Race Against Time by Christy Barritt Read Free Book Online

write and the way he knew my schedule. It doesn’t make sense to me.”
    “More details will come to light with time, Madison. My colleagues at the Sheriff’s Department are working on the case now. It’s too early to make any assumptions.”
    “This area always seemed so safe.”
    “Crime happens everywhere,” Brody reminded her.
    “I guess you’ve seen your fair share of crimes. You came down from New York City, right?”
    “I did,” he said with a nod.
    “You don’t have the accent.”
    He smiled. “I didn’t grow up there. My parents are actually from here. My dad and Kayla’s dad are brothers. My dad joined the military after high school, so I spent my childhood living all over the world.”
    “Military brat, huh?”
    “Yeah. It wasn’t too bad, though. I kind of liked being exposed to different parts of the country and world. I think living in different places made me a better person.”
    She looked at him curiously. “How did you end up in New York?”
    “I figured if I was going to become a cop, I might as well do it somewhere exciting. So I applied in the Big Apple, and I got the job.”
    “Seaford has to be quite the change for you. It’s probably like a different world.”
    “It is,” he agreed. “But change is good.”
    Madison’s cell phone buzzed. She didn’t recognize the number on her screen, but that wasn’t unusual with her job. Perhaps it was another client she’d forgotten to reschedule? She flipped her phone open and saw an incoming message. A moment later a picture popped up on her screen.
    Madison gasped and the phone tumbled from her hands. Her heart sped as sweat dotted her forehead. That couldn’t have been… Had she imagined the picture? Why would someone…?
    “Madison, what’s wrong?”
    She pointed toward the floor, between her feet. “I…there…on my phone.”
    Brody pulled off the road, put the truck into park and reached down to the floor to retrieve her phone.
    Madison squeezed the skin between her eyes. She couldn’t get the image from her mind. It was a picture of her, hanging from the ceiling fan. Her eyes had been closed, as if death had already claimed her. Her attacker must have taken the picture, but she couldn’t remember him doing so. So much about yesterday was a blur, though. The drugs made everything fuzzy and unclear.
    Who could be so evil and cruel to do these things to her?
    Brody stared at the phone, shaking his head. “I’ll see if we can trace where this came from. Most likely whoever sent this used one of those prepaid phones. All of these crime shows on TV have made it way too easy to figure things like that out. They’re making criminals smarter.” He glanced over at her, his green eyes filled with compassion. “I’m sorry you had to see that, Madison.”
    “I guess he knows I’m still alive.” She shivered and sunk down in her seat, wishing the upholstery would simply swallow her so she wouldn’t have to face this nightmare anymore. “What does that picture mean, though? Why would he bother contacting me now?”
    “I don’t know, Madison,” he said gruffly.
    “It’s not over yet, is it?”
    Brody’s nonanswer spoke volumes.
    How would she keep her little family safe? If locks wouldn’t keep this man out of her home, how would she ever protect herself and Lincoln?
    “I’ll make sure we have someone patrolling your home.” Brody seemed to read her thoughts.
    But someone patrolling outside her home would only bring her a temporary comfort. She wouldn’t feel truly safe until this man was behind bars.
    Brody started back down the road and a few minutes later they were back at her home. Brody hauled the door from his truck, propped it on his shoulder and started toward the porch.
    Madison followed behind, unsure of what to do. Help him? Get out of his way? “Do you need me to do anything?”
    He leaned the door against the porch. “I think I can handle this.”
    “If it’s okay, I think I’ll go to my office for