Profile of Terror: Book Two of Profile Series

by Alexa Grace

  Kaitlyn turned in time to see Evan pull something from the glove box. Her heart froze when she saw the fierce-looking gun in his hand. With one hand on the steering wheel, he stretched his arm and pointed the gun at her chest.

  "How about I stop you permanently, bitch? Devan would approve of my shooting you. If he were here, you would undoubtedly already be dead."

  The calm in his eyes was more frightening than if he'd shouted the threat at her.

  Heart pounding, knees shaking, her thoughts racing, Kaitlyn fought for control. Biting her lip, she thought of Frankie's self-defense class. Although Frankie didn't recommend the technique unless it was an extreme emergency, she'd taught her class how to jump from a moving vehicle. It was to be a last-ditch effort, if they'd been abducted. Frankie had emphasized serious injury and even death could occur from leaping from a moving vehicle. Kaitlyn racked her brain for Frankie's instructions, opened both doors at the rear of the van, and then motioned for the truck behind them to back off.

  "What the hell are you doing? Do you want to get shot?" Evan shouted.

  Once the truck slowed down, she moved her body to an angle so she could aim toward the soft grass at the side of the road. Kaitlyn jumped, tucked her body into a ball, her chin to her chest, and prepared to roll. Hitting the ground with her shoulder, she rolled across the grass into a ditch. The air whooshed out of her as if she'd been sucker punched, the pain so severe she could scarcely breathe. But she was alive. Lifting her head, she saw the black truck had pulled off the road, and a teenaged boy and girl were running toward her. In the distance, a police helicopter hugged the highway. Gabe?

  <><><>

  Evan stared in the rearview mirror in disbelief. The crazy bitch had jumped. Just as he watched her roll into a ditch, he saw the helicopter heading toward him, along with a sheriff patrol car. He floored the accelerator, catapulting the van down the highway. He'd reached seventy-miles-per-hour when he saw the deer leap in front of him. Evan slammed on the brakes, making the van do a sickening whirl, spinning until it rolled and rolled, banging his head against the ceiling and then the window, until a heavy darkness overcame him.

  Two patrol cars blocked traffic, while another raced in pursuit of the white van. Gabe lowered the helicopter to a landing, and leapt out. He was followed by Cameron, along with Bryan, who clutched his black medical bag. They hurried to the body in the ditch they'd spotted from the air.

  When Gabe reached Kaitlyn, a young boy was near her body talking on his cell phone, while a girl stroked Kaitlyn's arm as she talked to her soothingly.

  "I'm here, Cat." Gabe tried to keep the hitch of emotion out of his voice.

  "I just knew that was you in the helicopter," Kaitlyn said softly, moaning in pain when he touched her.

  "Where does it hurt?"

  "Everywhere, but mostly up here." She pointed to her arm.

  Bryan arrived. "Move aside so I can look at my patient." He bent down and examined Kaitlyn, who cried out when he prodded her upper arm. "Looks like her shoulder is broken. We need to get her to a hospital, Gabe. She's going to need surgery."

  A loud and fiery explosion pierced the blue sky, and a dark cloud of smoke arose from the highway in the distance.

  "What happened, Cam?" asked Gabe.

  Ending his call, Cam placed his cell phone in his pocket. "Before the deputy in pursuit could even reach the white van, it spun out of control and flipped several times, until it burst into flames. It's too hot for the deputy to get too close to the vehicle, but he doesn't think the driver made it."

  Cam's cell phone sounded. It was Brody.

  "Hey, I was just going to call you. I've got some bad news."

  "What happened? Is it Kaitlyn? Did she get hurt?"

  "Except for a possible broken shoulder, Kaitlyn is fine. She jumped from the back of the van." Cameron paused. "It's Evan. He just wrecked the van and it exploded into flames. There's little chance he lived through it."

  "I'm sorry to hear that."

  "Bradley Lucas not only has to cope with the fact that his sons were serial killers, but now they are both dead."

  "He just called. He looked for the boys at the storage business he owns outside of town. He'd given them a unit to store their athletic gear. Bradley discovered a bed inside the storage unit, along with plastic bins labeled with each of our victim's names. There were other bins, too, and he didn't recognize the names, but I did. They're the murdered Indianapolis prostitutes. Each bin contained personal items belonging to each victim."

  "Bradley has never been one of my favorite people," Cameron said. "But I truly feel sorry for the guy. Do you want me to visit his wife and him with the news?"

  "No, I'm going to handle that myself. Thanks, Cam."

  <><><>

  Several weeks later, Gabe carried Godiva up the stairs, headed for Kaitlyn's suite. Halting in her doorframe, he looked at the stack of clothing on her bed. She stood near a dresser, her broken shoulder healing nicely, thanks to a white collar on her neck connected to a white cuff, supporting the weight of her arm. Gently, he placed the chocolate Lab puppy on the floor. Spying her yellow tennis ball, she crawled under Kaitlyn's bed to fetch it.

  Gabe eyed Kaitlyn. "What are you doing? The doctor told you to rest."

  "That was six weeks ago, and I'm tired of resting. It's time I moved back into my house." Sighing, she pulled open the first drawer of the dresser, and then tossed some T-shirts onto the bed.

  "Why?"

  "Well, one reason to move is the school board. The members are notoriously conservative, which has resulted in three female teachers being fired in the past few years for living with their boyfriends. The board claimed they were bad role models for their students because they were living in sin."

  "You're kidding."

  "No, I'm not. Besides, both Evan and Devan Lucas are dead. It's no longer dangerous for me to live alone. I have Godiva to protect me."

  "Godiva is still a puppy," Gabe protested.

  "She can bark, can't she?"

  "I wanted to wait until the right time to do this, but I guess now's that time."

  "What are you talking about?"

  Gabe plucked something out of his pocket, and held in the palm of his hand the 1976 Pontiac Firebird Matchbox car he'd given Kaitlyn years before.

  Taking the toy car from him, she held it a second before noticing something was inside. Opening the tiny door with the nail of her index finger, she pulled out a folded white piece of paper that she quickly unfolded. In black ink were written the words "Marry me".

  Joy bubbled in her laugh and shone in her eyes as she wrapped one arm around his neck. "Tell me you're serious, Gabe. You really want to marry me?"

  Careful not to hurt her shoulder, he put his arms around her waist, and squeezed her affectionately.

  "I've loved you since the first time I saw you on the Morel Elementary School playground. Please marry me, Cat. I can't bear to think of not having you in my life." Pausing for a second, he added, "Besides do you want Godiva growing up in a broken home? She needs both of her parents."

  <><><>

  Dear Reader:

  If you liked Profile of Terror, I would appreciate it if you would help others enjoy this book too by recommending it to your friends, family and book clubs by writing an honest, positive review on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, iTunes, Goodreads, Smashwords, etc.

  If you do write a review, please send me an email at alexagrace@cfl.rr.com. I’d like to add you to my e-newsletter list so that you can get updates about upcoming releases first, be eligible for drawings for prizes, and get free ebook alerts.

  Thank you.

  Alexa Grace

  P.S. If you should find a mistake, please notify me. I always strive to write the best book possible and use a team of beta readers as well as an editor prior to publication. But goofs slip through. If something slipped past us, please let me know by writing to me at alexagrace@cfl.rr.com. Thank you.

  The Profile Series by Alexa Grace
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  Profile of Evil

  Carly Stone is a brilliant FBI agent who's seen more than her share of evil. Leaving the agency, she becomes a consultant for Indiana County Sheriff Brody Chase, who needs her profiling skills to catch an online sex predator who is luring preteen girls to their death in his community.

  A life hangs in the balance, and the two rushes stop the most terrifying killer of their careers — and time is running out.

  Profile of Terror

  Social media sites are the playground for twin sexual predators and are the last stops for three young women. When an ex-girlfriend goes missing, Private Investigator Gabe Chase is obsessed with finding her. Once her lifeless body is discovered, her gorgeous and accusing older sister is the distraction Gabe doesn't need as the body count increases and he hunts down the killers.

  Coming in 2015 Profile of Fear

  A dismembered body found by a trash collector catapults Detective Cameron Chase into the unspeakable world of human sexual trafficking. His county is the last place anyone would consider for sex trafficking, and that's just what the traffickers are counting on.

  Other Books by Alexa Grace

  From USA TODAY Bestselling Author Alexa Grace, The Deadly Trilogy, three books with non-stop suspense and a healthy dose of toe-curling passion will have you holding your breath from the first page to the last. You can find them at online retailers: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iTunes, Smashwords, and more.

  Deadly Offerings - Book One - Anne Mason thinks she’ll be safe living in the Midwest living on a wind farm left to her by her ex's mother. She may be dead wrong. Someone is dumping bodies in her corn field and telling Anne they are gifts—for her! And how can she be falling in love with the hot attorney who represented her ex-husband in their divorce proceedings?

  Deadly Deception - Book Two- Enter the disturbing world of illegal adoptions, baby trafficking and murder with new detective Lane Hansen and private investigator Frankie Douglas. Going undercover as husband and wife, Lane and Frankie struggle to keep their relationship strictly professional as their sizzling passion threatens to burn out of control. Can they keep passion in control long enough to take down two murderers?

  Deadly Relations - Book Three - Detective Jennifer Brennan, still haunted by her abduction five years before, devotes her life to serve and protect others. Love is the last thing on her mind, but will it find her after three young women go missing and are found murdered on her watch and she vows to find the killer — or die trying.

  Deadly Holiday - If you liked the books of The Deadly Trilogy: Deadly Offerings, Deadly Deception and Deadly Relations, you'll LOVE this nail-biting, holiday-themed novella where the characters return to search for a lost boy, fight breast cancer, deal with the personal financial impact of a bad economy, and seek a Christmas miracle.

  Alexa Grace's Deadly Trilogy Boxed Set - With more than 1,000 five-star reviews, it's time for you to discover the three Deadly Trilogy books: Deadly Offerings, Deadly Deception and Deadly Relations.

  For more information, go to http://www.alexa-grace.net/.

  About the Author — Alexa Grace

  USA Today Bestselling Author, Alexa Grace's journey started in March 2011 when the Sr. Director of Training & Development position she'd held for thirteen years was eliminated. A door closed but another one opened. She finally had the time to pursue her childhood dream of writing books. Her focus is now on writing riveting romantic suspense novels.

  Author Alexa Grace is consistently listed in top twenty of Amazon's Top 100 Most Popular Authors in the categories Romantic Suspense and Police Procedural. She was named one of the top 100 Indie authors by Kindle Review. A chapter is devoted to her in the book Interviews with Indie Authors by C. Ridgway and T. Ridgway.

  She became a USA TODAY Best Selling Author for her participation in THE PERFECT TEN book set.

  Her books Deadly Offerings, Deadly Deception, and Deadly Relations have consistently been listed in Amazon's Top 100 Bestselling Romantic Suspense and Police Procedural Books. Deadly Deception, Deadly Relations and Deadly Holiday have ranked #1 in the top... Read More

  Alexa Grace began her writing journey in March 2011 when the Sr. Director of Training & Development position she'd held for thirteen years was eliminated. A door closed but another one opened. She finally had the time to pursue her childhood dream of writing books. Her focus is now on writing riveting romantic suspense novels.

  Alexa Grace is consistently listed in top twenty of Amazon's Top 100 Most Popular Authors in the categories Romantic Suspense and Police Procedural. In 2013, she was named one of the top 100 Indie authors by Kindle Review. A chapter is devoted to her in the book Interviews with Indie Authors by C. Ridgway and T. Ridgway.

  Her books Deadly Offerings, Deadly Deception, and Deadly Relations are listed in e-retailer's Top 100 Bestselling Romantic Suspense and Police Procedural Books. Deadly Offerings has not left the top ten bestselling free mystery romance and police procedural books since 2011.

  Deadly Holiday, published in November 2012, is her holiday-themed romantic suspense novella, featuring all her Deadly Trilogy characters.

  Alexa Grace's book Deadly Relations is included in the bestselling book set The Perfect Ten along with Dianna Love, Norah Wilson, Nancy Naigle, Andrienne Giordano, Misty Evans, Sandy Blair, Mary Buckham, Tonya Kappes and Micah Caipa.

  Profile of Evil, the first book of the Profile Series was published in May 2013. Profile of Terror will be released in the spring 2014 and Profile of Fear will be released in the 2015.

  Earning two degrees from Indiana State University, Alexa currently lives in Florida. She's a member of Romance Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.

  Her writing support team includes five Miniature Schnauzers, three of which are rescues. As a writer, she is fueled by Starbucks lattes, chocolate and emails from readers.

  You can visit her at - http://www.alexa-grace.net/

  Subscribe to her newsletter at - http://eepurl.com/sJ-Df

  Friend her on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/AuthorAlexaGrace

  Tweet her - @AlexaGrace2

  Table of Contents

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Acknowledgments

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  The Profile Series by Alexa Grace

  Other Books by Alexa Grace

  About the Author — Alexa Grace