

"No!"  I shrieked loud enough to bring Principal Barrington out of his office, "No, everything is not alright!  My daughter's father died three years ago.  Don't you read your student's files?!"

I ran out of the office before either of them could recover from their shock.  I opened the door leading to the outside and ran headlong into Franco.  I fell into his arms and allowed the hysteria to take hold.

"Adara!  Adara! What's happening?  I went to Lindsey's fourth period teacher, Mrs. Newson, and she told me Lindsey left school.  I guess she's not feeling well.  What's going on?"

"He has our daughters, Franco.  He has them!  I know he does!"

"Who?  What are you talking about?"

Just then, a piercing scream filled the air and Franco and I turned to find the source of the sound.  Lindsey Lansing was being forced into the back of a black van.

"Lindsey!" 

The girl whirled around, then screamed, "Daddy!"

I ran with Franco by my side knowing we were too far away to get to the van before the killer sped off with the girls.  Still, I had to make sure he heard me, I had to because, if I didn't start screaming at the top of my lungs right now, both our daughters would be killed.

"They didn't mean to dishonor us!"  I shrieked.  "Please, they're just little girls, they didn't mean to dishonor us!"

The killer, stopped and turned.  He looked at me for only a moment but, what I felt chilled my heart.  He meant to kill them.  God help me, he meant to kill them both!

While we were still too far away to even make out the van's license plate number, the killer got behind the wheel of the van and pulled away.  I grabbed Franco's arm and he stopped running.

"Come on, Franco!"  I cried out, pulling him toward my car.  "We can't let them get away!"

"Adara, what's going on?"  He asked, "Why did that nutcase just take our daughters?"

"They lied."  I said as fresh tears ran down my cheeks.  "Paige called me and told me she got her period and wanted to come home.  She and Lindsey must have been planning to skip school and the killer must have overheard them.  He called me back on Paige's cellphone but, all he said was, 'honor thy mother and father'.  Oh God, Franco, he's going to kill them for not honoring us."  I began to sob.

"Jesus Christ."  Franco whispered helplessly.

When we got to my car, I threw him the keys and got in on the passenger side.  He jumped in behind the wheel, reved the engine and pulled out onto the deserted boulevard.

"He's heading out of town on 70."  I said after a moment of deep concentration and gut wrenching abdominal pain.

"How...."

"Don't ask!"  I ordered impatiently, "Drive!"

But, just as we pulled in behind the van on the traffic congested freeway, my cellphone rang.  My guts churned and I grabbed my abdomen with one hand and my phone with the other.

"Paige?"

"Remember the Power of Nine?"  The killer spoke calmly into her ear.

"The power of Nine?  Norse mythology?"  I shuddered, "Yes, I remember."

"Good girl, Adara.  I taught you well.  Now, honor your father that your days may be long upon the earth."  He instructed her patiently and hung up the phone.

"Stop the car."  I said, feeling horror and realization mingling in my stomach.

"Why, you said so yourself, we can't let him get away."

"Stop the car!"  I shrieked into his face.  "Stop!  Now!"

Franco Lansing pulled the car to the side of the road and then looked at me for a full minute before he spoke.

"Why the hell did you just stop me from following him, Adara?  Why would you stop me from following him?"

"The women he killed.  Their names.  Why didn't I see it before?  Nuri - fire.  Maija -Ice.  Lani- Heaven.  Gehenna - hell.  Asaya - Creation.  Deyanira - Destruction.  Cindy - light.  Kira - darkness.  Nona stands for nine, the number for judgement and that would leave Sunya - the void."

"Sunya, like Sonya?" Franco turned so she could read the shocked expression on his face.

"I suppose it's the closest you'll get to Sunya in modern times, why?"

"Sonya Sanchez.  She's the murder victim I've been obsessing about. 

"It can't be Dan." 

"Dan?  Dan who?"  Franco demanded, "Adara, what the hell are you talking about?"

"Norse mythology.  He taught me everything I know about it."  I looked at Franco with tears swimming in my eyes.  "I know who has the girls, Franco.  I know who has Paige and Lindsey."