No Man's Land

by Sara Driscoll

“We made a real difference,” Brian interjected. “Don’t downplay your part in it. We might never have gotten in front of him without you.”

  Smaill grinned. “Thanks.”

  “There’s something else,” Cara said. “This case ended so abruptly. There can’t be the same kind of emotional justice that you got with Daniel Mannew, Derek Garber, or Marcus Fairfax, where the man responsible will be tried in a court of law, found guilty, and pay for his crimes. I think that’s weighing on you more than you think.”

  “Maybe. We know Stevenson was guilty,” Meg said. “At least we have that.”

  “Sure,” Webb agreed. “But it’s still not the same. At least not in my head. He should have been left to rot in jail for the rest of his long, miserable life to pay for the lives he took. Yes, his victims were older. Yes, they’d lived almost all their natural lives. But now they’ll miss things—birthdays, Christmases, weddings, great-grandchildren. And they died scared and alone.”

  Meg pulled back to stare at him, surprised by the sudden venom in his tone. “You’re pissed.”

  “You sound surprised.”

  “You always seem so steady when it comes to this stuff.”

  “That’s the first responder in me. Just like you’re steady when you have to be. But afterward . . .”

  “Afterward, you get pissed.”

  “Sometimes. Just like part of you is. Just like you’re also feeling the loss of the ones we didn’t save. Sometimes the ones we lose stay with us, and we have to work through that.”

  “And you know what’s best for that?” McCord lifted his beer bottle. “The company of people who feel the same way.”

  Brian lifted his bottle in solidarity. “And then putting it away because somewhere out there is someone who needs us, and we’ll be ready for them.”

  “You’re right. You’re all right.” She smiled at them. “Thanks.”

  “No thanks required,” said McCord. “What is required is pizza. This article isn’t going to write itself. I need to fuel up.”

  As he reached for the nearest pizza box, Meg sat back and took another sip of her wine.

  She would give herself tonight to mourn the ones they’d lost.

  Tomorrow, she’d be ready to save the next one.

  Acknowledgments

  It was many years ago that I stumbled over a website called Opacity that consists of photographs of abandoned places as shot by Tom Kirsch. I was fascinated by the atmosphere created by his photography and was impressed by the range of locations and types of structures. Years after I initially found the site, I came back to Opacity when I was planning this novel, as I realized that urban exploration would provide interesting, challenging, and potentially dangerous search locations for the K-9 teams. More specifically, the Opacity website provided the visuals I needed to write the manuscript. One site was named in the novel as it truly existed (i.e., Bethlehem Steel), but many sites were altered to be moved to convenient East Coast locations (i.e., Riverside State Hospital/Northam Manor Psychiatric Hospital, the Armor Meat Packing Plant, the Old Essex County Jail, and the McMylar Coal Dumper). Mr. Kirsch, we’ve never met, but I want to thank you for the time and care you put into your craft. It opened up a wonderful and imaginative world for me, and I couldn’t have written this novel in the same way without your photographs.

  As always, my critique team has been instrumental in producing a clean manuscript that required remarkably little editing afterward. Many thanks to Lisa Giblin, Jenny Lidstrom, Jessica Newton, Rick Newton, and Sharon Taylor for once again being first readers, logic testers, and a story clinic all in one. It’s a lot of work, and you do it (repeatedly) with your trusty red pens and a smile, and I am forever grateful for your efforts.

  Thank you to my agent, Nicole Resciniti, for your constant care and attention. You’re always there for anything and everything, and I very much appreciate all you do.

  And to my editor, Esi Sogah, thank you for your guidance, your collaboration, and your camaraderie throughout this project. As always, it’s been a pleasure to work with you to make each story as strong as it can be, and I look forward to our continued partnership!