by Lily White
“Me neither, Pet,” I replied and watched her eat with equal parts lust and disgust inside my head.
I needed to kill.
I hoped the junkie would be enough.
* * *
I cringed at the scent emitting from the back of the Range Rover. Pet had found the guy stumbling down the road in one of the shittier parts of town. Near her old neighborhood, in fact.
He’d gotten in and shot up immediately when he’d seen the needle on the seat beside him. He had been told it was his reward for making the phone call.
He wasn’t going to quell my need to kill, I could tell that from here. It was building again like a kick to the back of the head. I couldn’t ignore it, but I couldn’t give into it.
Part of me longed for the time when I was a simple killer. I hunted, I fed the need, I disposed of the bodies and I reveled in the collection I had. I lived my life and had every appearance of normalcy.
If only I’d been satisfied with that, I wouldn’t be heading towards my warehouse to burn everything I’d worked for to the ground.
I parked a distance from the building and we helped the junkie half walk and half stumble towards it. He muttered incoherently, resisted walking and Pet assured him he was going to be well taken care of. Her calm voice seemed to relax him and he followed us without question.
Pet had already come by and set a few things up. She had some broken chairs for a fire and gas cans arranged all around the large open space.
“You’ve been a busy girl,” I said with admiration.
“I did it when you went in to sign over control of the company,” she said with a smile. “I know how hard that was for you so I wanted to do something special.”
“It’s perfect,” I replied and dropped the junkie to the floor so I could pull her close for a kiss.
Her full lips were cool to the touch and I was instantly hard the moment I ran my hands down her back and cupped her perfect heart shaped ass. I kissed her hard and bit her lower lip, drawing blood. My need was rising again and I wanted to fuck her right at that moment.
“Wait,” she exhaled and pulled back. “Let’s get this taken care of first. Please, let me do this for you. I want to help.”
I reluctantly let her go and watched her work. She knelt next to the junkie and talked softly to him. She arranged his filthy duffel bag under his head and pulled a rag tag old sweater over him like a blanket.
She withdrew a needle from her purse and wiped it clean. She took the junkie’s hands, set the needle between his fingers, found a vein in his arm and sunk the tip into his flesh.
The moment the plunger was pushed down his body started to shake.
My already throbbing cock grew harder as his life drew to a close. He foamed at the mouth and spittle flew out as he overdosed on the heroin Pet had injected into his system.
“It’s high quality shit,” she said and petted his head almost affectionately. “My old coworker knew a guy.”
“You’re magnificent,” I said and she looked up at me with a smile on her face.
“Thank you,” she replied. “I want to be like you, Jude. I want to do what you do.”
“You’re almost there, sis,” I told her.
She lit the broken wood on fire and arranged the junkie’s tin pots around it like a campsite. She was brilliant, if they ever did find his body they would assume he’d overdosed and lit the place on fire with his carelessness.
It was the perfect set up.
She poured gasoline leading from the fire to the haphazardly stacked containers. “Most of these were here already,” she said proudly. “I found them near the loading docks at the back.”
She stood next to me and I said, “Are you going to do the honors?”
“I want you to,” she replied and handed me the junkie’s tattered book of matches. It advertised some online university on the back of it, you could learn everything from microwave repair to business management.
I chuckled at the thought of learning business management online, slid the match across the striker. I watched the flame flare up, stared at it for a moment and dropped it on the pile of broken chairs.
It didn’t start immediately so I added another one. This one caught, I dropped the matchbook beside the junkie’s body and we stepped back as the flames took hold.
My cock was aching at this point and I had to fuck her right then and there.
I grabbed her upper arm and she cried out, “Jude, what are you doing?”
“I need this,” I said in a harsh tone. “It’s the only way I’ll keep from killing you.”
“We have to get out, the building is going to catch fire,” she whined and tried to pull away from me.
I shoved her roughly against an old stack of pallets just a few feet from the fire. She cried out again and tried to wiggle away from me, but I was intent. My urges were in full control and I had to do this or I would fucking lose it and slash her throat.
I needed this rush, this danger. I needed it for both of us.
“Just fucking shut up,” I growled in an almost inhuman voice. “Let me do this.”
I pushed her hoodie up and tore at her pants. She bucked and kicked back against me, still protesting and begging me to let her go.
It was the fire that scared her. It was growing and had snaked along the floor to the wall of containers. They were starting to burn and would explode soon enough which is why I needed to fuck her before they did.
“Stay still,” I ordered and shoved her harder, pinning her to the wood.
I ripped her pants down the back and kneed her legs apart. I unzipped and held my rigid cock in one hand as I kept her pinned tight.
She was sobbing as I thrust inside of her. She resisted again, trying to squeeze her legs together to block me, but I shoved harder.
She cried loudly as I fucked her. Her sobs turned from fear to ecstasy as I pounded her cunt and watched the fire burn, watched the junkie’s body burn.
I fucked her hard and still couldn’t come, I needed more. I needed blood in the fire, I needed death and destruction.
The fire licked at the first container and I heard a popping noise. One of the lower gas cans exploded in a burst of flame and red plastic.
“Jude, oh my god,” she screamed and pushed back against me as if to get away.
Her fear and the danger got me there. I locked my eyes on the burning body of the junkie, the flames leaping along his tattered jacket and reaching for his face.
And I exploded. I felt my urges recede and released my pent up hunger through my cock. Pet pushed against me and cried out again, her cunt tightened around me in fluttering motions and she screamed her animal sound that let me know she was right there with me.
I slowly pulled her up to me, still inside her, and I gripped her face with my hand from behind. “Look at him. You killed him, Pet. You sacrificed his life for mine.”
“I would do it again a million times,” she groaned and leaned back, “but could we please get out of here before we blow up with the place?”
I chuckled and kissed her ear, felt her shiver all the way from her shoulders to her cunt, and slid out as another container burst into flame and exploded nearby.
“Yes, my Pet. Yes, my sister. Yes, my partner in crime,” I agreed.
We ran from the warehouse hand in hand, her torn pants almost comical as we raced to the Range Rover.
A massive eruption of fire and noise rocked the SUV as we burned out on the gravel in the parking lot.
I drove for a block and we stopped to look back. Over half of the warehouse was in flames, the dry wood catching and spreading flames quickly.
“And that’s that,” Pet said, reaching across the seat to take my hand.
“And that’s that,” I agreed and smiled as we drove home.
“I can’t believe you ripped my pants though, you filthy beast,” she said with more than a hint of pleasure in her voice.
“I’ll rip everything you own if it means getting to your
cunt faster,“ I told her and she squeezed my hand in happiness.
“I know,” she sighed and smiled. “I know.”
8 Donovan Blake
FBI – Behavioral Unit Field Office
“Open your mouth, Ms. Wilson, and we’ll release you once this process is over.”
Patty eyed me suspiciously, the skin between her brows crinkling in confusion and distrust. I had so many questions I wanted to ask her, but couldn’t with Emily hovering nearby.
Her teeth clenched tight, Patty continued to stare in my direction. “Why are you doing this again?” Her meth high had worn off hours ago and the bags under her eyes betrayed the exhaustion she was feeling. My patience had run thin, but I explained again why I was taking hair samples and cheek swabs.
“We’re taking a sample of your DNA to compare with the crime scene and body of Ms. Kasch. If nothing matches, we’ll never bother you again. And, given your insistence that you had nothing to do with Ms. Kasch’s untimely death, you should have nothing to worry about. However, I won’t release you without the sample.”
Emily glared in my direction, shaking her head slightly in disbelief. I suspected she didn’t believe that Ms. Wilson was capable of the crimes committed against the other prostitutes, but to me, Ms. Wilson would serve as the perfect scapegoat. Praying that there was a DNA match, I poked the cotton swab at her lips and smiled. “Open up if you want to leave.”
She parted her chapped lips as her eyes narrowed on me. Ignoring her obvious anger, I swabbed the inside of her cheek, obtaining the cells needed to document any DNA evidence that might connect her to the case.
After zipping the cotton swab into an evidence bag, I pushed back in my chair, silently excusing myself from her personal bubble.
“You’re free to go, Ms. Wilson. If there is any additional information you have that may be relevant to the investigation, I ask that you give me a call on the number listed on my card.”
Emily stepped forward to offer her business card, her facial expression blank and unassuming. However, I could feel the anger rolling off my partner as she waited for Ms. Wilson to stand so that she could escort her from the room.
Once both women had walked out the door, I stood from my chair and glanced in the mirrored wall. I knew the other members of my team were waiting and watching on the other side. I had nothing to offer them, so I simply shrugged my shoulders and exited the room.
I’d been given a temporary office at the police station that I’d yet to use since arriving in this craphole of a city. Heading in the direction of that room, I ignored the odd stares from the officers that were traveling the halls.
I knew what they were thinking: that some druggy prostitute had somehow escaped the hot shot federal agent, that all this time I’d focused on the wrong man in this crime, that my profile had been wrong all along and as a result, more women had lost their lives to the Cascades Killer.
That same prostitute was now leaving the station, and she was leaving because I’d chosen not to arrest her.
She wouldn’t make it far, of that I was sure. I’d seen the ramshackle house where she lived, saw the run down faces of her family when she’d been detained. They would never have access to the amount of money it would take to hide Patty should DNA evidence prove that she had any involvement in the death of Crystal Kasch.
If the DNA matched, Patty Wilson would be locked up and this case would be considered closed.
And only I would know that the true killers were still out there potentially plotting their escape while dreaming of their next victim.
Jealousy rolled through me at the thought, my hands reaching up to scrub at my face as I dropped my weight into the leather executive chair behind the dark wood desk in my loaner office.
I hated the beast inside me, and I hated the feeling that I’d never truly be free unless I explored the depth of darkness that lurked just beneath the surface of my skin.
Thoughts tore through my head, mostly of Ronnie and the sounds she’d made when I’d pushed my cock inside her tight body. Everything about her called to me, called to the beast that lingered, no longer silent to me, but still hidden from the world.
“She didn’t do it.”
Emily’s high-pitched voice broke into my thoughts, my eyes cracking open to watch as she walked purposefully into my office. “What do you mean? You don’t think she was lying the entire time we had her in there?”
“Of course she was lying, the question we should be asking is about what.”
Eyeing Emily, I shook my head with disbelief. “Weren’t you the one in there drilling the poor woman, calling her every name in the book and placing the blame for every fucking murder on her shoulders?”
Emily took a seat in the chair facing my desk. Flippantly, she ran her fingers through her hair, pushing the thick tresses away from her face.
“I was roughing her up verbally, sure, but only to scare her. You and I both know that if she thinks she’ll take the fall for all the crimes, she’ll sing like a canary about who is truly responsible. She’s a working girl with a kid. There’s no way she’ll stay silent and let whoever is actually responsible for these murders slide. Hell, I expect to get a phone call from her within the next twenty-four hours. As soon as she fesses up, you and I will have enough credible testimony to go arrest the scumbags that are killing women left and right.”
“Scumbags?” I didn’t like her use of the plural reference. Just how much had Emily figured out about the entire situation? If Ronnie was in danger of being caught…
“Yes, scumbags. Plural. This isn’t a one person operation and you know it. I still think Jude Hollister has something to do with this and I’m under the impression that his little girlfriend is involved as well. How else would that body magically appear while he was locked away. Seems like too much of a coincidence, if you ask me.”
My jaw ticked, my teeth clenched so tightly I was surprised they didn’t shatter under the force. I didn’t give a shit what happened to Jude, but Ronnie –
I had to protect Ronnie.
“What are you saying, Agent Chase?”
She eyed me, disgust rolling behind her pretty eyes. “I’m saying I think we finally have our break, Donovan. I’m surprised you haven’t picked up on it as well…or were you too busy fucking Veronica to give a damn.”
Schooling my expression, I remained neutral despite her accurate accusation. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Is this another one of your jealous fits?”
She laughed, the tone mocking. “I forgot about you the minute you pulled your small dick from my body.”
Sure she had, the anger in her expression said it all. Sitting back in my chair, I continued to feign disinterest in her scorn. “Jude may be involved, yes. I still believe that as well, but Veronica is too soft, too vulnerable and delicate to pull something like this off. It takes a cunning mind, Agent Chase. You know that.”
Her eyes narrowed. “And you don’t think Veronica has a cunning mind?” Another laugh. “I guess not considering she let you fuck you.”
“Speak for yourself, Agent Chase.”
Her stare sharpened, every dagger the woman knew how to throw with just a simple look impacting against my body.
Ignoring the silent barbs, I admitted, “You may be correct about a second person, Emily. But I think she just walked out of this police station. Let the DNA speak for itself.”
Her expression hardened, her lips a thin line against the red anger that colored her face. “Oh, I will, Agent Blake. I’ll also be arresting your new girlfriend as soon as my songbird sings. I’m sure there’s one hell of a story she’ll have for me once she realizes that by staying silent, she’ll be taking the fall.”
Pushing out of her chair, Emily stormed out of the office, not even offering me a backward glance before the door slammed shut behind her.
My chair squeaked in protest as I leaned back, my eyes clenched tight as I wondered what the hell I was going to do to protect the woman that
called to every dark part of my soul that needed the euphoria of blessed release.
9 Ronnie
“What should we pack?” Turning to glance at Jude, I admired the shape of his body beneath his tailored slacks and shirt. It always amazed me how he could look so put together when inside there was something that blazed like the deadliest of fires. “Where are we going anyways? I want to make sure I pack accordingly.”
Glancing up from his tablet, he smiled at me, the expression not meeting his eyes. He was unhappy about something, but I didn’t know what. Ever since we’d left the warehouse, something had been riding him, but he refused to admit what it was. He’d had his kill today – he’d had the release he needed to get through this fucked up storm – but still, I could see the monster inside him begging for more.
“Does it really matter where we’re going? There’s nothing you have that will be suitable. We’ll have to buy you new clothes as soon as I decide where we’ll next live.”
Eyeing the garments in my hand, I didn’t understand what was wrong with the clothes I had. Jude made me toss out everything I’d owned before I knew him. He’d selected these clothes himself, gifting them to me because he’d claimed they looked better just for being wrapped around my body. Why did he seem to hate everything about them now?
His anger frightened me, but I was in too deep to back out now. Even if I had somewhere to go if I left him, I knew Jude would never let me escape.
Placing the clothes back in the drawer, I slid it shut with my hip, turning back to him and noticing that he was staring at his tablet again, completely oblivious to my gaze.
“Is everything okay, Jude? You seem tense.”
Pushing aside my concerns, I played coy, teasing him with my voice as I crawled on the bed towards him. “Maybe I can help you work out whatever is bothering you. I’ll let you tie me up. I know how much you like that.”
His expression didn’t change except for a slight curl at the corner of his beautiful mouth. “You’ll let me?”
