For a moment, her brain didn't register what she was seeing. Her body shook as she reached out to touch the girl--her eyes were open and empty, her face drained of color.

Nicky shook her head. No, this wasnt right. It wasnt happening. She'd come all this way. She'd found the guy, and she was not going to let Masie die.

She dropped to her knees and laid a hand on the dead girl's chest. What she didn't notice was the dark, slick substance on her hand until her fingers began to tingle.

Nicky pulled her hand away and saw the blood.

It was still warm to the touch.

The kill had been fresh. He mustve done it moments before shed arrived.

Maybe he even saw her coming up to the building and decided to finish Masie off, right then and there.

Her world crumbled around her.

Masie was dead.

Nicky was too late.

CHAPTER ONE

Nicky entered her dark, quiet apartment, and threw her keys on the console table, not wanting to face what was waiting for her there.

Loneliness. Emptiness.

She would be left with her thoughts, and the memories of what happened. She felt like she'd been hit by a train.

And the only thing that would cure it, or at least numb it, was a stiff glass of whiskey.

She headed straight for the liquor cabinet and took out a bottle of Jack Daniel's, pouring herself a generous glass. Nicky's apartment was dark, save for a lone lamp which cast a dim orange glow through the living room. The light was soft and warm, flickering off the walls.

She'd been living here for the past two years, and she was still surprised each time she stepped into the apartment. The walls were painted a warm honey tone, and the furniture was a step-up from the old discount furniture she'd had in her early twenties. A floor-to-ceiling bookcase was filled with textbooks. But her favorite part was the huge window that looked out to the skyline of Jacksonville, Florida. Nicky took a sip and looked out over the city.

An image of Frank Reeses deranged, snake-like face flashed in her mind.

She wished she could've stopped him, but she'd been too late. But only by a hair. If Nicky had arrived earlier, maybe Masie would still be alive. All the possibilities of things she could have done differently swam through her mind. She could have been faster. She could have been sneakier.

The only thing she was thankful for was that this guy would never hurt anyone again. He was dead. Nicky would be lying if she said he didnt deserve it.