With Visions of Red 3 Read online

  He dips toward my knees and pushes the lever beneath my seat. As I’m propelled backward away from the steering wheel, his sure hands clasp my waist. In one swift, strong move, he has me over the console and on his lap.

  “Colton…” I lower my chin, letting my hair conceal my face. “There’s no time—”

  He palms my face, forcing my eyes to meet his intense blue gaze. “There’s always time for us. Especially when it comes to making you understand that I will never let you sacrifice yourself.” His lips crash against mine, stealing my breath and replacing my heartache with need.

  My arms circle his neck as I pull him close, unable to sate the sudden, unbearable yearning to connect with him. Be a part of him. For him to chase away the fear, the fury, and protect me from the past reaching up from the corners of my mind to haunt me.

  But I can’t be lost. No matter how badly I crave oblivion, Colton makes me feel. From the moment he first touched me, first branded me, I couldn’t ignore those overpowering emotions, despite how foreign they were. I am no longer teetering on the edge of two worlds—I am wholly and irrevocably his. I’m home.

  I belong.

  As he deepens the kiss, he grasps my nape, bringing me closer still. His hard want presses against me, ratcheting my desire. He moves to my neck, and I suck in a breath past the onslaught of sensations as his free hand travels under my dress, up my thigh, possessively caressing the ache between my legs.

  He breaks away to whisper against my lips, “I need to hear you say it. Tell me you won’t do anything to put yourself in danger.” His heated gaze sears me. “Promise me, Sadie.”

  I bite my lip, desperate to give myself over to him—to assuage the fear I feel drumming beneath my hand as his heart beats wildly. But it’s not a promise I can make. I don’t know where this will lead or end.

  He expels a heavy breath, rests his forehead against mine. “This isn’t a request, goddess—it’s a demand. I need to know we’ll make it through this—”

  “We will,” I say, gripping his shirt, my hand fisted so tightly around the material my knuckles ache.

  His mouth seals over mine, coaxing the promise from me in his own way. I can feel his intent with each lip-crushing kiss. His tongue whispers his vow as he strokes the seam of my mouth, then dives deeper until our breath becomes one desperate plea between us.

  “Come for me,” he says. “I need to make you come.”

  A jolt of awareness rushes me. I glance around the parking lot. It’s early…vacant, but— Colton arrests my senses before I can object, expertly working my underwear aside.

  “Don’t tell me no,” he says as the rough pads of his fingers slip into my sensitive folds. He finds my center and pushes inside, releasing a groan at the feel of my slick arousal for him. “This is what you need—what I need. I’ll never deny you. It’s not selfish, goddess. Not when we’re designed differently.”

  I grip his hair, undulating my hips on top of him as he shamelessly brings me to the edge. His thumb swirls over my clit as I grind against him, the feel of his erection, his desire for me, making me bold.

  I attempt to check the parking lot, but he seizes my gaze, his grip in my hair forcefully commanding my face toward his. “Look at me. Not them. Don’t be afraid of who you really are, goddess. We play by different rules. Always above them, because we embrace our dark deeds. Never denying ourselves. Not anymore.”

  His mouth captures the band of rope around my wrist, his teeth tightening the cord until it bites into my skin. The coarse fibers graze my flesh, heightening every sensation. My eyes close as I slip into ecstasy.

  A soft moan escapes my lips as I break and he’s there to catch it, his mouth swallowing my release as he drinks me in.

  As I come down, the climax fading into ripples of pleasure skittering over my skin, I open my eyes. “I’m terrified,” I admit.

  The knot of his throat bobs on a hard swallow. “You’re not leaving me. I promise you that.”

  “And I’m not losing you,” I say, letting the desperation leak from my voice.

  His eyes narrow. “Never.”

  “Then you have to trust me to do what I have to in order to help Avery.”

  Another heavy breath, then, “We’ll talk about this later, when Quinn can back me up on how crazy this is and that it’s not ever happening. I can at least count on him for that.” His firm expression morphs into confusion. “Wait. What did you say before? That it wouldn’t have been the first time… What aren’t you telling me?”

  My lips part, my mouth dry—the words right on the tip of my tongue. Colton has bared his soul to me, has trusted me with his darkest secret. A secret that would destroy his life if it were ever revealed. It’s the kind of secret that would shatter any other two people—but not us.

  It binds us together. Makes us the same—if only just.

  But that’s the distinction. The very narrow disparity that casts him in light, and keeps me shrouded by darkness. The crucial variable that separates us.

  What he did in his past was out of love, compassion, and mercy. My choices…my actions…were purely executed out of revenge. Loathing. Despair. Colton deserves to know the truth of me, but God, I’m terrified. So fucking terrified to stand before him with complete transparency.

  “Goddess…” His fingers rove over my face, his eyes seeking a crack in my armor.

  “Not here,” I finally say. Taking a deep breath, I revel in his touch a moment longer. I know he’ll wait for me—but there is an expiration date. And it’s approaching fast. “I need to be focused on Avery right now. But I promise…”

  “I’m patient, Sadie. As long as it takes.” Then his lips are on mine, slowly and tenderly caressing my fears away. I cling to him, to that promise. I cling so hard I can taste the loss in his kiss. What I will lose when the time comes. A deep pang hollows out my chest as the truth of it crushes me.

  I can’t lose this. I only just found him.

  A swell of blaring sirens breaks us apart, and I whip around to see squad cars rushing past. “We have to go. Quinn’s gathering the task force.”

  * * *

  The mood inside the department is fragile. Tension suffocates the air, strangling the camaraderie. Where a strike against one of our own should band us together, creating a unified, unstoppable force, there’s a looming current of suspicion that threatens to unravel the department.

  The UNSUB could be one of us.

  It seethes in the looks I get as I hurry through the bullpen. It festers in the chaos crippling an otherwise structured task force. I understand why I’m being targeted; I’ve been barred from the case, and now I’m pushing my way through with a suspect at my side. Not only did I get Colton released from questioning, but I’m including him—an outsider—in the investigation.

  When all this is over, I’ll be reprimanded. Maybe even discharged and investigated myself. There’s a chance—a very likely chance—that I’ll be found guilty of obstruction…or worse. But none of that matters just as long as I can bring Avery back.

  As I turn the corner toward my office, I spot Quinn. His eyes widen a second before he’s gunning for me. It feels like this morning has lasted a week already. As if it’s been much longer than the hour it’s taken to get Quinn up to speed on Avery’s situation and for Colton and me to reach the station.

  Quinn hands off a document to a uniform and steps in my path. “My office. Now.” His attention is momentarily diverted toward Colton. “You—” He points toward a chair. “Sit and go nowhere.”

  “We don’t have time for this shit, Quinn,” I say, trying and failing to get around his sizable form. “We can do this however you want…but later. Avery is all that matters right now.”

  I look up into his rugged face, my eyes pleading. I don’t have the strength to be angry, or demanding. I will beg on Avery’s behalf. Quinn’s gaze softens, and I can see the misery and worry he’s suffered since the news of Avery’s abduction hit.

  “My office, Bonds.”
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br />   I glance back at Colton and nod firmly. “Please continue to—”

  “I’m on it.” He holds up the files.

  I offer him a grateful smile before I’m escorted into Quinn’s office. I turn, my mouth already parted as I prepare to defend my place on the task force, but the sight of Lyle Connelly steals my breath. A blown-up image of his face hangs on Quinn’s whiteboard. A collection of data about his whereabouts is scattered around his photo. Red string connects points on a map, denoting sightings.

  “So you did hear me,” I say, walking toward the clear board. “I knew you would look into him. You put this together last night?”

  “I started it…but I didn’t dig in until Avery. Jesus, Sadie. Tell me what the fuck is going on.” I turn to see him drive a hand through his hair, his blue tie hanging loose over a rumpled white shirt.

  An ache blisters the back of my throat. “I need to tell you—”

  “No, you know what?” He storms toward me and anchors his large hands to my arms, holding me securely before him. “Don’t tell me. Don’t say a word.”

  “Quinn, I have to—”

  “Bonds, the only thing that counts right now, this second, is finding our M.E. You hear me? Do you understand?” His eyes fill with an alarming desperation, and his hands latch on harder, as if any word that passes my lips will tear me from his grasp. “I can’t do anything with that information right now. Nothing. Because I need you on this case.”

  With a heavy sigh, he releases me and heads to his desk where he pulls out an evidence bag. He removes my phones and tosses me one and then the other.

  Awkwardly, I catch both and grip them by my sides. “I’m back in? That simple?”

  He nods once. “When we nail this bastard and Avery’s safe, you know I’ll have to investigate.”

  “I know.” And I do. It has nothing to do with us—it’s not personal. Quinn also swore an oath, but unlike me, he doesn’t believe in gray areas. It’s all black and white. He’s always been by the book. I don’t fault him at all.

  “Until then…” He walks around the desk, his shoulders squared, his head higher despite his obvious exertion. “You’re my partner on this.”

  I swallow the emotion clogging my throat. A stupid smile twists my lips despite my whole body and soul feeling as if I’ve been flayed. “Your partner? I thought you didn’t do partners, Quinn. Especially profilers.”

  He shrugs a heavy shoulder. “You have what I need, Bonds.” His gaze stays locked on mine as the weight of his statement hangs between us. “And I know that you’ll do everything within your power to help Avery. That’s good enough for me.”

  The air between us feels as fragile as the atmosphere outside this room. We’re linked together by our shared desire to see Avery safe, and to capture the monster responsible for that threat. But it’s a tenuous thread joining us—a single pull in either direction could snap it, and we both know that.

  I glance through the glass wall at Colton scouring the files. I could’ve gone my whole life never truly knowing what it meant to be loved, needed. Adored. Trusted, and to be able to return that trust. I was always alone. Alone is safe.

  I think about Avery…her face twisted in pain, all by herself.

  Alone is not safe.

  Alone is the most frightening place.

  Avery will not stay alone.

  I look into Quinn’s eyes. “When this is over, I won’t run.”

  “I know.”

  “But I won’t make it easy.”

  “I know that, too.”

  I suck in a breath. “For the first time, I have something to lose. I’m going to fight for it.”

  He glances at Colton, a hard line creasing his mouth. “Are you sure he’s worth it?”

  “Absolutely.”

  With a forced exhale, Quinn nods resolutely. “All right. I just need to know…” He trails off, searching for the right phrasing. “Connelly’s not good for this, is he? There’s no way?”

  I don’t blink. “No. I’m positive. He’s not the UNSUB.”

  As Quinn absorbs that truth, I can see the battle raging behind his walls. By trusting me, he’s going against everything he stands for. “So then we’re looking for someone connected to Connelly and the Roanoke killings.”

  I release a tense breath. “The profile on the Roanoke serial killer and Connelly’s whereabouts during those three years puts Connelly at the scenes of all the cold cases. But he wasn’t alone. He had a partner. It’s as we speculated before; a master and servant. Connelly had an apprentice.”

  “So which is which?” he asks.

  I hold his unyielding gaze. “The apprentice is our UNSUB.”

  2

  Tick Tock

  UNSUB

  Do you know who I am?

  Let me tell you a story. The details will help you connect the pieces, and as my voice lulls you into a safe, warm haven, the clues will start to paint a picture.

  I love our story. She’ll enjoy it, too. Precious alabaster skin. Soft hair. Clear, crystal tears. Avery loves to hear me talk, because she’s learned it’s the only time I don’t desire to hear her screams.

  I confess; I don’t usually take a liking to my pets. They’re dispensable. A necessity, yes, but an entertainment that quickly loses amusement and continuously needs to be upgraded to achieve fulfillment. It’s exhausting, really. The constant demand to find the next new, shinier toy.

  I don’t regard any of them enough to use their names. But this pet—Avery—is different. She’s exquisite. She’s important to my love, so therefore, important to me, and must be handled delicately. Reverently.

  And as such, I run my fingers through her silky hair as I begin my tale. The story of us.

  There’s a bar tucked away on the outskirts of a city. It’s completely unimportant. Could be any bar. Could be any city. But on this particular hunting night, with a sliver of moon nicking the black sky, it’s the perfect setting.

  I sat on a barstool and watched. As always. Bored and hoping he would choose quickly, I sipped at my drink as my agitation grew. The monotony was getting to me, see. After three years of grooming, I was confident I was ready to take charge. It would be nearly two years before I realized that he needed me more than I needed him, and this was his way of keeping me compliant. But regardless, I was yearning for something…new.

  I’m not delusional enough to believe that this was the reason she walked through those doors, but she did all the same. Wearing a little red dress, just like the innocent child of the fated fairytale, she strode through the room, tempting all the big, bad wolves.

  But she was no innocent.

  She wore her color of power, of temptation, for one purpose: she was a hunter.

  Like the deceptively poisonous Monarch that purposely invites attention with its brilliancy, her beauty signaled a warning to predators. Look but don’t touch.

  Is she really dangerous, or is it a guise? Does her skin truly taste of venom, or is she as sweet as she looks…

  My mouth watered. The question of her was enough to trigger every fascination.

  There was only one truth to be sure of: she would complete me.

  I wasn’t the only enraptured beast that night in that dank little bar, hungering for her liquid green eyes to lay claim to me. But I was the only one to escape her shrewd, predatory gaze.

  That’s why I was chosen in the first place, after all. The wallflower. The unnoticed. The overlooked. My mentor convinced me this was a strength, not a weakness. He took me under his wing and transformed me. He molded me into a stealthy demon that crept in the shadows and sprang only when all elements aligned.

  So on this night, while the huntress was stalking her prey, I was safely studying her from the sidelines. I didn’t know then that it was in my power to stop what was to come. How could I?

  You see, I was preoccupied. The murder of a city girl had shown a spotlight right on us. It had only been two months since my first kill—since my mentor granted me permiss
ion to demonstrate what I’d learned—and the details of the recent murder resembled my technique so closely that even my mentor was suspicious.

  Was I out of control? Did I have no stamina? Was I going to get us caught?

  I had to eliminate the technique stealing copycat to gain my master’s favor again—to prove that I didn’t violate our partnership. This hack imitator—whoever he was—would pay.

  I was so sure of my talents. And ultimately, that was my undoing.

  The vixen in the red dress didn’t need to put me in her sights to destroy me. She was not like the Monarch, waiting to be devoured, patiently accepting her place in nature to wreak retribution. She was like the widow spider, the pursuer. Her fangs sank into my vein, and the poison spread to every connecting blood vessel, detonating a cataclysmic event that would shake the whole of me.

  She was destruction incarnate.

  I envied her. That wasn’t an emotion I was comfortable with. Her performance surpassed mine…even my mentor’s…and I wanted to snuff out the threat of something greater than us.

  Connelly agreed, of course, but his reasoning was more logical. She was a different kind of threat to him, because she knew who he was, what he was. He was going to make an example of her, but first, he needed to disgrace her. Discredit her.

  It was just all so entertaining, watching them toy with each other. I admit, I got a thrill out of it. Up until that point, no one had held a candle to my mentor. I was fixated, like a scientist on the brink of a discovery. I needed to observe.

  Then, she walked right past me. The scent of lavender enveloped me, and I inhaled deeply. That’s when I saw it. The crest. It hung from a chain around her neck. I glimpsed just a peek before she quickly tucked it beneath the blouse of her dress as she shook her dark hair from her shoulders.

  Everything about her was carefully devised, deliberately meant to keep your focus on the obvious—the sex. She wielded it like a weapon. Guarded herself with beauty like a shield. All so perfectly designed to pull you into her trap…right before she escapes, leaving nothing of her true self behind. No lingering effect of her real person to call into question.