by Robert Pobi
“Well?”
Lemmy’s head tocked back to the left.
“Does he get to stay?”
And then Lemmy nodded, and for a second Lucas bought it. Then he felt like an idiot for anthropomorphizing an organism that would die of thirst before simply lifting the faucet handle—an action he had seen literally thousands of times. Lemmy’s deep learning capabilities were limited. “Well?”
The brute’s tail swished for a beat, paused, then zipped back, and he raised his not-insignificant haunches off the floor. He took a few halting steps, his attention laser-focused on the small snoring beanbag in Lucas’s lap.
“It’s okay, dummy.”
Lemmy’s shoulders went down and he came forward tentatively, sniffing the air in deep, noisy breaths that sounded like a bicycle pump with a faulty seal.
The dog came to the sofa and slowly pushed his nose into Lucas’s lap. He gave the goblin’s disproportionate package a sniff, then nosed his belly.
The puppy squeaked, and Lemmy gave him an exploratory lick.
Then he put his two big paws up on Lucas—one on his good thigh, one on his prosthetic—and rose up over the bulldog to lick his human in the face.
“So he stays?” Lucas asked.
Lemmy let out a happy groan and gave the puppy another taste as the front door opened.
The big dog ran off, and Lucas could hear him being greeted with hugs and kisses and a chorus of Hello, Lemmy!
Lucas tucked the snoring puppy under his arm like a football and cranked up out of the sofa with his new (but temporary!) cane.
Erin and the Maude Squad were back.
As he passed the mirror, he realized he still had to do something about the hair.
Or maybe not.
Acknowledgments
Building a book is never a lone endeavor, and I leaned on a lot of other people during this one. This is certainly not everyone who had a hand in getting me from there to here, but it’s a start.
My editor, Keith Kahla, who is somehow still talking to me. Without his help, this book would have been twice as long and half as fun—he walked me through the daunting task of writing a sequel. He deserves cowriting credit on this one.
My agent, Jill Marr, who I have spent a decade slowly winning over by being continually unreachable. She once again managed all the lunacy so I could focus on the writing—she protects my sanity.
Andrea Cavallero, for getting my work into bookstores around the world. And for never getting angry when I refuse to talk to the movie people. Her belief is one of the bearing walls of my career.
Kelley Ragland, Alice Pfeifer, and the rest of the people at Minotaur Books who scramble around in the thankless job of herding writers. They balance out our madness, and somehow make it fit for consumption—which is no easy task.
Sandra Dijkstra, for putting the arsenal behind me. Without her, this business truly would be a poorer environment. Thank you.
Lieutenant-General Yvan Blondin—RCAF (Ret.), for reading an early draft of the manuscript and giving some very solid editorial suggestions—as both a reader and military pilot. I hope I didn’t screw things up too badly.
Dr. William M. Bass III, the noted forensic anthropologist, for his patient detailing of the effects an explosion has on the human body. Dr. Bass is not only one of the most knowledgeable people in the world on the subject of crime-scene forensics, but he could do stand up comedy—which is not an obvious combination. He is also the textbook definition of a gentlemen.
John Galligan—I’m not sure this particular journey would have made sense to me without all of the fishing trips I’ve taken with Dog. I’m a fan.
Once again, my dear friend Barbara Behr, for helping me work out some of the weirdest problems that writing a novel can present.
Charles Anderson, who once again leaned into the task and gave me excellent suggestions.
Louis Lechasseur, for always answering my 3:00 a.m. emails with thoughtful, well-researched replies. And for not laughing at some of my questions.
Stephen Schettini, for his enduring optimism. And for not giving up.
Christopher Snow, who gives me hope for the future—the world doesn’t build enough people like him.
Robert Côté for his encouragement, sense of humor, and carpentry skills (he also makes a pretty good goberge hoagie).
Kenzo, for helping with the dialogue and always reminding me that he would rather be doing anything other than working on a novel.
My neighbor, Stan, who puts up with everything from burning chicken effigies in my trees to 3:00 a.m. pet grave-digging duty.
All the writers who made this look easy, and have turned out to be the most supportive groups of professionals I could ever imagine being a part of.
My foreign publishers, who have done more for me than I could ever thank them for.
My readers, for taking a risk. Sending a novel out into the world is a very surreal experience, and they make all the late nights banging my head against the keyboard worth it. Thank you. Really.
And once again, I have to thank Rod Whitaker, who made me want to do this.
Also by Robert Pobi
THE LUCAS PAGE NOVELS
City of Windows
American Woman (published in Canada as Harvest)
Bloodman (published in Canada as Eye of the Storm)
Mannheim Rex
About the Author
ROBERT POBI is the internationally bestselling author of four previous novels, including the first book in the Lucas Page series, City of Windows. He divides his time between the United States and Canada.
Visit the author’s website at www.robertpobi.com, or sign up for email updates here.
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Epigraphs
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
Chapter 76
Chapter 77
Chapter 78
Chapter 79
Chapter 80
Chapter 81
Chapter 82
Chapter 83
Chapter 84
Chapter 85
Chapter 86
Chapter 87
Chapter 88
Chapter 89
Chapter 90
Chapter 91
Chapter 92
Chapter 93
Chapter 94
Chapter 95
Chapter 96
Chapter 97
Chapter 98
Chapter 99
Chapter 100
Chapter 101
Chapter 102
Chapter 103
Chapter 104
Chapter 105
Chapter 106
Acknowledgments
Also by Robert Pobi
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
First published in the United States by Minotaur Books, an imprint of St. Martin’s Publishing Group
UNDER PRESSURE. Copyright © 2020 by Robert Pobi. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Publishing Group, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271.
www.minotaurbooks.com
The Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-1-250-29396-1 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-250-29397-8 (ebook)
eISBN 9781250293978
Our ebooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact your local bookseller or the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by e- mail at [email protected].
First Edition: 2020
