“Understood,” Harris said finally. “Secure the perimeter. Do not enter until backup arrives.”

He looked up at us.

“The officers arrived at the house,” Harris said. “The black SUV is still in the driveway, but the engine is running.”

“And Lucas?” Chloe asked.

“They can see him through the window,” Harris said. “But he isn’t alone.”

“Who is with him?” I asked, my breath catching in my throat.

“There’s a second figure in the room,” Harris said. “The officers can’t identify them yet. They are staying back until the secondary unit arrives.”

“Is it Melanie?” I asked.

“We don’t know,” Harris said. “The window is partially obscured by the blinds.”

I turned my eyes back to the laptop screen.

The red progress bar was at ninety percent.

*Analyzing credentials…*

*Verifying authorization signatures…*

“The automated system is about to lock him out,” Reed warned. “Any second now.”

I imagined Lucas sitting in that warm Palm Springs room.

I imagined him watching the blue progress bar on his own screen, thinking he was seconds away from wealth.

Thinking he had beaten us.

“This is it,” Reed whispered.