Marvin Exley had been minding his own business when a visitor came calling on him at home.

Hugo McArthur. And he had a gun pointed at him.

So much for a day off.

Exley sputtered, "How did you figure out where I live?"

Hugo pushed his way in and slammed the door shut.

When he noticed signs that a family lived there, he said, "Is there anyone who will be interrupting us?"

"No. We're alone."

"Good. Bring me to your kitchen."

Exley began to walk. All he could do now was pray that his wife and children didn't turn up.

"Sit." Hugo pointed to the nearest seat in the large kitchen area. "Now."

Exley sat. "It's your show."

"Where is your fear?" Hugo said with suspicion.

Exley kept his cool. "You are hardly the first person to threaten me."

Hugo began pacing. "There isn't anything left for me here, now that my parents and my brother are dead. Have I mentioned that I'm the father of Pippa's baby?"

"Nope. I would have remembered that."

Hugo let out a huff. "I have zero interest in that kid. Everything has been taken care of. Pippa has even moved on."

Exley was then beset with an epiphany. "Hugo, you're going after every person who has wronged you since your family died. Aren't you?"

Hugo just nodded.

"But why? Please tell me what you're getting out of it."

Hugo stopped pacing and faced his attorney. "I am not crazy. I am not. Did I kill those people in the park? And Mister Henshall? Yes. Yes, I did."

"Why do any of this?" Exley pressed. "Tell me what you're getting out it."

"Money. Lots of it goes into my pockets for every successful attempt."

Exley felt ill. "Are you telling me that you're working off a hit-list?"

"Gold star for you." Hugo said with heavy sarcasm.

"He's lining your pockets, isn't he?"

"That's another point to you." Hugo got in a question of his own. "And you can't tell anyone about my visit because of that whole privilege thing. Right?"

Exley made another connection in his head. A bad one. He needed to call the Special Victims Unit. Now.

But he said, "Yes. That's right."

"Good. I would sooner have a cop kill me." Hugo resumed his pacing. "Ask me why I'm here."

"Why, then?"

"DJ and Pippa are nowhere to be found. They must be hiding from me at a precinct. I just can't figure out which one."

Exley immediately steered Hugo away from the idea of going on the attack at a police station. "Does it bother you that your ex is with a woman?"

Hugo rolled his eyes. "What bothers me is that Pippa could do better than Diana Joy Connors. Now my ex is just collateral damage because they can't take my hints."

"So then why bother Diana at all? Is her child yours?"

"No. Getting Pippa pregnant was enough of a mistake, but messing with Diana is easy and fun."

Exley arched an eyebrow. "So you would torture your ex and her new girlfriend? What was that when you needed a lift to the hospital? More?"

Hugo shrugged. "If you want to call it that."

"Dare I ask—was it him who told you where they were? And my address?"

Hugo ignored this, too. "Are you familiar with Casey Novak?"

Of course Exley was. Casey openly despised him.

"I know her in a professional manner. You did know touch her, did you?"

"No. That woman is untouchable. She keeps cops and lawyers close. Powerful ones." Hugo shuddered. "I went after the youngest member of that kin."

Exley's heart skipped a beat. "Christ…"

Hugo seemed amused now. "I also stopped by because I needed a place to think. Luckily, something has already come to me."

"You're going to go take him for all he's got." Exley realized.

"No one will be able to find me when I'm done." Hugo's hold hold his weapon tightened. "This will show everybody that I'm not as dumb as they think I am."

Exley finally felt a stabbing fear. "You wouldn't."

There appeared a manic gleam in Hugo's eyes. "Wrong. I would."

The last thing that Marvin Exley registered was Hugo McArthur's gun colliding with his head.

Unconsciousness followed.

"Let us never question Olivia's instinct again."

These were Nick's first words once he got over the shock of seeing Marvin Exley in such a state.

"Does our friend have a pulse?"

Fin checked. "Yes. I'll get on the radio."

Nick knelt beside Exley while Fin contacted emergency medical services.

"Mister Exley?" Nick gently shook the older man's shoulder. "Time to wake up. You can't sleep now."

Exley came around after few tries.

"Detective?" he said in confusion when he saw Nick. "What's going on?"

Nick used a spare cloth from a jacket pocket to staunch Exley's blood. "We could ask the same, sir. Just lay still. We'll keep an eye on you until 911 gets here."

Exley felt like he'd been run over by a steamroller. He wasn't going to move if he didn't have to.

Yet… one question did fall from his lips. "Will you call my wife?"

Nick looked over at Fin, surprised.

Marvin Exley was married? This was news to him.

Fin merely shrugged in response to his inquiring expression. He was equally surprised by Exley's words.

But then the older man started fading back out.

Nick and Fin scrambled to keep him awake.

On the whole, it didn't take the paramedics long to arrive. The Exley homestead wasn't far from the hospital. What luck.

However… one Missus Freya Exley arrived at the same time. With all of her children.

She pulled her minivan to a stop in front of her home, perplexed. A squad car? An ambulance? Patrol officers? Freya did not like the jumps her brain was making.

What could possibly be going on?

The eldest Exley child spoke. "Mom? What's going on?"

"I'm not sure, Laila." Freya told her. "Stay here. I'll be back soon."

Freya stepped out of her van. She was tall, fair-skinned, with big blue eyes and long blond hair. Even the sophisticated brands of her winter gear lent themselves to suggeting that she came from prominence. Yet... one couldn't help noticing that she was quite a bit younger than her husband.

This woman also understood that being married to an attorney like her husband could occasionally mean trouble. Marvin had warned her of this before proposing. But Freya accepted it. Now they were happily in love and in a thriving marriage.

But absolutely nothing had ever prepared her for the sigh of seeing the police and paramedics at their home.

A stranger's voice cut through her thoughts. "M'am, you can't go in there."

Freya looked around to see a young uniformed officer standing in front of her.

"But this is my house!" she pointed up at the door. "Is my husband inside?"

Freya sidestepped another officer, who had come through, making a perimeter with caution tape. But then reason caught up with her.

And she tried not to scream. "Is my husband dead?!"

From inside the house, Freya's frightened tone could be heard. Nick hurried out to the commotion immediately.

"Johnstone!" he barked at the young officer. "Get out of her way, and go stand somewhere else—you somehow found Missus Exley!"

Officer Johnstone hurried from the detective's line of sight as fast as he could.

Nick hurried to where Freya Exley stood on the sidewalk.

The matriarch said, "Sir, are you a detective?"

Nick nodded. "Yes, m'am. I'm Detective Nick Amaro at the Manhattan Special Victims Unit. What's your name?"

"Freya Exley. Please just call me by my name. It's more to the point."

Nick took her preference in stride. "Okay, Freya. Do you and your husband have kids?"

Freya indicated her car, some feet away. "Three boys and four girls. Everyone is in there. We just came back from grocery shopping. I didn't want the little ones to be underfoot."

"Good thinking. Someone has physically assaulted your husband."

Freya's heart jumped into her throat. "Jesus. Who?"

"It remains to be seen. The next phase is getting your husband to the hospital. Do you have a neighbor who can keep an eye on the kids?"

"Yes." Freya exhaled heavily. "Please take me to where Marvin is now."

So Nick led her to the kitchen.

Exley was fully aware of the situation, speaking with the paramedics in another part of the kitchen. He was even sitting up in a different chair.

Freya hugged him and then examined the bandage on her husband's head. "Who did this?"

Exley evaded the question. "Where is everyone?"

"In the car. They shouldn't see—"

But they were interrupted by the sound of running feet. Nick thought the Exley children sounded like a stampede.

Laila Exley spoke apologetically as she and the next sibling brought up the rear. "Sorry, mom! The little kids are so fast!"

"Yep." agreed the sibling after her. "Like mice."

Freya cursed in her head. Certain words triggered her younger offspring into utter silliness. One such word had just been uttered.

Her eight-year-old son let out a shriek and clambered on to a nearby bench. "I don't like those things! Nope!"

Another sibling, not too much younger, asked for help to get on to the bench. "Ivor! A boost! Please?"

"Yes! Hang on, Astrid!"

Ivor pulled his little sister up with ease.

"What I said was a figure of speech!" Freya exclaimed in exasperation to them.

"A what?" asked the next two Exley children. Both were even younger than the previous two.

The youngest Exley sibling, a curly-haired toddler girl, stood trembling in confusion about the sudden hubbub.

Freya sighed and then addressed the children on the bench first.

"Do get down from there." Freya pointed to the floor. "Benches are for butts, not feet. Go wait for me on the steps outside."

Ivor and Astrid clambered back down and made their exit.

Freya then tossed the keys to her second-eldest child. "Birgit, please go unload the groceries from the car. Bring Mathias and Henrik. Explain what a figure of speech is."

Henrik Exley stomped one foot. "We're at home!"

"Yeah!" Mathias agreed. "Why should we learn something new?"

"You heard your mother!" Exley warned them sternly.

The little boys both sobered up and followed their sister away.

Laila spoke up. "I'll go next door to ask for help."

"Excellent plan, my girl." Freya praised her.

Fin tagged along with Laila. He could help talk to the neighbor.

Freya held her arms out to her last child standing. "You're okay, Sanna. Come here."

The little girl ran to her mother and sank into her hug.

Exley himself spoke to Nick. "Welcome to our madhouse. The scene you just witnessed is normal."

It had had only lasted a small number of minutes. But then everything went right back on course without a hitch. Like nothing had gone astray in the first place.

Nick was even tagged in to accompany Exley to the hospital.

Somehow, he had expected this.

The detective parked himself in the waiting room. It would be awhile.

BEEP! A text from Olivia had come through.

Status report?

Nick's answer was fast. Your instinct was right. Someone pistol-whipped Exley.

The concern in Olivia's words were genuine. My God. Are you at the hospital?

Correct. I'll talk to him when he's available. We also also met his family.

?!

I'll fill you in later. Fin is probably bringing the others over by now.

Olivia's cool, collected tone came back. Excellent. Help the Exleys. And send Fin over here.

Nick spotted Fin from the corner of his eye, so he sent one last text. Will do.

After Fin left, Nick found himself with Freya once more.

They sat together in the waiting room chairs. His companion wasn't alone, for her youngest child was curling up against her. Dozing.

Nick said curiously, "Sanna came along?"

Freya nodded. "Yep. She's only two, so she goes everywhere with me. How is Marvin?"

"Getting a scan to check on his injury. Would you like me to get someone who knows more?"

"Not yet, please. Can you tell me what is even going on? No one has. Is this about his current case?"

Nick chose his words wisely. "In a word, yes. But I can't say more than that."

"I understand." Freya sighed. "He doesn't tell me about his world for many reasons, but I do know about the kinds of people he represents."

"Does it bother you at all?"

"No. I already knew about Marvin's work for decades because I hail from New York City's upper echelon, too. Never would I ever make him change his job."

Freya then paused a few beats.

"Detective, I'm not taking up your time, am I?" she asked. "Is there some place you need to be?"

Nick shook his head. "My sergeant wants to me to stay here so I can speak with your husband once he's up to par."

"Alright. I could use the company." Freya said. "One thing I'm wondering is—do you judge us?"

Nick shook his head. "What makes you ask?"

Freya spoke softly. "Most people do. But our marriage isn't what they think. For Christ's sake, my first one fell apart when I was newly pregnant with my twins. Kids five and six."

"Henrik and Mathias." Nick had noticed that those little boys were identical.

"Very good." Freya said. "It ended because I caught my husband cheating. How I met Marvin is quite a tale, but the twins have never known anyone else as their dad."

Nick thought of how much Zara and Amanda loved each other. "What does everyone else think?"

"They worship him, and he loves all of them. Sanna was a surprise. But I know what Marvin would give her the universe if he could."

"Wow." Nick smiled fondly. "That's really sweet."

Freya nodded. "Everyone thought Marvin married me out of pity. I'm not young and he does have some decades on me, but it doesn't matter to us."

Nick suddenly realized what she meant. "Is he your best friend?"

"My soulmate, too. I just had to go through all of that drama to find him how and when I did." Freya echoed her question from earlier. "Do you judge us?"

"I don't." Nick said again. "But I couldn't, as it is."

This was true.

He was older than Maria, but a big reason their marriage had failed was because she happened to be hostile. Manipulating. Verbally abusive.

Amanda. She was the opposite. Though also younger than him, she loved him unconditionally. There was also the part where they were engaged. And of course, her being pregnant. Amanda also loved to be with Zara when she was around. Amanda made him whole. Her love had saved him. This fresh start was all that Nick could ask for.

He totally understand where Freya was coming from.

"I get it." Nick told her. "I really do."

Freya made to answer him, but from her lap, Sanna gave a particularly huge yawn and rubbed her eyes. It was clear that she was very tired.

"Rest, my tiny love." Freya patted her daughter's back. "Just rest."

Sanna Exley drifted off into Dreamland.

Nick watched, and could only think of how terribly he missed Zara.

An unfamiliar voiced called out in their direction. "Missus Exley?"

Freya turned to see a doctor standing some feet away.

It was with overwhelming relief a few minutes later that Freya headed towards her husband's room.

He was perfectly fine, but just needed a spot of time to recover He could even go home. In an hour.

Nick observed the Exleys as they caught up. Still, Freya left quickly. It was time for official business.

Exley beckoned to the detective. "Come in. We both know why you're here."

Nick took the chair at the head of the bed. Why did the weird assignments always fall into his lap?

Exley spoke again. "The history between myself and your squad is less than stellar, and I don't expect us to be best friends, but... thank you. For everything."

Were this any other day, Nick would've wondered if pigs were flying. Exley had never said anything kind to him before. It was usually thinly-veiled sneers.

"You're welcome, sir." Nick said. "And your family is beautiful. I like them."

A ghost of a smile flickered across his face, but Exley didn't lose focus. "Ask me what you have to."

"Who did this?" Nick asked seriously.

"It was Hugo McArthur. All of it."

Nick's heart did an unpleasant loop. "Are you able to elaborate?"

Exley told the detective everything.