Free Beg for Mercy by Jami Alden Page B

a name—“the Seattle Slasher.” Stupid of them, since his kills extended far beyond the city limits.
    And with many more than the five victims he’d left for them to find. Fucking idiots, thinking they could pigeonhole him, profile him. They had no clue what he was capable of. They had no clue how hugely they were being played. No one did.
    He watched the scene play out, knowing exactly what would happen. Clueless cops would do a ham-handed assessment of the crime scene before calling in the equally clueless feds.
    So predictable. And yet he never tired of loitering around, waiting for the victim to be found, watching the chaos that ensued.
    But tonight, to his shock, before the first squad car had arrived on the scene, Megan had appeared in his field of view. Big green eyes, dark tumble of curls down her back. The subtle curves just hinted at by her loose clothes. So beautiful she made his heart stop. So close, he’d reached out a hand as though he might touch her.
    It was a sign. It had to be. He always knew she was meant to be his, from the first moment he’d laid eyes on her. And recently with the news of Sean Flynn’s pending execution, he knew the time for them was getting close. Now it seemed Fate had stepped in to bring them together even sooner.
    They’d tried to keep him away from her, tried to convince him that he couldn’t control his baser urges, that if he got too close to her, he’d lose control and hurt her. Perhaps even kill her. He would put them all at risk, and it would be impossible to protect him.
    He’d played along, let them send him away, pretend he agreed with them even though they were blind to the truth—that he and Megan belonged together. That she and she alone had the power to change him, to save him.
    She would be his. And if anyone tried to stop him… it would be fun to send their world crashing down around them.
    He wanted nothing more than to go to Megan, right then, experience her purity, her light, have it wash away the darkness and filth that threatened to overtake him. But the squad cars began to arrive, his cue to go. The police would start canvassing the area soon, and there was no way for him to plausibly explain his presence anywhere near the trailer park.
    He had summoned every ounce of the iron-clad control that had allowed him to get this far without being caught and had torn himseway from the mesmerizing vision of Megan Flynn.
    He held her face in his mind as he drove. Elation poured through him, pure and clean, washing away the fervor of the kill.
    Patience. He just needed to be patient for a little while longer, and then they could be together forever. Like they were meant to be.
    But tonight, he still had business to attend to.
    He waited until he was more than six miles from the trailer park before he turned on his phone. Even though he’d had special security features installed, it didn’t hurt to be careful. He hit the first number of his speed dial and listened as it rang twice, as always.
    “Gino’s Pizza. Takeout or delivery?” a voice on the other end answered.
    He rolled his eyes at the hokey but necessary ruse.
    “Takeout.”
    “Please hold.”
    He waited several seconds before the line clicked over.
    “You’re calling to confirm?”
    “Yes. The order has been filled.”
    “Good. You’ll get your usual tip. After you finish cleaning up, get over here. We need to go over the logistics for this week’s deliveries.”
    He hung up and smiled. He’d gotten off. He’d gotten paid.
    And best of all, he’d gotten a live, close-up look at Megan.
    Not bad for a night’s work.

Chapter 5
     
    B lood was everywhere. Covering the walls, the bed, the floor of the dumpy, abandoned trailer. As Megan approached the bed, she could feel the blood under the soles of her shoes, tacky and sticky. The salty, metallic smell of it saturated the air. She reached out a trembling hand to the woman lying facedown on the bed.
    She was naked and bound, like the others.