Another set of cuffs went to my left ankle, securing it to the foot of the bed, and the last to my right.
I can’t do this. Holy shit, I can’t do this. My body was trembling by the time Blake stretched his fully clothed body on top of mine and pressed his mouth firmly to my own.
“I waited, Rachel. I waited until you were old enough. I wasted my time looking for girls who came even remotely close to looking like you.” His hand brushed through my hair as he studied it. “Long legs. Long, straight, near-black hair. Eyes the exact color of sapphires.” A heavy sigh left him and his forehead creased. “But none of them were you. None of them had your temper; none of them had your fire for life. So none of them deserved to have your beauty.”
“Like Jenn.” I realized it with dread and watched his face twist with a look of disgust.
“Everything I’ve done up until this point has been for you and our future together. I only wish,” he said against my lips, “that you would stop being so goddamn difficult.” Suddenly he was off me and the bed and rummaging through the nightstand drawer again.
He fastened a gag around my mouth and as soon as I began wondering what kind of sick things Blake really was into, he began pulling knives and different-looking blades out as well. Once everything was sitting on top of the nightstand, he grabbed a pair of keys out of his pocket and unlocked the cabinet door of the nightstand. Standing slowly, I saw the vase of carnations that had been on the screens and he smiled widely at me. Like he was proud of something.
“These are for you, sweetheart, as soon as I finish putting my claim on you and then making you mine. I’ve never forgotten the day you showed up at my door with these.”
My head shook back and forth as I searched every memory I had regarding carnations, but nothing stood out, and Blake roared in frustration as he pulled one flower out and threw the rest of the bouquet against the far wall. The sound of the glass vase shattering filled the open space and he flung the lone flower at my face.
“My Rachel wouldn’t forget that she brought my family a bouquet of carnations this exact color.”
Oh God, I did remember. That had been right after I’d thought I’d fallen in love with him and his grandma had passed. My mom had bought them, but I’d wanted to give them to Mrs. West. I’d completely forgotten about that and that’d been about a dozen years ago. How did he remember that?
Blake laughed sadly and grabbed the carnation that was lying haphazardly on my cheek before trailing it along my face and up my arms. “See, my Rachel wouldn’t have forgotten, but something happened and you changed. You’re no longer my Rachel. And like the other Rachel imposters, you don’t deserve the whole bouquet. You’ll only be needing one, sweetheart.”
What in the actual f**k is wrong with this man?
Kash
I HIT MASON’S name again on my screen and prayed he’d answer the phone this time. “C’mon, c’mon, c’mon.”
Ever since I’d heard Rachel scream, and her phone had gone straight to voice mail when I called back, I’d been calling Mason over and over again. But he hadn’t once answered. I knew I shouldn’t have freaked out in the meeting room. But when you realize the serial killer you’ve been after has your girl with him, all rational thought goes out the window. But I still couldn’t believe Mason of all people had asked them to keep me at the damn station!
“What, Kash?”
“Why the hell haven’t you been answering your phone?”
“We were getting ready for the takedown.” He sounded defeated and after a few seconds he sighed into the phone. “She’s not here, man.”
My blood ran cold. “Yes she is, she has to be. I was just talking to her. Are we sure that’s the correct address?”
“Positive, this is definitely West’s place. But he isn’t here either; we checked all the rooms and there isn’t a sign of him. His Lexus is out front, so he must have another car we don’t know about, or that Explorer that man who was stalking Rachel for him drove is actually Blake’s. But it’s not here.”
“I don’t think it’s Blake’s, Rachel said he has men tailing all of us.”
“You serious?”
“Yeah, man. Even Candice’s family.”
He growled, “That sick fuck. Look, I know we were already pretty sure this would be the Carnation killer, but even if it’s not . . . he needs to go. Every room is full of pictures of Rachel, her schedule, and just random things about her.”
I flipped on my blinker and swerved across a couple lanes to take the exit I was about to miss, earning me a few horns. “You keep talking about multiple rooms. Rachel said where she’s at is practically one big room. Is there a shed or a guesthouse, anything?”
Mason started calling for Ryder away from the phone and after another few seconds, I heard him asking Ryder about other possibilities when something else he’d said occurred to me.
“Mase! Mase, can you hear me?”
“Yeah?”
“You said Blake’s Lexus is there, right?”
A pause and some shuffling. “Positive that’s his, there’s no way I’d forget that car. And it’s parked right out front.”
“Where’s Rachel’s Jeep?”
“I don’t know, man, why?”
“When he came by to get her today, they both took their cars. Find her Jeep, you find Rach.” I looked down at my GPS and let out a deep breath. “I’m not far out, I’ll be there soon.”
“No, Kash. You go back. You’re too close to this case.”
“And you’re not? She’s like your sister!”
“She’s your goddamn fiancée! Turn the f**k around!”
The tires of my truck squealed as I took a corner too quickly. I hoped like hell there were no cops running radar on this road right now—not like I’d stop for them anyway—because I was still ten minutes away if I went the speed limit. But no way was I gonna have the patience to go thirty-five miles per hour when my reason for breathing could have been taking her last. Once my truck straightened out again, I gunned it until I was going eighty-five down the narrow neighborhood roads. “If she dies, and I did nothing, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself, Mason. I’ll be there soon. Look for her Jeep or a guesthouse and call me back if you find them.” Before he could protest further, I hung up and looked wildly around at the thinning houses.
Just as I was coming up on the different squad cars and vans they’d all taken to get there, I caught a glimpse of white to my left and it took everything in me not to slam on my brakes in the middle of the road or turn and drive my truck into the small guesthouse. I’d never been so happy in my life to see a damn Jeep Liberty. I pulled up behind the end of the line of cars and started back down the long dirt driveway on foot as I called Mason again.
“We don’t have anything yet, Kash, we’re working on it.”
“I found her,” I said softly, and walked low to the ground but swiftly. “The property directly next to his on the west has a dirt driveway that heads back to a small guesthouse. Rachel’s Jeep is peeking out of the side. I’m walking up.”
“No, wait for us! We need to think about the best way to go in there first, and besides, you don’t have on a vest or anything—did they even give you your gun back?”
“Mason, the last thing I heard from her was her screaming before the call was lost. I’m not waiting another minute. Either get your ass over here with me, or I’m going in alone!” I hissed, and continued making my way up the drive.
“Shit! Ryder, Mackey, Barnes, come with me now.” I could hear the wind in the phone and Mason’s breathing pick up. “We went out the back, we’re coming. Where exactly are— Never mind, I see you. Just stay there.”
I shoved my phone in my pocket and kept going. I wasn’t stopping yet; I was barely halfway there. By the time the guys made it over to me, no one looked exactly happy to see me, especially Ryder. But Mason’s anger was fighting with his fear for Rachel, and right now I couldn’t figure out which one was winning.
Detective Ryder cleared his throat until I focused on him. “Mason said she screamed. And then what happened?”
“The call was dropped. She had been trying to make a run for it. This is our guy; I know it is. She said in the room there are screens and on them are live feeds coming from different men watching people closest to her. While we were talking, the feed stopped and all that was on the screen was a bouquet of carnations.” I began moving toward the house, but Ryder put a hand on my chest and stopped me.
“We’ll take it from here.”
I swallowed hard and shook my head. “With all due respect, sir, there isn’t a chance in hell you are stopping me from getting my girl out of that house. If I lose my job over this, so be it. But she’s my world, and the only reason she’s in here is because I f**ked up and didn’t do my job in protecting her.” I pushed past his hand, only to stop again when Mason held something in front of me.
A gun.
Good thing, because I hadn’t ever gotten mine back at the station. I looked at my best friend, and with a nod, he pulled out his second duty weapon and we quickly moved in on the house. All the curtains were closed, and as the five of us quickly set up to kick in the door, muffled screams came from somewhere in the house and Mason didn’t waste another second.
The door went in easily, and I rounded the frame followed by the others.
“Austin Police Department,” I yelled as I charged into the open room, “show me your hands!”
“Travis County sheriff, drop your weapon!”
My blood boiled as my eyes narrowed in on Blake leaning over Rachel’s body on the bed. He straightened on his knees and slowly lifted his hands in the air, a scalpel in one hand and what looked like a sickle in the other.
A disturbed smile covered his face as we closed in on him. He looked completely at peace, even with five guns pointing at him. I chanced a glance at Rachel and it took me a moment to realize that the roar that filled the room had come from me. She had blood covering her bare upper body and running down her arms, which were cuffed to the bed. I automatically took a step in her direction before I could remember the safest way to go about this for her—to keep my eyes and weapon on the shitbag still straddling her knees.
“Drop your weapons,” I said through gritted teeth, and forced my eyes not to move from Blake’s hands. I wanted nothing more than to keep my gun aimed right at his head, but training took over and I put it at his chest instead. My finger itched to move closer to the trigger. Mason was right. I was too close to this and I wasn’t thinking clearly. But I couldn’t have left someone else to save Rachel.
Blake started lowering his body over Rachel again.
“Freeze or I will shoot you!”
“You really don’t want to do that,” he said calmly.
Want to fuckin’ bet?
“If my men don’t hear from me every fifteen minutes, they have orders to kill. Since I was listening to Rachel during your touching phone call earlier . . . I know you know who will die. So you decide. Shoot me or arrest me and have the deaths of Rachel’s loved ones on your hands . . . or let me go and we can hope you can get an ambulance out here fast enough so that our poor Rachel doesn’t bleed out.”