Read Online Expired by Evie Rhodes - Free Book Online

attention to the page.
    â€œOh, my God,” the strangled words erupted from her lips.
    â€œDon’t bother to call God, Tracie. He’s too busy for the likes of you. Oh, and don’t bother to call the police, either. They couldn’t follow a clue if I taped it to their foreheads with an arrow pointing them in the right direction.
    â€œI watched them from the roof that day. Took them at least a half hour to get around to coming up on the roof to see what was going on. They were too busy counting broken bones—in the absence of blood, of course. That, I added to my collection.”
    Tracie took in a sharp breath. He didn’t miss it.
    Arrogantly and forcefully his voice shot across the wire, saying, “Oh, you didn’t know.”
    Tracie wept. He was not moved.
    â€œHow inefficient of the police not to tell you the body had been drained of its blood. You might say that I am possessed of many skills. Embalming is only one of them. I’m self-taught, so to speak. A legend in my own right.”
    Tracie tried to block out what he was saying; there was a deafening roar in her ears. It grew with the magnitude of a tidal wave.
    â€œYou got that side business to think about, too,” the voice continued. “Whiskey has been known to be an unpleasant man in matters of business. I do love a parallel world, Tracie. Sort of makes things tidy by my estimate.”
    There was a pregnant pause.
    Then, “Little Caramel?” he licked his lips. There was a distorted smacking sound.
    â€œI love the sound of that name. It fits you. Makes me think of your soft, caramel-colored skin. You look so soft and chewy. I think this will be my special little nickname for you. A little deference between friends. What d’you say, Tracie?” Reckless, hysterical laughter shot through the wire.
    â€œDon’t talk about this to anyone, Little Caramel, or I’ll mail another one of your sons to you in bits and pieces. Eeny-meeny-miny-mo. Catch a son. Which one will go?”
    Tracie’s heart skipped a beat. “Why? Please. Don’t do this.”
    Her whining pissed him off, made him very angry. “Shut up, Miss Burlingame. I detest whining. I also don’t like repeating myself. I already told you why I snuffed out your egg. What are you, stupid? I’m wearing the pants here, and I’m calling the shots. I’m in charge. That’s something you don’t want to ever forget. If you keep your mouth shut, then maybe I’ll send a clue to the police.”
    More laughter crackled across the line. “Instead of mailing one of your sons to you . . .” He paused for a moment. “Maybe I’ll send them enough clues to help you find me, Little Caramel. In the meantime you and I are going to engage in the rules of the street. A little street warfare, you might say. The first rule being, nobody likes a snitch.”
    Tracie’s trembling increased. She managed to swallow past the lump in her throat and stutter out, “I . . . won’t tell anybody.”
    â€œOh, I know you won’t, Little Caramel. You and I are the same in many ways. You’re a collector of fine things, too.”
    The voice turned singsongy again. “ ‘Rock-a-bye, baby . . .’ ” It dropped to a whisper. “Check, Little Caramel, so soft and chewy. Till next time.” A resounding click went off in Tracie’s ear. The voice was gone.
    Tracie heard a sound near the steps outside her office. She listened closely, peering into the darkness. Sweat was dripping from her chin. It ran down the cleavage of her blouse. She slowly and carefully opened her desk drawer and pulled out a handgun. She reached for the clip and slipped it into the gun.
    Not too far away she heard it again. Something scraped against the floor. Tracie walked out of the office. She pointed the gun in the direction the sound was coming from.
    The hairs on her arms stood up. She didn’t