Hunt and Prey (Kelsey's Burden Series Book 8) by Kaylie Hunter (novels to read for beginners txt) 📕

the employees or hid in a bathroom until the coast was clear. But if Tyler’s right—” I paced a few feet to the right before turning to the left “—if the shooter and the kidnapper are two different people, then I need to rethink every interaction. And that includes figuring out which one was the hitman Benny knew about.”

“It’s time I pay Benny a follow-up visit,” Kelsey said. “See if he feels like sharing any additional details.”

“I’ll go with you,” Grady said.

“No,” Ryan said, turning hard eyes on Grady. “Not with all the drama between the two of you. The last thing we need is a psycho like Benny reading the body language between you two. Jackson and I will escort her.”

Grady scowled, but knew Jackson was right.

“You people just can’t help yourselves, can you?” Tech asked, leaning back in his chair away from his computer. “Can we please work one case at a time? Terri Weston… What do we know about her?”

I tried to hide my grin. “Sorry. Terri was a nurse at the county hospital. I have a meeting with one of her coworkers later today.”

“Take bodyguards,” Kelsey ordered.

Bones raised a hand. “Wild Card and I will go.”

I ignored them and continued, “I’m still trying to figure out if Terri was chosen or if she was a random victim, but I do think the killer planned the location of the attack. The boyfriend said in his statement that when she didn’t come home, he went to the park and jogged her route. He didn’t see her.”

“I’ll confirm his statement tomorrow,” Chambers said to me before turning toward the room, “but there was a park lamp not more than a half dozen feet from her body. If the light had been working, the fiancé should’ve seen her. I called the city recreational department. They’re pulling together the park’s maintenance records.”

“Premeditated,” Tasha whispered to herself. She was sitting on the ground in front of the couch with the coffee table in front of her. She lifted her glass, gulping down a third of it.

Chambers leaned forward and placed a comforting hand on Tasha’s shoulder. “Gibson and I ran the mile route. The location of the attack was near the end of the trail. The victim would’ve been both the most tired and relaxed after her jog. The location also offered three escape routes, one of which was through the thick brush where he could easily hide in wait.”

Kelsey sat forward. “This information paints a tidy picture, but it’s not helping us to find the killer.”

I refrained from rolling my eyes. “I went to the hospital and asked about both morphine and any patients who might’ve had similar bruising on their necks. That led me to the documents Gibson has in one of the other boxes. One of the nurses remembers a DOA—”

“That means dead on arrival,” Tasha explained to the group before slurping the rest of her drink through her straw.

I smiled at Tasha as I continued, “A nurse remembered a DOA with a similar bruise. He died of a heart attack about a year ago.”

Gibson stood. “I’ve got all the death certificates but haven’t started reviewing them yet.”

I smirked at Gibson. “I also heard that a few years back, a kid tried to steal a morphine drip machine from the hospital. He made it as far as the parking lot. Probably just a stoned teenager, but…”

Gibson’s face lit up before he grabbed the third box over, lifting it on top of the table. “You had me pull any crimes in the last five years mentioning the word morphine because you won’t know what’s related, until you read the cases.”

I tapped my nose. “You’re learning. Yes. But it also means we need help sifting through the data.”

“You’ll have plenty of volunteers,” Maggie said. “But let’s discuss the more recent murders.”

“I will, but I want to circle back to Terri first.”

“Something is bothering you,” Kelsey said.

“Yes and no. I want to bounce my theory off you and Maggie. I need you both to tell me if I’m on track or not.” I started pacing within a six-foot pattern. “My theory is that the killer intended to stab Terri, but when she fought back then tried to run he fell on top of her, accidentally stabbing her. But in the process of trying to control her, he discovered he could choke someone using his forearm.”

Kelsey started to say something but I held up my hand again to stop her.

“If I factor in Tasha’s theory that our killer might have diminished use of one or both of his hands, what if the killer also realized he enjoyed the rush of lying on top of his victims while he choked them?”

Everyone was quiet for a long moment.

“Oh, I brought Bert!” Tasha exclaimed as she slammed her empty glass onto the coffee table, jumped up, and ran through the tall grass toward the front drive.

“She left someone in her car?” Kelsey asked.

Quille, Chambers, and Uncle Hank were laughing too hard to answer.

I ignored Kelsey and continued with my theory. “So maybe the heart attack guy was the killer’s second victim. Whether he was hired to kill the man, or he just wanted to test his new method, I don’t know. But if I’m right, there may be more victims, before or after the heart attack guy. And Benny told me the murders in my building were hired hits. So maybe, just maybe, this guy turned professional, but somewhere in the process he turned into a thrill killer.”

“Why morphine, though?” Chambers asked.

I shrugged. “Not sure. He somehow has access to it.”

Tasha came running back, dragging Bert. She tossed him face down on the tiled floor. “Ready?” she asked me.

I held up a finger for her to wait. “Again, just a theory,