BLISS CRAWLED INTO THE backseat of the truck. It bounced down the gravel road, knocking her off-balance. Wendy was always petite, but her hollowed out cheeks were gaunt and her skin was ashen."What-why is she handcuffed?" Bliss crouched in the floorboard and pushed Wendy's hair off her brow."She was traumatized," Travis said over his shoulder. "Didn't know I wouldn't hurt her.""You-what? Knocked her out and handcuffed her?" Was that seriously how he handled hostages?"Yes."She glanced at the back of Travis' head. He was serious. For a moment, she was torn between outrage and relief. She couldn't find it in her to be angry with him either way. He'd found Wendy, when the cops wouldn't even pretend to look. Her baby sister was coming home. Alive.Bliss knelt and pressed a kiss to Wendy's forehead. She held her sister's hands, rubbing some warmth back into them despite being jostled and tossed around. Travis seemed determined to push the vehicle to unholy speeds. Granted, s

BLISS WATCHED IN FASCINATION and a touch of fashion horror. With a gentle flick of his wrist, Travis parted the delicate lace at her hip with the blade of his knife, never once coming close to her skin. She gasped and watched him do it again on the other side, until her panties were in bits and she wasn't wearing a stitch of clothing."There we go," he muttered.The knife went onto her nightstand while he pushed her thighs apart, crawling up onto the bed."You just...""I did." He kissed her inner thigh.She fought the urge to cover herself, but it was a bit too late for that. Besides, her subconscious knew exactly what she wanted. Her lungs burned, needing oxygen, but she couldn't move a muscle.Travis traced a winding path from her knee to the other leg and back and forth on either thigh. She'd never been so grateful to Wendy for those nightmare waxing trips they went on every so often. Stray hairs were the least of her worries.He kissed her mound, and her breath rushe

TRAVIS' BOOTS CRUNCHED WITH each step. The Nevada desert was rough terrain at the best of times. Today was not one of those.The trail had deep ruts on either side just wide enough for an ATV to fit through. Acrid smoke hung low in the air from the house fire not even a mile away. The smoke mixed with the repugnant scent of death, decay, and animal feces, setting the tone for his foul mood.He held his breath as he topped the hill and the crime scene unfolded in the small valley along the Muddy Mountain. A dozen or more forensics personnel from the Las Vegas police department clustered here and there around yellow markers.Was this Bliss' fate?Would the serial killer treat her like he had these bodies? Or would he do worse?Daniel Campbell might be the most dangerous serial killer on the loose in decades. And Travis had put Bliss squarely in the man's crosshairs. This was his fault. The knowledge made him sick.He should have told Bliss no when she insisted on going with h

TRAVIS PEERED THROUGH THE BINOCULARS. By all appearances, the mansion on the hill was just that, a luxurious getaway outside of Las Vegas. That was, until one of the security guards came into sight. Even the most A-list celebrity didn't have security packing semi-automatic weaponry, unless they were looking for attention. From his vantage point above the outpost, Travis could document the comings and goings of all the personnel assigned to Grayson Horton's security detail.Wendy had just become the most protected asset in America, and Bliss was paying the price.What chapped Travis' ass the most was that these weren't just any hired toughs. These were federal agents. Badge carrying CIA officers. Which might explain some of Grayson's hesitance about speaking to the FBI. The two agencies didn't always play nicely together.The phone in Travis' pocket vibrated. For a moment he considered ignoring the call. Chances were it was Ryan Brooks calling him again to relay some bit of knowle

BLISS HUDDLED UNDER THE old, moth-eaten blankets. She'd unearthed them from the pile of discarded things in the crevices of the shelter Daniel had left her in. The wind had picked up since the sun set, and icy fingers found their way through every crack and joint in the structure.Her teeth chattered so loud she feared she might not be able to hear anything approaching. Frozen teardrops still clung to her lashes, but she didn't bother wiping them away. Instead, she gently examined the business end of a stick she'd salvaged. It wasn't old or rotten. For the last indeterminable span of time she'd worn one end down into something like a spear.She wasn't kidding herself. Even with a collection of stones and her spear wouldn't deter anything set on eating or killing her. All she had to do was hold on. If she could just hold herself together, Travis would save her. She had to believe he was out there under the same night sky looking for her, otherwise, what hope did she have?***