Dead Ringer by Mary Burton Read Free Book Online

feet on the floor to keep from falling forward. When they
reached the dead end, Mike turned the van around and shut off the engine.
    "There's
a path," Kendall said. "Looks like it leads to the river."
    "Let's
go."
    Kendall
peered ahead into the icy woods. She didn't relish the thought of hoofing it
through the woods, but stories rarely came to her. "Right."
    Mike
grimaced. "I figured you'd change your mind once you saw the terrain."
    She
tossed him a grin and climbed out of the van. "Faint heart never won fair
maiden."
    He
followed. "Yeah, whatever."
    Cold
wind cut through her coat and she dug her gloved hands into her pockets. "Shoot
as much as you can," she said as he came around the front of the van with his
camera. "No telling how fast they'll run us off."
    It
took fifteen minutes of steady walking before they rounded a final bend. The
trees opened up into a snow-capped field that ran along the river. In the
center of the field were five marked and one unmarked police cars, a survey
truck, and a black SUV. Beyond the vehicles, yellow crime scene tape billowed
in the wind near the icy James River.
    Kendall
scanned the crowd. She was good at summing up a setting quickly, picking shots
and getting to the root of a story. Her blood pumped with a mixture of fear and
excitement. She'd forgotten how much she really enjoyed covering hard news.
These last few months she'd done her reporting from the news studio, and when
she did get out, the stories were soft serve.
    Now
as she struggled to keep from sinking into the mud, she realized she'd grown
lazy covering the soft stories. Not good. Comfort was the beginning of a slow
decline.
    "The
other news stations aren't here yet." There was no hiding the excitement in her
voice. "With luck, we can snag an interview before they do. Follow me."
    She
knew all the homicide detectives in the department as well as a dozen others
from other departments. It was safe to say none really liked her when she showed
up at their crime scene, but there was a mutual respect. She hoped.
    Kendall's
gaze settled on the broad shoulders of a very tall man. His back was to her but
she recognized the scarred black leather jacket, faded jeans, and lean body.
Jacob Warwick.
    He
stood next to the river's edge staring into the distance. He flexed the fingers
of his right hand as if they were stiff. She'd heard somewhere that he'd
competed in a charity boxing match last weekend. He'd taken a beating but in
the end had won the bout in points. He was a fierce fighter who never conceded.
    Tenacity
was something she would never fault this man for. It had saved her life last
summer....
    The
Guardian serial killer had taken her to his basement slaughterhouse. He had
shot her in the shoulder and she'd stumbled back and fallen to the hard cement
ground. The pain had robbed the breath from her.
    The
Guardian had stood over her, his ax raised high as he'd readied himself to
sever her hand from her body. Tears had welled in her eyes and she'd only been
able to say, "Please, don't."
    Without
warning, the killer had spared her hand and left her to bleed to death, alone,
locked in the tiny basement room.
    Even
now, she remembered the cold cement floor pressing into her back. She'd tried
to stand but every move intensified the agony. She'd screamed until her throat
burned. But no one had come.
    Blood
had seeped from her wound and she quickly didn't have the energy to stand. Her
limbs had grown cold as life seeped from her.
    In
the darkness, there'd only been the drip, drip of a pipe and the scurry of
rats. Time had lost meaning and she passed out.
    And
then the door had opened and light shone on her face. She'd thought for a
moment the Guardian had returned and she'd balled up her good hand, praying she
had the strength to fight.
    Warwick's
face had loomed over her, his shock as palatable as her own. His large hands
had gently touched her face. "Jesus, it's Kendall
Shaw. Kier, call for paramedics."
    "He
tried to kill me," she'd