Her text message is instant, warming my heart.
Maddie:Don't worry, I'm home. Be safe.
I stow my phone in my back pocket and get in my cruiser. This is going to be a long fucking night.
Officer Chantle is walking toward me as I pull up. Getting out of the car, I look at her. "What do we have?"
Her head shakes as she sighs. "You remember the scene at the club a few days ago?"
"Yeah?" What did this have to do with anything?
"Well, that victim had a brother and said brother is on the grass over there … with no tongue."
Fuck.
"Got it. Thanks, Chantle."
I move toward the victim when Chantle stops me. "That's not all Detective."
"Go on," I tell her as I turn back toward her.
"Before you look at victim number one, walk with me." She strides toward the house and I follow as she gives me details. "The male victim was stabbed in the stomach, and the perp cut his tongue out. We found the white rabbit card next to him. This one had a message on it."
She passes me the evidence bag, and I look at the card. "Should have spoken up. Now you can't speak at all."
Each card we have found so far has one or two words on it. This one is personal. I take another look at the young man. He didn't stand a chance. Not with the way his eyes are open. The killer took him by surprise.
"Inside." Officer Chantle points toward the living room. "The other victim is his girlfriend, according to the other party-goers. We don't have any ID on her, but they say her name is Maggie Redheart."
Shit. Judge Redheart's daughter.Fuck.
"Warn—" I cut Chantle off with a gasp.
"Mother of God!" I didn't mean to shout out, but holy shit.
"Yeah." Chantle looks down and steps backward.
The girl's head is on the floor, severed from her body. But that's not what made me scream. It's the human heart stuck to the wall and the rest of the body that's in pieces strewn about the living room.
"How the fuck did no one see this, Chantle?"
"The party was out back in the pool house. These two were leaving the party. No one heard the screams over the music, I guess."
Chantle steps out of the room, and I turn away from the carnage. "Did we find a white rabbit card for victim two?"
"Yeah, it's stuck in the heart. No one wanted to move it so the CSI team could take pictures."
Chantle leaves, and I walk over to where the girl's heart is. This kill was special. It's one of the most brutal kills. The Mad Hatter is trying to tell me something. I just can't put my finger on it. Sure enough, the card is stuck to the heart.
"Backstabbing, lying, untrustworthy whore."
Yup, I was right. This kill was personal.
I hated lying to Drew.I'm not home. Not yet, at least. It felt like vengeance and retribution when I killed those bastards tonight, but guilt is eating at me again. I hate knowing that one day Drew will find out I'm The Mad Hatter.
Once I'm back at Drew's place, I clean myself up and slip into bed wearing only Drew's T-shirt. I toss and turn, trying to shut my mind off. Usually after a kill, my entire body shuts down, and I can sleep without the nightmares haunting me.
Tonight, I'm wired. Drew's scent is everywhere, wrapping me up in him. I bite my lower lip as I run my hands down my body. Is this what being turned on feels like? My nipples are hard and my pussy is throbbing.
