Authors: Katie Reus
Deadly Obsession
Deadly Obsession
By Katie Reus
The chilling words of a killer:
This is just the beginning…
Ten years ago, Lilly Carmichael left town without an explanation, breaking Braden Donnelly’s heart. The death of her aunt has brought Lilly home—and face-to-face with memories she thought were long buried. Still getting over a traumatic incident from her work as an NSA agent, Lilly initially dismisses the face at her window as a figment of stress-induced paranoia.
Now the sheriff of Hudson Bay, Braden has spent the past year hunting a sadistic murderer. His investigation is turned upside down when new evidence indicates that Lilly is the killer’s next target. Determined to protect the woman he’s never stopped loving, Braden must race against the clock to trap a dangerous psychopath—before it’s too late…
80,000 words
Dear Reader,
I feel as though it was just last week I was attending 2010 conferences and telling authors and readers who were wondering what was next for Carina Press, “we’ve only been publishing books for four months, give us time” and now, here it is, a year later. Carina Press has been bringing you quality romance, mystery, science fiction, fantasy and more for over twelve months. This just boggles my mind.
But though we’re celebrating our one-year anniversary (with champagne and chocolate, of course) we’re not slowing down. Every week brings something new for us, and we continue to look for ways to grow, expand and improve. This summer, we’ll continue to bring you new genres, new authors and new niches—and we plan to publish the unexpected for years to come.
So whether you’re reading this in the middle of a summer heat wave, looking to escape from the hot summer nights and sultry afternoons, or whether you’re reading this in the dead of winter, searching for a respite from the cold, months after I’ve written it, you can be assured that our promise to take you on new adventures, bring you great stories and discover new talent remains the same.
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~Angela James
Executive Editor, Carina Press
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Many thanks to my wonderful agent, Jill Marsal, for believing in this story as much as me. And equal thanks to my amazing editor, Charlotte Herscher, for all your guidance in making this book shine.
He rubbed his gloved hand over his crotch as that familiar urgency hummed through him. It happened whenever he thought of
her.
Lately, it seemed that was much too often. Crouching behind a cluster of bushes, he breathed out a sigh of relief when he saw the woman’s kitchen light finally turn off. The icy wind whipping up over the ocean bit through his coat with no mercy, but tonight was the night he’d been waiting for.
The old lady’s boyfriend didn’t come over on Thursdays and this might be his only chance. After so many years of waiting, everything was finally falling into place. Stupid woman rarely ever set her house alarm and he knew tonight would be no different.
He propped his bat against the side of the house and slid the key into the back door. The sound of the door opening and closing wasn’t audible above the crashing of the waves nearby.
Overhead, he could hear water running. No doubt the old woman was getting ready for bed. Smiling, he took off his jacket and draped it across the kitchen table. Taking his time, he crossed the tile floor and walked up the stairs. The carpet runner muted his movements.
Soon, he’d see horror etched on her wrinkly face. Right before he struck her, she’d scream. Maybe beg for her life. If he let her live that long.
No.
He inwardly cursed himself. This had to be clean. Look like an accident. Killing this bitch was the only way to ensure he got what he wanted. That
she
would return to Hudson Bay. And he wanted her guard down when she got here. At least at first. Then the game playing would begin.
The floor creaked underneath him as he reached the top stair. As he did, the old woman’s door opened and light flooded the hallway. Moving quickly, he ducked into the closest guestroom.
His heart pounded wildly against his ribcage as her footsteps moved closer, but his hands were steady. This was it. Gripping the bat tighter in his hands, he readied himself. If he fucked this up, he might not get another chance.
When her shadow passed by the door, he stepped out. “Hello, Debra. So nice to see you again.” Even to himself he sounded feral. Inhuman.
She swiveled toward him. Her emerald green eyes—
so similar to Lilly’s
—widened with recognition and fear. He drank in her terror. She opened her mouth to scream but he wouldn’t give her the chance.
Without pause, he swung his bat.
Hard.
The cracking of her skull reverberated off the walls of the quiet beach cottage. A second, louder thud shook him straight to his bones as her head hit the railing. Her old, frail body tumbled until it sprawled at the bottom of the stairs. Surprisingly, the blood was minimal. A small, cherry-red rivulet snaked around her head. His gut tightened as the fresh air turned it into a dark crimson. The familiar rush of power nearly overwhelmed him.
The fear of getting caught told him to leave, but he couldn’t help himself. Need burned low in his belly. His erection pressed painfully against the zipper of his pants. All the windows were drawn and he was upstairs. No one could see him.
He quickly unzipped his pants, but kept his leather gloves on as he fisted himself. Staring at Debra’s lifeless eyes, he stroked himself.
Lilly’s face swam before him. The feel of the smooth leather was pleasurable, but he was counting down the minutes until he buried himself in Lilly. He’d been waiting too long to get her beneath him and the time was finally right.
The bitch would be nice and tight, tighter than his fist was now. Just the thought sent him over the edge. He let out a harsh groan, hating that her image brought him pleasure, but it was unavoidable.
His entire body convulsed as he found release. Breathing hard, he glanced down in disgust at the mess he’d made. After cleaning himself, he wiped up the small splatters of blood on the wall and carefully stepped over Debra’s fallen body.
He slipped out the way he’d come, then put Debra’s key back in her hiding spot. He could have made a copy but there was no point. When he kidnapped Lilly, it wouldn’t be at her aunt’s house. No, he had something special planned for her.
He was going to take her where no one but him could hear her screams.
Four Days Later
Braden Donnelly leaned back against the headrest of his squad car. Almost thirty-six hours without sleep and he was ready to pass out. Even a few minutes of rest would be welcome. Unfortunately, as sheriff in a small town, there was no such thing as a sick day. Shaking his head, he forced his eyes open and started the car.
Only a short drive and he’d be home, sleeping in his own bed. Before he could pull out of his parking spot, his phone buzzed across the dash. He frowned when he saw Detective Vanessa Isaacs’s number. She was off tonight and there wasn’t much chance this was a personal call. As much as he wanted to ignore it, he couldn’t.
Dread surged through him as he answered. “Yeah?”
Her sigh was long and tired. Before she spoke, instinct told him what she was going to say. It had been about three months. The timing was right for another murder. “We’ve got another one, boss.”
“You’re sure?” The question was automatic. So far there were three victims—now four—and they’d all been killed the same way. Viciously.
“Of course I’m sure. Officer Jordan found her outside the Boudreau mansion after receiving an anonymous tip. From the sound of it, I think the caller is our guy. The body sure as hell isn’t visible from the road.”
Huge hedges and a wrought iron gate surrounded the mansion. It was almost impossible to see the front of the house on a clear day much less in the middle of the night. “Where’s the body?”
“In the backyard, by the pool.”
“I’ll be there in five.”
Not bothering with the siren, he flipped his lights on and floored it. At this time of night, not many people would be out. The Boudreau mansion was only used one month out of the year by a wealthy family from the north, but it was kept up. Something only a local would be privy to.
He slowed as he neared the entrance and steered through the open gate. The county coroner, Hailey Banks, was already there. So was Vanessa. He parked behind their cars on the long circular driveway.
As he got out of his car, he scanned the perimeter. Lately he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being watched. It might be paranoia because of the recent murders, but he’d been in the crosshairs of a sniper before and it was a sensation he hadn’t experienced in years.
Until recently.
After locking his vehicle, he followed the sound of voices around the corner of the house. Yellow crime scene tape sectioned off most of the stone patio. As he neared the area, Officer Derrick Jordan held it up for him to duck under.
“You received the call about the victim?” he asked.
The blond man nodded. “Yes, sir, but it was a private number. I contacted the gardener to let me in. I wanted to make sure it wasn’t a prank before contacting you.”
“What did the caller say?” Braden asked, as they walked toward the detectives and coroner.
The officer’s face paled. “He told me where the body was, then…then he said to tell you that this was only the beginning.”
Braden frowned. “Me, specifically?”
The officer nodded and shifted from foot to foot. “Yes, sir.”
“Did he say anything else?”
“No.”
“All right. Watch the perimeter.” Unless the killer himself alerted the media, there weren’t going to be any leaks within his department, but he wanted to do everything by the book. And that meant keeping an unspoiled crime scene.
As he neared the scene, Vanessa looked up from her notepad and wordlessly nodded at him as she stepped aside. When she moved, he got a clear shot of the body. An unexpected flash of cold snaked through him when he realized who it was. Just as quickly a slow burning rage for whoever had done this heated his veins.
Hailey, Hudson Bay’s county coroner and crime scene tech combined into one, stood over the female body with her video recorder. Her words were spoken softly but it didn’t lessen their brutal reality.
“Deep ligature marks around the neck indicate strangulation as a possible cause of death. Ligature marks around the wrists and ankles indicate victim was restrained during the attack. Bruising around the jaw combined with no visible defensive wounds possibly indicate victim was knocked unconscious before being restrained…” She paused, then stopped her video recording to glance at Braden. “She’s not a local this time and she doesn’t have any identification.”
“I know who she is.” Braden pushed down the bile in his throat as he stared at the ripped open and broken body in front of him. As he said the words, it was as if someone else was talking. He could feel the eyes of Hailey and Vanessa on him, but all he could do was stare at the lifeless woman.
The scene was the same as all the others. Naked and positioned spread eagle on the cold stone pavement, a once beautiful woman stared lifelessly into the night. Her dark hair was matted with blood and dozens of shallow cuts nicked her entire body. If the killer was keeping to his pattern, there would be sixty-six slashes total, plus odd burn marks on her back and buttocks and she would have been sodomized with a foreign object.
“Who is she?” Hailey asked.
He opened his mouth to answer but his throat seized. Looking at her like this—nausea swirled inside him. It was almost too much to digest. He cleared his throat, thankful he found his voice this time. “Her name is Macy Turner. She’s twenty-eight and teaches—taught—kindergarten in Charlotte.” His voice slightly broke on the last word. Braden hadn’t seen her in over six months. They’d gone on two dates and things had never gotten physical. But he’d genuinely liked her.
Before he hadn’t been sure if the killings were personal, but now he had no doubt. He shared a connection with the previous victims, but so did a lot of people in town.
This
was some kind of message for him.
It had to be.
His hands balled into fists as he looked at Macy. No one deserved this. The feel of his nails digging into his palms was a welcome pain. Whoever had done this was going to pay. He’d make sure of it.
“How do you know her?” Vanessa spoke this time.
“We went out on a few dates. Nothing serious, but…Fuck!” He shook his head and looked at the coroner. “Got any extra gloves?”
She nodded and handed him a pair of latex gloves.
Crouching down, he lightly gripped the victim’s left shoulder and rolled her body on its side. “Son of a bitch,” he muttered.
“Same as all the others.” Hailey made a soft tsking sound.
“Do we have any idea yet what these burn marks are from?” he asked, indicating the double pronged markings down her backside.
Both women shook their heads, but Hailey answered. “I’ve researched the markings everywhere I can think of, but they don’t match any Tasers or stun-guns available on the market. Whatever this guy is using, it’s still a mystery. And boss, I won’t know for sure until I complete the autopsy, but it looks like he kept her alive longer than the others. See those marks along her neck? He might have been choking her until she passed out, then resuscitating her.”
“He’s getting cocky,” Detective Isaacs muttered.
Braden pushed up and forced himself to look away. “Finish up what you’re doing, Hailey.”
She nodded, then glanced back and forth between him and Detective Isaacs. “Can I talk to you for a sec in private?”
Vanessa raised her eyebrows but wordlessly strode across the patio.
When Hailey didn’t say anything, he gritted his teeth. “Damn it, Hailey. Just spit it out.”
“I’m sure you already know, but Lilly Carmichael should be arriving in town tonight.”
Lilly Carmichael.
He hadn’t said that name aloud in years. Even thinking it caused his heart rate to increase. Of course he knew she was coming to town. Her aunt had raised her since she was five. Lilly wouldn’t miss the funeral. “Why are you telling me?”
She shrugged. “After tonight, it’s obvious this is personal. This guy is targeting women in your life. Your fifth grade teacher, your Sunday school teacher, your fencing coach for crying out loud. I know we weren’t completely sure before but after
this
…I don’t know. Maybe you should stop by her place and at least warn her about what’s going on.”
He’d already planned to, but he didn’t tell Hailey that. “I’ll take your advice under consideration.”
She rolled her eyes. “Don’t take that condescending tone with me,
Sheriff.”
Turning her back to him, she quietly resumed her assessment of their newest victim.
If their guy stuck to his pattern, there wouldn’t be any DNA to retrieve. No prints, no semen and only minimal fibers. Braden headed to where Detective Isaacs was talking to the only other officer present.
“Have you questioned the gardener?”
Vanessa shook her head. “No, but Jordan did.”
“All right. Scan the rest of the perimeter and I’ll work up all the information I’ve got on the victim. Have you talked to Perry?” Perry Bolinger was the only other detective they had on the Hudson Bay police force.
“No. He’s following up on the fire at Morgan’s Bakery.”
“I’ll call him and tell him to get down here. Call me on your way back to the station.”
She raked a shaky hand through her red hair and nodded before glancing back toward the grisly scene.
Braden gritted his teeth as he headed back to the car. He’d gotten out of the Marines because he was tired of dealing with death on a daily basis. He knew he was lucky having the team he did, but he hated that this was happening in
his
town and that
his
people were dealing with this shit.
As soon as he finished the paperwork and notified Charlotte P.D., he was heading over to Lilly’s. She might not be happy to see him, but that was too damn bad.
If this killer was going after people that Braden cared about, Lilly would be an obvious target for anyone who knew him. No matter what had passed between them, he wouldn’t let anything happen to her.
Lilly grabbed for her purse as the taxi driver slammed on the brakes. Holding her belongings in her lap, she pointed over the seat when the driver didn’t flip on his turn signal. “Left here.”
As soon as the driver pulled into the driveway of her aunt’s beach cottage, he jumped out before she’d even unstrapped her seatbelt. Placing a shaky hand on her abdomen, she tried to calm her nerves as she stepped onto the paved surface. The fresh salty air and the not so distant sound of crashing waves immediately enveloped her.
With her purse hooked over her shoulder, she fished her keys out and followed the man rolling her bags up the front walk.
After she paid him, he tore out of the driveway before she’d rolled her bags inside. Before she’d even flipped on the light in the foyer, she realized the gun she kept in her purse was clutched tightly in her hand. Immediately she tucked it back in her bag and cursed herself. For the past year she’d been using her gun as a crutch and it was time to get over it. If her training had taught her one thing, it was never to depend on a weapon.
She had to get over the feeling that the boogeyman was around every corner. As she shut the front door behind her, unexpected tears stung her eyes when she spied the stack of unopened mail. She still couldn’t believe her Aunt Debra was gone.
Lilly’s gaze flew to the stairs at the thought. Her aunt had lived in this house almost forty years. It seemed impossible that she’d fallen down the stairs and died in her own home.
A shiver snaked down Lilly’s spine, but she brushed it away. Leaving her belongings in the foyer, she headed for the kitchen. Everything was the same in the bright room. White, vintage style cabinets with clear glass doors displayed the beach-themed plates her aunt had collected over the years.
What was she going to do with all this stuff? This house? Selling it seemed wrong, but she wasn’t sure that she wanted to keep it. Maybe she’d use it as a vacation house?
Shaking her head, she grabbed a plastic tumbler from the cupboard and filled it with water from the refrigerator. She needed a hot bath and a few hours of uninterrupted sleep. Then she’d be able to think about the future. She flipped off the light and was halfway through the door when a scratching sound stopped her.
She paused in the archway, afraid to turn around. Her right leg ached as vivid memories assaulted her.
There is no one here. I have nothing to be scared of.
She repeated the words over in her head like a mantra.
Turning around, she scanned the quiet kitchen and let out a sigh of relief until her gaze fell on the small window by the sink. An invisible vise around her throat tightened, making it almost impossible to breathe.
A man wearing a black ski mask stood behind the window, staring at her. She blinked once, hoping he’d disappear but he was still there when she opened her eyes. In the moonlight she could make out his dark eyes and…his smile.
He was smiling at her.
“Oh, God,” she whispered.
A black haze blurred her vision. She tried to take a step back but her body refused to obey. Numbness slowly slid over her, wrapping icy hands around her ankles and legs.
Run.
Hide.
Find a weapon.
Her brain screamed that she needed to protect herself, but she stood there like a mime. It was just like Africa all over again. The man’s grin grew wider, revealing a perfect row of white teeth. He reminded her of something. Someone. The man was familiar, but not. She closed her eyes again and took a deep breath.
A hand clamped on her shoulder, and a wild, animalistic scream tore from her throat. Adrenaline and training kicked in. She dropped the tumbler in her hand and whirled with her elbow already bent and ready to strike.
“Damn, Lil, it’s me. The door was unlocked.” The deep familiar voice stopped her midswing.
She tripped over her feet as she refrained from attacking him, but blast-from-the-past Braden Donnelly steadied her with two firm hands around her waist.
“Braden? What are you doing…” Her voice trailed off as she took in his attire. “You’re a cop?” She should be asking what he was doing there scaring the daylights out of her. Instead she stared dumbly at him, not quite believing what she was seeing. The feel of that strong grip on her was way too familiar. For an instant she wanted to lean into him. Use his strength and wrap her own arms around him.