2019. Goblins and ghosts in a myriad of masks filled the lobby of the Snyder-Finn building. Princesses, fairies, pirates, spacemen, and superheroes ran shrieking in every direction, children who had apparently never learned to communicate at a reasonable volume, drunk on candy and the promise of more to come. These were the children of Kevin’s employees, along with kids sponsored by the Finn Foundation and other Titan City charities, all invited to celebrate Halloween in a handmade carnival of cardboard and paper that stretched across most of the first floor.

2019. She returned to her quiet apartment after another long day at Sunset Gardens and slipped off her shoes at the door before returning her coat to its hook. “Honey, I’m home,” she said softly. Her cat came out to meet her, a fluffy little monster, responding less to her voice than the opening of the door. “Have you been a good boy, Bobby?” she asked and held out her prosthetic left hand to him to sniff as she crouched down to greet him.

1966. The Troubadour had his rights read to him, his hands cuffed, and his mask removed. Thus ended the crime spree of one of the Crimson Wraith’s most remarkable adversaries of that age. Thus began the incarceration of Esteban Valentino, twenty-five years old, son of Cuban immigrants, graduate of the Titan University theater program. He was convicted on multiple counts of armed robbery, vandalism, and disturbing the peace.

2019. Judge Ghosh tugged at his beard thoughtfully as he looked down from his bench at Zack. “What I am curious about,” he said, “was exactly why you decided to ask the District Attorney to drop the charges against Miss Chapel — in your own words please.” Zack looked at the DA who nodded at him, encouraging him to speak. It became clear he had been coached on just what to say as soon as he opened his mouth.

1966. The chrome skull on its hood gleamed in the afternoon sun as the Crimson Roadster roared into Titan City. with the Scarlet Stranger at the wheel of the cherry red convertible and Wiley Wisp at his side. They had precious little time to thwart the Troubador’s plan to deface the Spirit of Prosperity, and midtown traffic threatened to slow their progress.

2019. Morning frost clung to the edges of the star-shaped reflecting pool in Titan City Justice Center courtyard, holding in place fallen leaves that stuck halfway-in, halfway-out of the water. Gracie bundled up in the black overcoat Stephen had provided her, wearing the suit that had been purchased for her courier job with Snyder-Finn. Gracie passed through the double doors, where the acrid scent of years worth of hastily stubbed out cigarette butts still lingered, and joined the line of those waiting to pass through the security inspection.

1966. The sun shone brightly on the steps of Titan City Hall, where three men stood at the podium — Kelly Winchester, the Crimson Wraith, and the Wily Wisp. In their hoods and domino masks, the costumed crimefighters' smiles were as broad as their spandex-covered chests; and on those chests, the Crimson Wraith bore the image of a white skull while the Wily Wisp wore a purple letter “W.” …

2019. Danny nodded. “Yeah, Edward was murdered.” “You guys were talking like he was real old, so I just thought, you know, ‘natural causes.’” “He was eighty-seven years old, but someone felt like going ahead and murdering him anyway.” “What the fuck? Who would do that?” “We don’t know yet. Kevin thinks it was someone working on the retirement home staff — ease of entry and all that.

While the author celebrates a major life event, Legacy of the Crimson Wraith will take a 2-week hiatus.

1955. Senator Kelly Winchester’s face brightened at the sight of his old schoolmate William Finn, arm in arm with his new wife, Sylvia Madison — now Sylvia Finn. He pushed through the other partygoers celebrating his recent election at his family estate to shake Will’s hand. “Willie, my boy! The ghosts of our past do have a way of haunting us, don’t they?

2019. Alone in the Crypt together, things were all business between Gracie and Danny. Kevin had sent her down to get her voice and palm scanned for security, apparently unaware the two had any tension between them. Danny said nothing about the morning. Mostly he kept his eyes on the monitor as he pulled up the security software. Gracie sat in front of a microphone with what appeared to be a portable palm scanner nearby.

1954. Gazing upon Lady Luna’s arrow gleaming in the darkness, its promise of death pointed at his heart, Eddie cursed himself for not being more suspicious of her. Perhaps that was the unease he had felt around her, something his father’s feelings for his childhood sweetheart had kept him from seeing. Had there been any truth at all in her story of trailing…

2019. Kevin steadied the heavy punching bag that hung from a chain in the room of Finn Manor that he called “the dojo.” Gracie felt the boxing tape squeeze as she readied her fists one more time and tried to make herself want to hit it. But she wasn’t angry at the bag. It wasn’t hurting anybody. It didn’t sneer, didn’t judge, didn’t have anything to say about who a person’s parents were or how often the cops came to break up a fight at their home.

1954 The mask felt strange to Eddie. As the Wily Wisp, the rest of his costume differed from his father’s only in color. But the skull of the Crimson Wraith was something else altogether. Before most of the world had even heard of Titan City’s Scarlet Stranger, Eddie had met him in person. But the Blue Banshee had unmasked him in their fight just before, so it was the face of William Finn that greeted him.

2019. The wheels of the treadmills sang under their feet as Kevin and Gracie brought their speed up to a full run. Wires from the electrodes they wore bounced with each step. Working out wasn’t really Gracie’s thing. It felt strange to run without something to run from or to. “Looking back through the legacy with you,” said Kevin, “seeing all those capes, I wanted to make sure you know you don’t have to wear one when you end up joining me in the field.”

1954. Seeing Sylvia on the rooftop the night before, masked as Lady Luna, unsettled Eddie less than opening the door of Finn Manor to her the next day in broad daylight. Perhaps it was the smile she wore — the kind that said, I’m in on the secret, part of the club. Eddie didn’t remember sending her an invitation. “Good afternoon, Edward,” she said.

2019 Danny didn’t look bad in his thin white tank-top and plaid pajama pants. Gracie surprised herself by how she noticed the muscles in his arm when he reached to take the maple syrup from the refrigerator for their toaster waffles. Apparently, he didn’t spend all his time behind a keyboard doing computer stuff. “We’ll do palm scans and voice ID for you later today,” said Danny as he sat down at the kitchen table and started scraping butter over his waffle.

1954. All throughout the Titan City Capitol chambers, onlookers edged forward in their seats, eager for William Finn’s response. News reports held pencils at the ready, some toward the exit to see just how quickly they could phone their editors with what would surely be tomorrow morning’s headline. Even if Will had no confession regarding the Crimson Wraith, proof of his frequenting a bar that catered to the secret homosexuals of Titan City would provide a glorious scandal.

2019 “So, what happens now?” Gracie asked, “I mean tomorrow? Is it up at the crack of dawn for raw eggs, jogging, and push-ups.” “More like crack of noon,” said Danny. Kevin nodded. “Our mission requires us to be ready at the times when crimes are most likely to occur. The peak hour for violent crime is 9 PM. At the crack of dawn, you should be getting your best sleep, comfortable in the knowledge that most of Titan City is relatively safe.

1954. Officer Goodman remained calm in the face of the committee and its wrath. Their demands for answers about his association with the Crimson Wraith rolled off of him, even as they filled the walls of the Titan Capitol Building with thunder. However, the questions were not ultimately directed at Officer Goodman himself, William Finn recognized. “This is all a show,” he subtly whispered to his son Eddie, as they sat among the others in the audience.

1948. Captain Hargreaves downed fistfulls of antacid as he awaited the wealthy parents of the young men who had been kidnapped by the Three Billy Goats Gang. His ulcer was screaming as he thought about donations they had made to the TCPD and the strength of their connections in the Titan City government. By the time they arrived, beads of sweat had formed on his brow, but all he could do was dab at them with his handkerchief and mutter something about it being an unseasonably warm springtime.

2019. Discovering that he had been the Crimson Wraith all along, Gracie was surprised, but immediately realized it made all the sense in the world. “That day at Sprang & Sons, you were checking up on me.” “I was.” Kevin guided Gracie around the back of the Finn Mausoleum, where two brass angels stood on stone pedestals, trumpets pointed heavenward. …

1948. When other boys challenged each other with, “My dad could beat up your dad,” Eddie had to bite his tongue. No one else could know what he, the family mechanic Chubby Chumley, and their housekeeper Miss Glenda knew — that his father, William Finn, was the Crimson Wraith. They could keep their comic books with Captain Marvel, Dick Tracy…

2019. It was well after midnight — well after the time you “meet a man” called the Crimson Wraith — when Gracie got back to the 6th Avenue Metro station. The platform was mostly deserted, littered by the empty bottles and crumpled takeaway wrappers of other people’s revelries. Her body felt warm and worn from the dancing. The catcalls she’d received on the way from Terpsichoria just rolled off her.

1986. The Titan Metro ride up to the 6th Avenue station wasn’t exactly comfortable for either Hank or Jasmine. Typically, she didn’t like going out during the day. It never felt safe to dress the way she felt most herself when the sun was out. So, she threw on something a boy had left at her apartment one time, left her wig and make-up at home, and told Hank to call her “Jay” while they were in public.