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Chapters (45)
  1. Also by
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Dedication
  5. Acknowledgments
  6. Prologue
  7. Chapter One
  8. Chapter Two
  9. Chapter Three
  10. Chapter Four
  11. Chapter Five
  12. Chapter Six
  13. Chapter Seven
  14. Chapter Eight
  15. Chapter Nine
  16. Chapter Ten
  17. Chapter Eleven
  18. Chapter Twelve
  19. Chapter Thirteen
  20. Chapter Fourteen
  21. Chapter Fifteen
  22. Chapter Sixteen
  23. Chapter Seventeen
  24. Chapter Eighteen
  25. Chapter Nineteen
  26. Chapter Twenty
  27. Chapter Twenty-One
  28. Chapter Twenty-Two
  29. Chapter Twenty-Three
  30. Chapter Twenty-Four
  31. Chapter Twenty-Five
  32. Chapter Twenty-Six
  33. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  34. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  35. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  36. Chapter Thirty
  37. Chapter Thirty-One
  38. Chapter Thirty-Two
  39. Chapter Thirty-Three
  40. Chapter Thirty-Four
  41. Chapter Thirty-Five
  42. Chapter Thirty-Six
  43. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  44. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  45. Teaser

Laurel once again looked at the frozen body. The woman deserved better than to have investigators fighting over her case. They should all be trying to find her killer. “She’s frozen solid to the wood planks beneath her, Dr. Ortega. This is going to be difficult.” Crouching again, she studied bone fragments poking out of the woman’s shredded face. “Fury and rage belong on another plane, not within the human heart,” she murmured.

“Who said that?” Huck asked.

“She did. In one of her poems.” Laurel stood, her lungs feeling heavy. Who would do something like this?

A shout came from down by the lake.

“Sounds like we found the hands,” the sheriff drawled.

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

After another night beset by gruesome dreams, Laurel sat on top of the new conference table and studied the glass boards now mounted to the wall. She’d placed pictures of both victims as well as one of Abigail on a board, making notations below them. The women looked nothing alike. That was interesting.

“Hi.” Huck filled the doorway, carrying two steaming drinks from Staggers. He looked at the boards. “The victims aren’t similar.” Moving inside, he handed over one drink. Aeneas bounded in behind him, no doubt having received love from Kate on his way. Laurel had called Kate and Nester in to work a half day, even though it was Saturday. Walter was stricken with a bad cold, and she’d told him to remain at home and recuperate.

“Thank you.” Laurel took the drink. Perhaps she should start taking him warm drinks, if this friendship was to be two ways. “They don’t look similar. Charlene Rox had short black hair, dark brown eyes, and darker skin. Sharon Lamber was very tall with light brown hair, blue eyes, and very pale skin. Abigail has mahogany hair and heterochromatic eyes.” So appearance wasn’t what drew the killer. “All three are successful professional women, and they each have at least one doctorate.” That was the only similarity so far. “I have Nester performing extensive background checks on all three, and we have warrants to dump the phones of the two deceased victims.” She’d need Abigail’s permission to gain her records.

Huck drew out a white leather chair and sat. “Nice stuff you have here.”

“FBI raid,” she murmured, remaining on the glass top, which was reinforced with copper-colored metal in a circular design.

He cleared his throat. “Are we certain your sister should be on the board?”

“The black dahlias all over her yard tie her to the victims,” Laurel said, looking at the picture that could double as her own driver’s license photograph.

“Is there any way she could’ve heard about the victim and then somehow created a similar situation at her home?” Huck shrugged. “She’s over-the-top brilliant and could probably do something like that, right?”