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Authors: Maya Banks,Karin Tabke,Sylvia Day

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BOOK: Men Out of Uniform: Three Novellas of Erotic Surrender
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Kirsten had come by Truitt’s house to pick her up and take her back to Kirsten’s apartment so Jessie could have her car. Kirsten had offered to go help Jessie pack up her apartment, but really, there just wasn’t much to do and Kirsten had to work.
Already she’d had a text from each of the guys, which she thought was incredibly sweet. She half wondered if she was crazy for jumping in so quickly, but wasn’t everyone entitled to one rash decision in their life?
She hoped like hell she wouldn’t ever regret it, but oh well, if she did, she’d have fun in the meantime.
She pulled up to her apartment and sighed. She wouldn’t miss this place. It had been a place to live. Not home. A place in which she’d been biding her time until she paid off her debt, finished school, and got a better job.
Accounting was boring, no doubt, but who didn’t need an accountant ? Companies always needed number crunchers and accountants were usually the last to be laid off. It seemed like a stable job, and above all, Jessie wanted some stability in her life.
Maybe in time she could open her own business. Do taxes and small-business accounting. The idea of having her own office space with her name outside gave her a ridiculous thrill.
The sooner she packed up and gave her notice, the quicker she could move on with her life. Things could only look up from here.
She let herself in and stared around the tiny efficiency, where she’d lived since her accident. No, she wouldn’t miss it.
Cheered by the thought of embarking on something new and exciting, she went into the bedroom and began packing her clothes. She went into the bathroom and tossed all her toiletries into a duffle bag and then lugged her suitcases to the front and left them by the door.
She was about to start into the kitchen when movement out her front window caught her eye. Frowning, she went over to peek out. Her frown got deeper when she saw a patrol car pulled right up to her front door on the narrow concrete driveway. Hell, she didn’t even park there and it galled her that some dumbass cop was blocking her now.
And then she thought that maybe Rick and Truitt were the dumbass cops in question and her cheeks warmed. Even if she hadn’t voiced the insult out loud she still felt guilty. Knee-jerk reaction after her experience with the police over the last few days.
She went to the door and stepped out onto her walkway, glancing toward the patrol car. To her surprise a tall, slender policewoman got out of the driver’s side and flashed a smile in Jessie’s direction.
Jessie frowned back at the woman.
The woman continued forward. “Are you Jessie Callahan?”
“What’s it to you?” Jessie asked belligerently.
“I wondered if you could come to the station with me. We need to ask you a few questions about one of your coworkers. We’re still investigating Merriam Powell’s murder.”
Oh, now they wanted her help? She didn’t care if this woman worked with Rick and Truitt. She could kiss Jessie’s ass. She may have forgiven Rick and Truitt but she wasn’t so forgiving to the rest of their department.
“I’m busy,” Jessie said shortly.
The woman’s eyebrows arched. “It won’t take long.”
“If it won’t take long then ask me here while I finish packing.”
Jessie started to turn away but to her surprise the woman quickly closed the distance and gripped Jessie’s arm.
“You going somewhere?” the woman asked softly. She let go and abruptly took one step back.
“That’s none of your b—”
The words broke off in midsentence as fire surged through Jessie’s body. Her entire body stiffened and she jittered from head to toe. She couldn’t move, she couldn’t speak, she couldn’t cry out. Her lips were numb and her tongue instantly dry in her mouth.
Her bad knee buckled and she would have hit the ground but the woman pushed forward and held her up, smiling the whole while. Casually she half-carried, half-dragged Jessie the three feet to the passenger side of her patrol car.
She opened the back and eased Jessie in as if she worried they were being watched. Then she leaned in as Jessie started to sag sideways.
All Jessie saw was the butt of a pistol flying toward her head and then her entire world went black.
 
“I wonder why Jessie won’t answer her cell. She answered my text hours ago but then nothing else afterward.”
Truitt yawned and rubbed a hand through his hair. It had been a long-ass day spent interviewing the victim’s family, friends, and coworkers.
All he really wanted was to go home, feel Jessie in his arms, and then sleep for about twenty-four hours straight.
He glanced up at Rick and saw that his partner was worried. Not just a little bit either. He frowned. “She was moving stuff today. She’s probably busy. She might be with her friend.”
“That doesn’t explain why she won’t answer her cell. It isn’t turned off or it would go straight to voice mail.”
Truitt frowned but before he could respond, the phone at his desk rang.
“Cavanaugh,” he said in greeting.
“Is this Truitt Cavanaugh?”
“Yes it is. Is this Kirsten? Jessie’s friend?” He recognized the voice.
“Yeah, it is. Look, have you heard from Jessie since I picked her up from your house?”
Dread began to form in Truitt’s stomach and he glanced over at Rick, who was still frowning at his phone.
“No, Rick was just saying she hadn’t answered her phone or his texts. You haven’t seen her either?”
Rick came to immediate attention and hovered over Truitt, his brows drawn together as he listened to the conversation.
“No,” Kirsten said. “And the thing is, I went over to her apartment. Her car is still there but the front door is locked. It doesn’t look like she’s there but where else would she be unless she was with you?”
“Okay, thanks for letting me know, sweetheart. Rick and I will find her. I promise.”
“Let me know that she’s okay. I worry about her.”
“Will do.”
Truitt hung up and then stood abruptly, grabbing for his keys. Rick was leaned over Truitt’s desk, his palms planted on the surface and his face a mask of worry.
“What’s going on?” Rick demanded.
“Kirsten’s worried. She hasn’t heard from Jessie all day and she said she drove by Jessie’s apartment and her car is still there but the door is locked and it looks like she isn’t home.”
“Shit,” Rick said. “It’s after eight and it’s been hours since we last heard from her. I knew I should have gone by to check on her. What if she’s inside the house hurt?”
“Let’s go,” Truitt said as he hurried out of his office.
Several minutes later they roared up to Jessie’s apartment and parked behind her car. Rick was out of the truck before Truitt had come to a full stop. Cursing, Truitt got out and ran to the front door behind Rick.
They tried the door but found it locked. They both put a shoulder to the wood and then rammed forward. On the second attempt, the door burst open and they rushed in.
“Jessie!” Truitt yelled. “Jessie, are you in here?”
Rick nearly tripped on her suitcases. They ran to the bedroom, the only other room besides the bathroom, but the apartment was empty.
“Where the hell is she?” Rick demanded.
“She’s mostly packed. Everything is out of the bedroom and bathroom. Looks like she only had the kitchen. Her suitcases are by the door and her car is out front. Where the hell could she have gone?”
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” Rick said. “This is going to sound crazy, Tru, but I can’t get the idea out of my head.”
“What? Spit it out, man.”
“The killer called
before
this time. He’s never done that. But this time he made it a point to call us and say that he’d already chosen his next victim. I know it sounds insane but it’s screaming in my head right now. What if the son of a bitch tagged her from the news story?”
“That’s a hell of a coincidence. What are the odds? Unless this guy is watching us. Then he’d know that we were involved with Jessie, but that’s just crazy.”
“Why does he call me every time?” Rick asked quietly. “Why not someone else. Why not the chief? It’s not about attention. He’s obviously focused on me. And if he’s focused on me, then he’d damn well know about Jessie. Or it could be a raging coincidence. Either way I have a sick feeling that the bastard has his hands on Jessie and if we don’t do something, we’re going to lose her.”
Chapter 14
 
J
essie woke to throbbing pain in her head. Her entire body hurt. Her muscles were still jittery and she couldn’t make sense of where she was or what had happened.
The first thing she became aware of was rain. The sound of rain, a gentle patter that soothed some of the vicious ache. She started to raise her head, because for some reason, the rest of her body wasn’t cooperating, but as soon as she moved, agonizing pain ripped through her knee.
She screamed and tried to flinch away, but she couldn’t move. She was tied to a wooden table, completely naked.
A face appeared above her. A face she remembered. And it all came back. The cop at her apartment. The bitch had Tased her.
The woman rammed the butt of her pistol into Jessie’s knee again.
The pain was so horrific that Jessie gagged and turned her face to the side, breathing fiercely through her nose so she wouldn’t vomit.
“Glad you’re awake. The hunt is about to begin.”
The words were said with such coolness and calm that they sent a shiver down Jessie’s spine. She lay there panting, frantic to make sense of her situation. What the hell was happening? This woman was a police officer for God’s sake.
“This is the way it’s going to happen,” the woman said.
Her hair was pulled back into a sharp ponytail, so tight that the skin stretched across angular cheekbones. She’d be pretty with makeup. Jessie almost laughed hysterically at the idea that she was contemplating how a maniac would look spiffed up.
She was tall. Even taller than Jessie had first realized. She had an athletic build that Jessie envied and was toned, with not an ounce of fat anywhere on her body.
She had on camo pants and a black tank, but what Jessie’s gaze was drawn to was the wicked-looking hunting knife in her hand. It gleamed in the low light, and as Jessie dragged her gaze from that knife, she realized that she was in what looked to be a hunting camp and God only knew where they were.
The woman leaned in closer until the knife was so close Jessie could see her own reflection in the blade.
“I’m going to let you go and you’re going to run. Then I’m going to hunt you and make the kill. It’s fair. You get a fighting chance. Everyone before you has been too stupid to know what to do with it, but that’s not my fault. I gave it to them.”
“If you wanted to make it fair, you wouldn’t have bashed my knee,” Jessie said through gritted teeth. “You have to know I can’t run.”
The woman shrugged. “I imagine you can do lots of things you don’t think you can when you’re life is on the line.”
She yanked the knife down Jessie’s side and Jessie felt her flesh split open. She screamed in shock and horror as pain assaulted her all over again. The smell of blood rushed through her nostrils and she gagged again.
“What the hell are you doing?” Jessie yelled hoarsely. Oh God, it hurt. It felt like she was on fire. This bitch was crazy. Batshit crazy. And you couldn’t reason with crazy.
“Tracking a kill is all about a good blood trail. I can hardly follow a blood trail if there’s no blood,” the woman replied calmly.
She dragged the knife down Jessie’s uninjured leg, making a shallow cut from her hip to her knee. Jessie arched off the table, straining against her bonds as she screamed once again. Tears trailed down her cheeks and she closed her eyes, praying for a way out. Praying for the strength to run when the time came.
“Why aren’t you begging?”
BOOK: Men Out of Uniform: Three Novellas of Erotic Surrender
5.85Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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