Medical Center.
When Anna got the awful news, she was totally thrown for a loop.
But under Romantic Prince Ted's full-on charm offensive, she quickly went from devastated to overjoyed and said yes to his proposal.
The catch? They pushed the date to tomorrow night.
No way around it—time was way too tight.
The next evening.
The big hotel next to the Medical Center.
Same spot where Rachel had her last-minute wedding.
Another emergency wedding Adam helped throw together.
After work, Adam cleaned up quick and headed over.
When he got there, he spotted Kate.
"Things looking bad?" Adam asked, reading her expression like a book.
"Worse than we thought," Kate said, her face pale. "You nailed it—those wide-eyed photos? All buried alive. We opened a coffin, and the lid was covered in bloody claw marks.
The dead were staring, full of despair and fear—eyes open, no peace.
Word's getting out.
The town's losing it.
People are fleeing overnight.
Families of the victims? They're pissed beyond belief—swearing to take out Elliot Deacon themselves.
They're grouping up, armed to the teeth, ready to storm the precinct.
The cops don't even wanna protect him. Some even left the door open for the mob.
If our team hadn't whisked him away in time, he'd be toast already.
Even then, people got hurt—angry relatives and some of ours.
The whole town's a mess—adults, kids, everyone's crying.
It's brutal." 😞
"Can't blame the townsfolk," Adam sighed. "Most people would react the same."
If it were him, he wouldn't just shoot Elliot Deacon. Nah—he'd grab him, dose him with the same sedative, and bury him alive.
Even if Deacon stayed cool, he's still human—survival instincts would kick in. No way he'd handle it better than his victims.
He'd feel what he put them through.
Adam would even stick around, listening in. The second Deacon was on the brink, he'd yank him out, save him—then do it all over again. Over and over.
Compared to that, the families just wanting to gun him down? Way too tame.
Kate stayed quiet.
She's a cop—believes in the law, that justice should follow the rules.
But the town's nightmare was so horrifying, even a seasoned detective like her couldn't sleep last night—kept waking up from nightmares.
If it were her, she wasn't sure she could stick to the law either.
"He didn't deny it?" Adam asked.
"Nope, he owned up to everything," Kate said, looking rattled. "Calm, straight-up—he laid out every single thing he's done over the years, clear as day. You won't believe who his first victim was."
"Family?" Adam sucked in a breath.
"Yeah!" Kate said, stunned. "His mom!"
"Why?" Adam pressed.
"Single-parent home. She ignored him growing up," Kate explained. "No one suspected him—nobody cared about them.
He joined the military later.
Learned a ton on the battlefield.
Came back, got married briefly—then lost his wife.
Grieving, he rediscovered his old 'hobby.'
Killing made him feel like some chosen one with a mission.
To step up his game, he opened the funeral home.
Kept at it for over 20 years.
Our profiler says he's got a serious mental disorder—no remorse, no empathy. He genuinely believes this crap!"
"Holy crap!"
This is a real war god's return—coming home a total psycho! 😵
"Too bad this is New York," Adam said, shaking his head.
Kate glanced at him, getting it.
New York doesn't have the death penalty.
"Oh, and those paramedics and patrol docs you flagged?" Kate's face darkened. "We found something."
"Corruption?" Adam's eyes narrowed.
That'd be bad news.
"Not corruption," Kate said. "Worse—one of the paramedics was his disciple. Helped him the whole time!"
"Son of a bitch!" Adam blurted out.
Worst-case scenario.
He wasn't scared of money schemes—his cash could crush that easy.
But this? Now he had to worry.
"Kate, you've gotta dig into every detail of this guy's life—no stone unturned," Adam said, dead serious. "I'll help you analyze."
"Got it," Kate replied. She almost teased him but saw how intense he was—caught his concern loud and clear. "Don't stress. I won't let him get to you."
"I'm not worried about me," Adam groaned, rubbing his temples. "It's my family and friends I'm scared for. Good thing I dodged that interview yesterday. No—I need to push harder, wipe my name outta this mess as much as possible."
In the U.S., psycho criminals love targeting celebs tied to big cases—always itching to "play a game."
The celeb usually survives, but their loved ones? Dropped like flies, gruesome as hell.
No way Adam's letting that happen.
He called his assistant, Ada, right then—told her to pull strings, use his cash, whatever it takes to downplay his role in this and scrub his tracks.
"Let's get started," he said, hanging up. Ignoring the wedding about to kick off, he dragged Kate to a corner. "Tell me everything you know—every detail. We're analyzing now."
Kate was used to spilling confidential case stuff with Adam. His super-brain always caught what she missed.
Plus, with his crazy combat skills, she'd joke afterward that he should've been a cop—a super detective, evil's worst nightmare.
Too bad Adam had zero interest.
Kate was bummed about that.
Now, with him jumping in so eagerly, she didn't have to twist his arm—she was all in.
Adam listened to her rundown, then after the wedding, went straight to her apartment. Stayed up all night poring over case files, brain on overdrive, helping her break it down.
Kept it up for a whole week.
The silver lining in this nightmare? A crime this horrific demanded secrecy, which seriously cramped Elliot Deacon's disciple-recruiting style.
Being a loner, his social circle was tiny.
Over decades, he'd only stumbled into taking on that one paramedic with a similar backstory—raised him from a kid.
Adam pulled every favor he had, backed the police to dig through everything, making sure nothing slipped by.
Finally, he could breathe.
The unknown's what's scary.
Once it's under control, it's not such a big deal.
That paramedic disciple wasn't as lucky as Deacon. Word got out fast—furious families tracked him down. No escape. They gunned him down that same night.