Tessa joined in. "How was Bambi able to hide her true intentions from Samuel? She didn't read as psychic, and her mind seemed to be an open book."

Bishop had an answer for that one. "It was because she wasn't psychic, ironically. He'll never admit it on the record, but Senator LeMott had her hypnotized, and planted very deeply and very carefully some post-hypnotic suggestions. That word he used out there today, 'viper'? That was the trigger, what activated the order to kill. Until that moment, even Bambi wasn't conscious of what she was going to do. Because she wasn't conscious of it, Samuel didn't read it."

Quentin said, "I thought a person couldn't be hypnotized to do something as drastic as killing against their will."

"They can't, according to all the research." Bishop shrugged. "LeMott found himself someone entirely willing to kill. For a price."

"The female of the species," Quentin said, adding a hasty, "Present company excepted, obviously."

Sawyer said, "Do my questions count? Because I've got a lot of 'em, beginning with why all my officers act like they're finally awake and ending with the significance of that medallion DeMarco said Sarah Warren had on her when she was killed."

"I can only answer the ones about Haven," Tessa told him. "And probably not all of those. But the medallion is something we all carry when we're on assignment."

"It's a start," the chief said with a sigh.

Slowly, Bishop said, "What I really want to know is, who told the Director that Galen was shot and killed?"

Abruptly serious, Quentin said, "Only three witnesses were there that night. We both know it wasn't Reese."

Bishop nodded. "Which leaves the two church members he was withCarl Fisk and Brian Seymour."

"Funny thing," Quentin said. "Brian Seymour hasn't been seen since his last shift in the security control room late last night."

"So was he working for the Director?" Sawyer wondered out loud. "Or for somebody else who wanted to keep an eye on the SCU? Just many enemies do you have, Bishop?"

"At least one more than I need," Bishop answered. "And that's the one I'm going to have to find."

About the Author

Kay Hooper, who has more than six million copies of her books in print worldwide, has won numerous awards and high praise for her novels. Kay lives in North Carolina, where she is currently working on her next novel.