Chapter 1

Icicles hung like sharpened spikes along the eaves of the hospital as FBI Special Agent in Charge Laurel Snow ducked her head against the biting wind and strode across the crunchy snow to enter the building. The door shut behind her with a grinding screech. She shivered and brushed snow off her shoulders. Winter had extended her reign into the beginning of April, which wasn't unusual for the sleepy town of Genesis Valley, and yet the chill factor seemed to be worsening.

Her footsteps echoed hollowly through the vacant waiting area, and she hastened at the sight of the unmanned reception area. The nurse was known to be a barracuda who liked to block people, so Laurel skirted the desk and hustled down the northern hallway.

Her phone buzzed, and she paused, lifting it to her ear. "Agent Snow."

"Hey, Laurel," Walter said. "I just got your message. Do you need me at the hospital?"

"No. You keep packing. I'm fully equipped to handle this."

Walter cleared his throat. As her second-in-command, he'd been injured several times in the last few months, and she was pleased he and his girlfriend had won a vacation to a sunny and relaxing locale.

"I don't like that Jason Abbott wants to see you in the hospital. Do you have backup?" Walter asked.

Laurel's service weapon felt snug at the back of her waist. She looked down the empty hallway, noting one of the fluorescent lights buzzing in the far distance. "The Genesis Valley Police are guarding Jason Abbott," she said. "I have plenty of backup. Please continue your preparations for your time off."

Walter exhaled heavily through the phone. "I can't believe he tried to kill himself again."

Abbott's actions didn't fit with his pathology, but perhaps the lack of hope was enough to make the serial killer want to avoid trial. Laurel had gathered enough evidence against him that he would certainly be convicted of brutally murdering successful women, cutting off their hands, and leaving them frozen in icy graves. This was the second time he'd attempted suicide while awaiting trial.

"What did he say when he called?" Walter asked.

The buzzing from the far light increased by several decibels.

Laurel swallowed. "He called our office and said that he wanted to talk about additional victims." Apparently the hospital had let him use a phone, which was something she would address after she spoke with him. "He waived his right to an attorney as well."

Walter crunched on something, probably ice. "Isn't that surprising? He has a good lawyer."

"He's an angry narcissist who believes he's more intelligent than everybody else."

Walter snorted. "Even you?"

She leaned against the wall, trying to keep herself out of sight of the nurses. The place seemed deserted. "Especially me. I'll report back what I discover. You continue packing."

Walter chuckled. "All right, boss. Give me a call after you meet with the lunatic."

She clicked off and slid the phone into her pocket before looking in both directions and hurrying toward the end of the hall. Evading that nurse had become imperative. Laurel turned the corner in time to see a uniformed police officer step into room 113. Irritation clocked through her. As a dullard, the local sheriff might not be teaching his officers proper procedure. Unbuttoning her coat just in case she needed to reach for her weapon, she strode toward the doorway and walked inside.

"Officer, return to your post," she said to his broad back.

He stood looking down at the figure in the bed, his shoulders wide and his fists clenched at his sides. She could comprehend his anger. Jason Abbott was a brutal killer, and many people wanted him dead.

"Officer," she said.

He pivoted suddenly.

She recognized him, but it was too late.

He slammed her against the wall and shut the door, one hand clutching her throat, the other covering her mouth.

Jason Abbott.

She gulped several times, her hands loose at her sides, and then looked beyond him to the figure in the bed.

"The officer," he affirmed.

"Is he deceased?" she said against the palm over her mouth. He had her backed up to the wall, close enough that she couldn't quickly reach for her gun. The heavy metal bit into her back, just waiting for her to move into action.

He shook his head. "Not yet, but he's full of sedatives."

Jason stood at least a foot taller than she, and his dark blue eyes sparked with anger. Even furious, he was a handsome man, with his closely cut beard and his broad shoulders. Solid, with a high percentage of muscle mass compared to fat, he'd obviously been working out these months in jail.

She swallowed, refusing to show fear. He needed the fear and wanted it desperately. So she rolled her eyes.

He blinked and then slowly removed his hand.

Her throat ached, but she kept calm, glancing at the bandages covering his wrists. "You didn't cut very deeply."

"I didn't really want to die." He smiled. "However, you are going to meet your maker."

She considered viable plans of action and pivoted her hips twenty degrees, driving her knee up to his groin, impacting soft tissue. He instinctively bent over and emitted a low groan. She struck toward his eyes, trying to blind him. He dodged to the side, and she hit his mouth, his teeth scraping her knuckles with a painful slice.

Taking advantage of his movements, she retrieved her gun from the back of her waist.

He punched her wrist, and her hand smashed against the wall, pain careening up her entire arm. She dropped the gun.

Grunting, she rotated and punched him in the eye, and he fell back. Then she kicked him in the groin again. She started to yell, but he smashed her in the cheek. She flew toward the bed, impacted the side, and crashed down, screaming for help. Then he kicked her under the jaw. Her head snapped back against the bed again, and darkness fell across her vision.

"What is going on here?" a female voice yelled.

A body landed next to Laurel. She couldn't see. Her vision blurred.

"We aren't done." Jason Abbott's voice came from very far away.

A high shriek next to her made Laurel jump, and she blindly scrambled for her gun. Jason kicked her shoulder, and she careened across the room, slamming into the wall head first.

Then darkness fell.

* * *

"I'm relatively unharmed," Laurel protested again, sitting on the hospital bed as Fish and Wildlife Captain Huck Rivers ducked to look into her eyes.

The doctor tapped notes on a tablet while leaning against the wall. "You're going to be a little sore." He looked up, his blue eyes bloodshot and his grizzly gray eyebrows bushy. "You took a good hit to the cheek and the jaw, and your shoulder and forehead are bruised, but from the look of your knuckles, you inflicted damage as well."

She had kicked more than she'd punched, so her foot should hurt more than it did. She made a mental note to buy more of these type of boots. "How is the nurse?" Thank goodness the woman had arrived and screamed so loudly for help.

The doctor's lips tightened. "She has a broken jaw, unfortunately. Nurse Wallentrout isn't going to like that."

Huck winced. "No, she isn't."

"I owe her gratitude for her intervention." Laurel stared down at her phone, fighting panic. "We have a felony arrest warrant out for Jason Abbott, and all agencies are on the lookout for him."

Huck stood tall in front of her, his expression calm, but his eyes a glittering brown. Heightened color showed along his cheekbones, and his shoulders appeared an inch higher than usual, showing extreme tension. "Do you think he'll leave the state?"

Laurel rolled her neck from side to side in an attempt to ease the residual pain. "I'd like to think so, but he's angry. He's been locked up for months, and he wants revenge."

"On you?" Huck asked shortly.

She nodded. "On me, and most certainly on Abigail." On any professional woman who'd crossed him, which included Abigail, Laurel's half sister, who had experimented on Jason Abbott and probably pushed him into killing sooner than he would have otherwise.

"Do we have to warn her?" Huck asked wryly.

An unwilling smile tickled Laurel's lips. "I've already notified FBI Special Agent in Charge Norrs from the Seattle office."

Huck's dark eyebrows rose. "Are they still dating?"

"According to him, yes, they are. He unfortunately believes they are becoming serious and once again requested a dinner date with us."

Huck shoved his hands into his Fish and Wildlife jacket, his rugged face set in harsh lines. Tall and powerful, he looked ready to take on all attackers. "Not in a million fucking years."

She could not agree more but focused on the doctor. "I'm ten to eleven weeks pregnant, but I wasn't hit in the abdomen or lower extremities tonight. I feel well, except for an ache in my face. We have an appointment with an OB-GYN in two weeks to hear the heartbeat."

The doctor made another notation. "We can schedule you for an ultrasound tomorrow if you like, but if you're not spotting or feeling any ill effects, it probably isn't warranted. But peace of mind does matter."

She had a serial killer to catch. "Thank you, Doctor, but we'll wait for the regular appointment." She felt fine, and at this early stage, if something went wrong, there wasn't much that could be done about it.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Huck placed a heavy hand on her shoulder, swiping his thumb along her jawline and the slight ache there. As the father of the child, it was natural he'd be concerned.

"I am, and we need to find Jason now."

Huck looked over at the doctor. "How's the officer Abbott put into the hospital bed?"

The doctor shook his head. "Still out. The prisoner punched him several times and then somehow acquired a vial of sedative. We've performed blood tests, but I don't know which sedative was used yet. The officer's breathing is strong, so he's not in any danger, but it may take him awhile to wake up."

Laurel nodded. "We'll need to secure the CCTV from the hospital."

"Nester's already on it," Huck said. "I called him while you were being examined."

Nester served as the computer guru for Laurel's team, the Pacific Northwest Violent Crimes Unit. "Good."

Huck ran a hand through his hair. "You really think Abbott's going to stay in the area, don't you?"

"I do," she said softly. "He's been cooped up for too long. He'll want to kill again soon." Plus, he'd be very angry that he'd had to run when the nurse screamed and hadn't gotten to take his revenge on Laurel. So he'd be both furious and desperate to show how much more brilliant he was than all of the women he hated.

She stepped down and reached for her coat. "We have work to accomplish."

"I'm driving," Huck said.

"You always drive," she murmured, walking down the hallway and outside into a blistering wind.

"That I do," Huck said, opening his truck's passenger-side door for her.

Laurel climbed up into his truck and clipped her seat belt in place, her mind calculating details she'd memorized about Jason Abbott. Where would he stay? Where would he go? She had investigated him fully, and he didn't own real property. He'd be hiding out somewhere he felt safe.

"I'll need to interview Abigail. I'm certain he confided in her more than she admitted," she said.

Huck grunted in response.

Dr. Abigail Caine had experimented on Jason Abbott, encouraging him to engage in violent fantasies that ultimately led to his kills.

Laurel glanced back to see the dog crate that usually held Aeneas, Huck's Karelian Bear Dog. "Where's the dog?"

"I left him at home," Huck said. "He seemed content snoozing by the fire."

They made the remaining drive in silence, and Laurel sighed, her eyes heavy. The doctor didn't think she had a concussion, so she allowed herself to drop into a dreamless sleep. Jolting awake when Huck stopped the truck, she fumbled for her door to step out onto the crunchy ground and plod into his cabin.

"Are you hungry?" Huck asked, shutting the cottage door behind her.

"Not even remotely." She headed into the bedroom, ditching her clothes and crawling into bed.

His chuckle followed her. "I'll be with you in a little while."

Later, she instinctively felt the heat when he slipped into the bed, and she rolled over to let herself be warmed. Just before midnight, his phone trilled, and his office called him out to investigate a poaching case.

She snuggled deeper into the warm bed, letting her body heal. He returned sometime later, pulling her close, reporting that he hadn't found the poacher. Her dreams flashed a kaleidoscope of fist fights, chilly nights, dead women, and blistering storms. They both groaned when his phone alerted him again, and his office called him out to find a missing person. As an F&W captain, Huck normally took point on any search and rescue or poaching operation. He also served as the department's diving expert.

He kissed her cheek. "Go back to sleep."

Two calls in one night? She blinked. "Maybe you should come work with the FBI. We get more sleep."

His chuckle as he exited the room lightened her spirits, and she smiled, almost immediately dropping back into her dreams.

The buzzing of her phone jerked her awake early in the morning, and she lifted it to her ear, noting that Huck hadn't returned yet. Then she took a quick moment to hope that Jason Abbott had been found.

"Agent Snow," she whispered sleepily.

"Hey, boss," Walter said, his voice somber. "We have a body."