Blind: Killer Instincts
Page 23
Ethan blew out a breath and sat down onto Travis’ bed as if a one-ton weight were on his back. The spring squeaked and the pillows bounced under the man’s bulk.
“Yeah, she did,” Ethan mumbled.
Mason’s brows rose, but he didn’t comment. The kid had some brains.
Travis stood and stretched. No fight then, which was a good thing. He’d hate to have to break Ethan’s nose, then take his place on the protective detail because he was too scary looking.
“When will you get to see Nate?” Travis crossed to the mini fridge and grabbed his own beer. The case weighed heavily on him, but he’d gone through SEAL training with Ethan. Travis had been the best man at Ethan and Molly’s wedding, and the first one there to load out boxes of Ethan’s things when he moved out. They were brothers in every sense of the word, save blood.
“Before he goes back to school. The second through the fourth. Three days. Three fucking days.” Ethan took another long pull on his bottle.
“Make the most of those days, don’t dwell on what you don’t get.” Travis clinked his bottle to Ethan’s.
Travis knew what it was like to have an absent father. At least Ethan wanted to be in his son’s life. Travis was pretty certain his father hadn’t wanted to live, but he hadn’t wanted to die bad enough to do something about it. That was the kind of mark a serial killer left on a person, and it was the same darkness passed down to Travis.
“What’s the deal with the FBI?” Mason picked up the folder from the desk and looked at the cover. “This is the real deal, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Leave it alone.” Travis watched Mason, not because he didn’t trust the kid. Anyone who worked at Aegis underwent a thorough background check and multiple people had to vouch for the new hire. In the field, Travis would trust Mason with his life, but he didn’t know the guy.
The younger man seemed to consider his options for a moment, then did the smart thing and laid the folder on the desk.
“What’s the case this time?” Ethan asked.
“Some sick fuck is kidnapping young, blonde women. He keeps them for months, maybe a year, then kills them.” He left out the horrific parts about the abuse and the pregnancies. Some things the others didn’t need to know.
What did he do with the babies?
“Why is this your problem?” Mason asked.
“Ever heard of TBK?” Ethan glanced at Travis.
If Mason hadn’t already known, he would find out. It was only a matter of time until someone told him.
“Wasn’t that on the news a while back? Last year?” Mason screwed up one eye and pressed his lips together. “I was getting out about that time. It’s all kind of a blur.”
“Nah, man, TBKiller and that dude are two different people. TBKiller was a copycat,” Ethan said.
“My old man’s family was murdered by a serial killer. Called himself TBK. Torture. Blind. Kill.” Travis peeled part of the label off his beer. Murdered was putting it lightly. They’d been tortured in the most sadistic fashion, then before their deaths, their eyes were removed.
TBK had terrorized Oklahoma City before Travis had been born, but TBK had shaped Travis’ life. TBK’s last victims were Travis’ grandparents, and his father had been forced to watch it all. His old man had never fully recovered. Travis and his half-sister Emma often bore the brunt of the dysfunction.
“Fuck. I didn’t know,” Mason said.
“It happened before you or I were born.” Travis shrugged. “Last year this guy goes ape shit. Starts copying the TBK murders and leaving these sick notes for my half-sister, Emma. They killed him trying to finish Emma off. Turns out this guy who’d worked at the corner gas station she went to all the time, is part of this...serial killer club. The BAU is—”
“BAU? What?” Mason blinked.
“Behavioral Analysis Unit. They’re the FBI unit that specializes in serial killers. They’re trying to track down the club members, but no one wants to have a serial murderer on their hands.”
“And that’s where Travis likes to help out.” Ethan thumbed at Travis.
“How?” Mason asked.
Travis could see the skepticism in Mason’s eyes. The kid had been around Aegis long enough to hear rumors, stories about the Z-Team. He was probably wondering what a felon like Travis could do that the FBI couldn’t.
Well fuck him.
“I let their team know where I’m working. If they have any leads, I’ll look into it.” Travis sipped his beer and stared at the mirror.
“Why?”
“Why the fuck do you want to know?” He scowled at Mason, but couldn’t blame him. The whole gig was strange. “The FBI has to be invited into an investigation unless it crosses state lines. Like I said, no one wants to have a serial killer on their hands.”
“So you, what? Find a reason for them to come here?” Mason asked. “Why you? You’re just a body guard.”
Travis gripped the edge of the dresser.
Just a bodyguard.
“What the fuck do you know?” Ethan flipped Mason off.
He was right. All Travis was good for these days was an under the table gig, and to catch the bullets meant for someone else. But that was his own fault. Reputable people didn’t hire a felon, even an ex-Navy SEAL felon, no matter what his credentials were. But some jobs were made for him. He’d tracked some of the worst kinds of people across deserts, oceans and mountains. This serial killer wouldn’t know what hit him.
Dear Readers,
I hope you have enjoyed the story of Emma and Jacob, two beautifully broken people. I’m not nervous about releasing books as much as I used to be. I guess that’s what comes with putting out 20+ books, huh? Blind, however, it’s been giving me the jitters since I finished it in 2014.
Every so often authors write a book that’s purely what they want to read. For me, Blind is that book. I wanted to read characters who didn’t ride off into the sunset with their lives perfectly figured out. I wanted to see messy, broken people who were strong and capable. And so Emma and Jacob became clear voices on the page.
I hope you like this book. I hope the rest of the BAU cast is as near and dear to your heart now as mine. Oh, the stories they have to tell...
Let’s do this again.
Sid
Acknowledgements
Books take a village. Readers, you are why I do this. Thank you!
Thank you to my editing team, Dayna and Jessica, for sticking with me and believing in this project. Your enthusiasm and encouragement kept me going.
To the earliest of beta readers, I lost the list of your names, but your feedback in the very beginning told me I was on to something.
All of the officers and agents who have patiently answered my questions, thank you. I hope you never, ever read my books, but you have made them a little more real with your feedback.
Charity, you stuck with me when I was being difficult, when I wasn’t positive about the cover direction. You, lady, are a champ and a master at what you do.
My very own Team Awesome, Reb, Lea and Soph, you ladies know how to keep a girl’s spirits up.
Jayne and Carrie Ann, your guidance and support during the drafing process was huge. Thank you for telling me to stick to my guns.
My Crazy Crew, Bambi, Rachel, Joe and Matt, thank you. Movie nights are an anchor in an otherwise turbulent and busy ocean.
Lastly, Shawn, you put up with hours of Criminal Minds and The Following during editing. Thank you for believing me when I said I wasn’t going to kill you in your sleep. I meant it.
Book List
Aegis Group
Dangerous Attraction, parts 1, 2 and 3
Bayou Bound
Picture Her Bound
Duty Bound
Bound Memories
Bound & Tamed
Other BDSM Titles
Committed
Bound with Pearls
Collar Me in Paris
Festive Seduction
Electric Engagement
Under His Skin
The Harder He Falls
His Marriage Bargain
Good Guys Wear Black
Hot Tango
Line of Duty
Standalone Titles
Falling for His Best Friend
Dream Vacation (free read)
How Zombies Stole Christmas
Anthologies
Hot Ink
High Octane Heroes
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
It can never be said that NYT & USA Today Bestselling author Sidney Bristol has had a ‘normal’ life. She is a recovering roller derby queen, former missionary, and tattoo addict. She grew up in a motor-home on the US highways (with an occasional jaunt into Canada and Mexico), traveling the rodeo circuit with her parents. Sidney has lived abroad in both Russia and Thailand, working with children and teenagers. She now lives in Texas where she splits her time between a job she loves, writing, reading and fostering cats.
Sidney is represented by Nicole Resciniti of the Seymour Agency.
You can find Sidney here:
Website: www.SidneyBristol.com
Twitter: @Sidney_Bristol
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Copyright © 2015 by Sidney Bristol.
Editing by Dayna Hart. www.edits.daynahart.com
Copy editing by Jessica Fritsche. www.jessicafritsche.com
Cover design by Charity Hendry. www.charityhendry.com
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the address below.
Inked Press/Sidney Bristol
www.sidneybristol.com
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.
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Blind/ Sidney Bristol.—1st ed.
ISBN 978-0-9904434-1-4