PROLOGUE
His prey stumbled through the dark parking lot, teetering in her high heels, swaying as she tried to brace her body against the old sedan. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and her slender shoulders were slumped.
Voices and laughter drifted in the night. The last few bar patrons slowly staggered away.
They didn’t acknowledge the woman. They were too busy trying to stay upright.
He was the only one who watched her.
She wasn’t drunk. That wasn’t why she swayed. The woman was bone tired. Lily Adams had worked a double shift, staying far later at Striker’s than she normally did. She had to be so very weary.
She shouldn’t work so hard. If she wasn’t careful, little Lily was going to work herself straight into an early grave.
She finally got the car door unlocked. Lily slid into her sedan. Cranked the engine. It sputtered, then died. Lily tried again, obviously used to this routine.
It was a routine he’d watched before.
A few minutes later, after a few more false starts, her car backed out of the lot.
He waited a beat, then followed her.
When she turned on the old, long stretch of highway that would take her back to the little ranch house she had off of County Road 12, he was close. So close. His headlights were turned off, and sweet Lily Adams had no clue she was being hunted.
The hunt was always so much fun. Not the best part, of course, but still…
He enjoyed it. The hunt built the anticipation. Let him know of the pleasures to come.
He kept track of the miles as they passed. It was important to keep track because he’d planned this so perfectly.
Up ahead, her car began to slow. To sputter. Right on time.
When the sedan stopped completely, he smiled and flashed on his lights.
The road was instantly bright, the headlights falling straight on Lily and her car. She hadn’t gotten out of the vehicle. Sometimes, they did. When their cars stopped, they would jump out. They tried to lift the hood, tried to see what was wrong.
Tried to fix what couldn’t be fixed.
But Lily wasn’t moving.
He parked behind her. Took a breath. Let the anticipation build even more. Then he slid from his vehicle and headed toward her. The road was empty. Stretching as far as he could see. No help in sight.
No help would be coming for Lily Adams.
His gloved hands fisted.
She would make such a perfect addition to his collection.
CHAPTER ONE
Dr. Cadence Hollow was beautiful when she slept. Her defenses were down, her body so relaxed. No fears plagued her, no desperation. All of that was gone in sleep.
Kyle McKenzie studied his partner as the plane slowly descended. Cadence’s head rested on his shoulder. She’d hate that intimate position when she woke. She always tried so hard to keep distance between them.
Distance he’d like to eliminate.
His fingers skimmed over her cheek. Like touching silk. So soft and smooth. His head had turned toward her, and he was close enough to catch the light scent that always surrounded her.
Cadence smelled like flowers. Roses.
She was also the embodiment of every fantasy he’d had for the past year.
“McKenzie.” She sighed out his name without opening her eyes. “What are you doing?”
Imagining you naked. Was that such a bad thing? Probably. Since they were partners and they were supposed to have a serious hands-off rule in effect. But a guy could still dream.
The plane jerked a bit. Cadence’s lashes lifted. Her big, golden eyes were startlingly aware for someone who’d been asleep. That was Cadence. Instantly alert.
Always on guard.
“We’re touching down,” he told her.
Her head rose, a faint furrow appearing between her brows as she realized she had been sleeping on his shoulder.
Not that he minded being her pillow. Not at all. Especially because she’d been the one to move closer to him.
Cadence licked her lips.
Torture.
Then she hurriedly straightened in her seat. “I didn’t realize we’d arrive so soon.”
“It’s been two hours.” Not that he’d been counting. They’d left their base in Quantico early that morning, heading out on another case he already knew would hit too damn close to home.
Hell, he’d taken the case because it hit close. When he’d gotten the phone call from the police captain in Paradox, Alabama, everything had changed. It wasn’t his first time talking to Captain James Anniston.
Because fifteen years ago, Kyle’s sister had disappeared in that same small, southern town.
Vanished without a trace.
There had been no way he could have denied Anniston’s request for assistance. Kyle hadn’t told Cadence about his connection to the town, not yet.
He knew Cadence. She would think he was going to the town for the wrong reasons. To find my sister.
Cadence would be right.
As an FBI agent, he’d always thought he knew all about the evil in the world. Then, last year, he’d been transferred to the violent crimes division and specifically assigned to work with Cadence.
Her specialty?
Serial killers. She was a doctor turned profiler, an MD who’d taken to profiling not just killers, but also their victims. Her profiles were dead-on and had resulted in a case closure rate that had caught the attention of all the higher-ups at Quantico. Cadence’s skills were in high demand at the bureau.
Killers weren’t stopping. They were simply becoming more vicious.
Right then, he and Cadence figured there were between thirty and forty active serials hunting, just in the United States. All those killers were why Uncle Sam had recruited the agents to work specifically at serial apprehension, or SA as the bureau called it.
The pilot’s voice came over the speaker, reminding them to secure their seat belts as they landed. It was a private plane, one the FBI let its agents use when they were going out on cases like this one.
When time matters. When a life could hang in the balance.
“Do you think she’s still alive?” Kyle asked Cadence, unable to hold the question back.
Cadence hesitated.
She doesn’t.
Cadence never seemed to have much hope. The victims were the ones she focused on; she got them to lead her to the killers, yet she never seemed to think she or Kyle could actually save anyone. Stop the killers, yes, but rescue a victim?
No.
“Lily Adams has been missing for less than twelve hours,” she said, giving a quick shake of her head. Her gaze cut toward the window. “There’s certainly a chance she could still be alive, but I don’t know what to expect.”