Free Silenced by Allison Brennan Page B

them out one at a time. Maybe two at a time. That would be a challenge. Each one would be different, there were lots of ways to kill. Throw the stupid police off, right?
    See, he was as smart as Ned. Maybe smarter.
    The bed upstairs creaked and groaned in the rhythm of the whore and her john. Shit, the walls were thin. He’d have to be extra quiet.
    He didn’t remember sleeping beauty’s last name, and it didn’t really matter because she’d be dead and buried soon enough. He didn’t go for black chicks, but if he did it would be someone like Nicole. She had those tight braids and beads that made her look exotic, big tits, and a wide mouth. She wasn’t girl-next-door pretty—those were the girls Brian preferred—but she was hot.
    Nicole moved in her sleep. Did she sense him watching?
    He grabbed her long braids. Half-asleep, she jumped up and lurched toward him. Her hands came at him in fists, her face twisted in terror.
    Before Nicole was fully awake, he slit her throat.
    He immediately dropped her back on the bed. In the sickly yellow light coming through the thin curtains, he saw the blood pour out of her wide, open neck. Wow, it almost looked like it did in the movies, but it smelled awful. Not just blood, but she’d also peed down her leg. The stink made him gag.
    “That’s disgusting,” he said.
    He didn’t want to see or smell it. He grabbed the corner of the sheet and pulled it over her. He jerked it too hard, and her body fell to the floor with a heavy thud.
    He paused, listened. Had the rabbits fucking in the room above him heard anything? He couldn’t hear the bed bouncing anymore. Then he heard the guy groan in a weird, animal-like voice, then the bouncing started again, louder and faster than before.
    Brian took the time to rinse his knife in the bathroom sink. Even the water in this place was putrid, a pale yellow stream. And warm, like piss. He needed a long, hot shower after being in this hellhole.
    He wiped the blade on a towel and picked up Nicole’s backpack. Maybe she had a map where all the girls were hiding. He grinned. If she did, he’d be going on a treasure hunt! She probably wasn’t that dumb, but she had come back here, so she wasn’t too smart, either.
    He searched the pockets quickly. A slip of paper had been hastily folded and stuffed in the front of the bulging bag. He unfolded it.
    Hotel Potomac
    He knew the place well. Could it really be this easy? Did he have time to get over there now?
    That wouldn’t be smart, and he was the smart brother. He needed to confirm the others were there, and if so, what room. How long would they stay? What kind of security did the hotel have?
    Those were the smart questions that needed to be addressed. He’d head over there at dawn and check it out. Maybe get himself a room for the night.
    Something ran across his foot. He jumped, almost yelped. A rat. It scurried to the dead body. Was it going to eat her? Kinda cool, in a gross way.
    Then he got an idea.
    He was so much smarter than Ned.
    He grabbed the rat with surprising agility and slammed it against the dresser to stun it.
    He was going to have some fun.

 
    CHAPTER EIGHT
    Wednesday
    To call the Red Light motel seedy may have been clichéd, but Lucy Kincaid couldn’t think of a better adjective. The motel boasted hourly rates, weekly specials, and was at least a decade overdue for a paint job. Under the sweltering July sun, the exterior appeared a molted shade of green, but up close Lucy realized it was sun-bleached wood.
    “What a dump.” Noah flashed his badge to the DC cop standing in front of the crime scene tape that blocked off room 119. Six people crowded the room that couldn’t be more than three hundred square feet, four wearing bright Windbreakers identifying them as CSU.
    “Wait here,” the cop said, his husky voice matching his hefty frame. Into his radio he said, “Detective Reid? The feds are here.”
    A female responded. “Dammit, Taback, keep them outside, too