Read Online Love you to Death by Shannon K. Butcher - Free Book Online

Talley.
    “Depends on how you count it. This is the third woman we’ve found like this so far this year.” There were a lot more victims than that, some of them dating back ten years. All young, all with the same general size and build. Most of them had been natural blondes, though some of the other women may have dyed their hair. There was no way to know without the heads.
    “Think it’s the Outfit? Trying to hide the identity so prints and dental records are no good?”
    Ed shrugged, pretending ignorance. His gut told him it was more than a Mafia hit, but he had no proof of it yet, so he kept his mouth shut. “Hell if I know. We’ll get forensics out here, see what they can find.”
    “It’s not gonna be much,” said Talley. “She’s been out here for a couple of days, at least.”
    That meant the interval between deaths was shorter this time. A lot shorter.
    It could be coincidence, but Ed wasn’t much of a believer in that, and he sure as hell wasn’t going to sit around with his thumb up his ass while he waited for the next victim to show up and test his theory.
    Like it or not, he had to face the possibility that they had a serial killer on their hands.
    *  *  *

    Gloria was sure someone was watching her. She could feel his eyes on the back of her neck, making the fine hairs rise up in protest.
    She pulled into the driveway of her new home, thankful that the neighbors on the other side of the duplex had left their porch light on. Her half of the duplex was dark, and her garage was still too full of moving boxes to pull into it, so she had no choice but to walk up to her dark doorway and let herself in with the key.
    With two heavy sacks of groceries on her arm and her backpack slung over her shoulder, it took her several long seconds to wiggle the key in the lock just right.
    The whole time, she kept looking over her shoulder, scanning the darkness for Ken, her ex. She didn’t trust that the restraining order she’d taken out would do anything to keep him away. At least not for long.
    Ken was too arrogant and stubborn to let a piece of paper come between them. She knew that. She also knew that the first time he violated the order, she was going to see to it that he went to jail. Metal bars would keep him away, even if nothing else would.
    And then, finally, she’d be able to relax. She could stop looking over her shoulder every minute and focus on her studies, and her dancing.
    That would certainly make her parents happy.
    Gloria slipped inside, locked the door, and flipped on the porch light. The fact that she was safe and sound inside her home should have made her relax, but it didn’t. That eerie feeling that someone was watching her was still there.
    Maybe it was just nerves. She’d been through a lot these past few weeks, and the stress was probably getting to her.
    As she put her groceries away, the feeling grew heavier until she could no longer ignore it. She grabbed her cell out of her purse and dialed Ken’s number. He picked up on the first ring, as if he knew she’d be calling.
    “I know what you’re trying to do,” she spat at him.
    “Whoa, honey. What are you talking about?” Loud music and chatter filtered through the phone between his words.
    “I’m sick of your games. Why don’t you be a real man and stop slinking around in the dark?”
    “I don’t know what the hell crawled up your ass, Gloria, but I’m not doing any slinking. I’m at the bar with my buddies. Don’t even try to call the cops. There are dozens of witnesses here.”
    More background noise from the bar filled the line. He wasn’t lying. He was at the bar.
    Which meant he wasn’t watching her. Someone else was.
    Gloria hung up, trying to control her breathing. This was ridiculous. She was overreacting—making things up because she wasn’t used to the new place yet. Her mind was playing tricks on her. That was all this was.
    None of her rationalizations helped make that creepy feeling go away. It was