Read Online Love Inspired Suspense July 2015 #2 by Alison Stone, Terri Reed, Maggie K. Black - Free Book Online

Vancouver.
    A shiver of dread chased down his spine. How many more pins on the Canadian side of the map would they have to add to the board?
    â€œI know you said you’ve been tracking Birdman, but this—” he made a sweeping gesture with his hand to encompass the room “—this has become an obsession for you.”
    She folded her arms across her chest. Her gaze didn’t waver. “Yes. For six months this has been how I occupy my nights and weekends when I’m not working another case.”
    â€œWhy isn’t this an official investigation yet?” She’d told him her boss had wanted to start a case file.
    â€œThe FBI only gets involved in local crimes if asked. Each of these murders happened in different jurisdictions. No official request has been made but I’ve had very good cooperation from the various police agencies. Most police departments are understaffed and overwhelmed.”
    Impressed and sad at the same time, Drew studied the woman in front of him, noting the lines of stress bracketing her mouth, her eyes. She really was pretty and formidable with the proud tilt to her chin and the squared shoulders. She was ready to take on the world. Ready to take on a killer. Her life had become about hunting death.
    A lock of her blond hair had escaped her clip. He reached out to tuck the strands behind her ear. She froze, her breath catching. Instantly the air felt charged with the electricity that sparked between them.
    He lowered his hand and stepped back, giving her room and himself space to gather his composure.
    What would happen to her when she finally found her friend’s killer? Would she have the restraint to not inflict her own brand of justice? Or would she do as her training taught her and apprehend him, letting the courts mete out the justice she fervently sought for her friend and the other victims?
    The questions circled in his brain with no answers.
    Only time would tell. He prayed she’d find the strength within herself to not seek out revenge but to do the job she’d committed her life to.

FIVE
    â€œW alk me through these crime scenes,” Drew said, needing to know what they were up against. She handed him a tall glass of lemonade and set out a plate of cookies on the dining room table before joining him in front of the map and the many signs of Sami’s obsession. He needed to hear how she processed all the information she’d gathered.
    As she talked, he listened, growing more overwhelmed and appalled with each passing minute. Separately the crimes did appear random. No two were exactly alike. The perpetrator wasn’t ritualistic in his approach to killing. That Sami had somehow connected the dots between these crimes spoke to her attention to detail, the trait of a good investigator.
    â€œHe seems to be more opportunistic,” Sami stated. “Meaning he doesn’t stalk these women but rather trolls the bars and restaurants for his victims. And the victims themselves appear random.”
    She pointed to each photo. “Caucasian, Hispanic, Asian, African-American. He doesn’t discriminate based on color or race. Blonde, brunette, black haired. Different occupations. A schoolteacher, a store clerk, a sales professional. There’s nothing linking these women together.”
    â€œWas each victim found in a hotel room?”
    â€œYes. These two women.” She touched two photographs. One of a pretty brunette in her midtwenties and the other of a striking African-American woman in her thirties. “They were at airport bars but didn’t have hotel rooms registered in their names at the hotels they were found in.”
    Sami tapped the brunette’s picture. “Melissa Duncan worked as a flight attendant for an airline. She was last seen in a Boston airport bar having a club soda between flights. When she didn’t show up for her shift, the airline contacted the authorities.
    â€œThe airport was