AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Gripping the handle of the knife, Lorena quickly walked through the first floor, checking every single place where Sloane could have hidden herself. There were no open doors or windows, so she couldn’t have gone far.
Just in case, Lorena hurried to the front door and wrenched it open. The cold night air bit into her skin, but the fresh powder of snow was undisturbed on the front porch. There were no footprints and no trail of blood dots marring the perfect white blanket.
Brooklyn Sloane was still in the house.
Lorena couldn’t stop the malicious smile that curled her lips as she shut the door. She slowly turned to face the staircase. The hunt wasn’t over yet. She just wished that Jacob could be here with her. He would have loved hunting his baby sister.
The worn carpet muffled Lorena’s footsteps as she walked up the staircase. Once she reached the landing, she quietly paused and tilted her head to the side. The only sounds that resonated on the upper level were the howl of the winds attempting to gain access to the house. Wanting Brook to know there was no way out, Lorena called out to her in almost a song.
"You couldn't have gone far, Brooklyn Walsh," Lorena taunted as she emphasized the surname. With each step, she allowed the blade in her hand to graze the wall, the sharp tip producing a faint, sinister scrawl on the once immaculate surface. "That name must rankle, huh? It's the echo of who you used to be. Does it remind you of Jacob, perhaps?"
Lorena had turned on the hallway light so she could peer into the first bedroom. It was devoid of life, literally an expanse of emptiness with a thick layer of dust—a testament to Erin Smith's lackluster housekeeping.
Lorena would have laughed at the fact that the woman's body had been shoved in a deep freezer for the past couple of months, but there were more pressing matters at hand. Lorena even crouched to inspect underneath the bed, finding nothing but those same neglected companions of dust. A quick look inside the closet revealed it was barren, save for a forlorn collection of blankets and pillows, their yellowed stains dark enough to be seen by the hallway light. She made sure to keep an eye on the hallway for any movement, but Brook had stayed hidden.
“You might as well give up,” Lorena called out mockingly. “There are only a few places left for you to be, which means you’re running out of time.”
She moved to the next room, which just so happened to be a bathroom.
“Poor little FBI agent, all alone and bleeding.”
Brook wasn’t behind the shower curtain, so Lorena stepped back over the threshold. Seeing as the home contained only two bedrooms, it didn’t take a genius to know Brook’s location.
Lorena’s heart raced with anticipation.
This was it.
No more playing around.
Brook was going to give Lorena the location of Sarah Evanston, even if Lorena had to cut it out of her. With a knowing smile, she turned the knob slowly until the door creaked open.
“Ready or not, here I come…”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Brooklyn Sloane
February 2024
Monday — 2:22 am
"You couldn't have gone far, Brooklyn Walsh."
Brook did her best to ignore the taunt as she tightened the arms of her suit jacket around her thigh to stem the bleeding from the wounds. She had to bite her lip to prevent herself from crying out in pain. She had always prided herself on having a high pain threshold, but the blade had sliced through the muscle. Every step up the staircase had been like taking a blow torch to her left leg.
"That name must rankle, huh?" Lorena called out again, this time with a laugh. "It's the echo of who you used to be. Does it remind you of Jacob, perhaps?"
Brook inhaled deeply and as silently as possible as she pressed herself against the wall behind the bedroom door. It wasn't that much of a strain to hear Lorena search the other bedroom. It wasn't like she had been silent about it.
Unfortunately, Brook had no weapon. Nothing to defend herself with when Lorena found her. The wounds in her leg pulsed with heat, and she could feel her blood seeping through the makeshift bandage of her jacket.
She had gotten the bleeding under control as best she could under the circumstances.
“You might as well give up.” Lorena couldn't help herself when it came to playing with her victims. “There are only a few places left for you to be, which means you’re running out of time.”
Brook could hear Lorena as she exited one of the rooms. She must have been taking the tip of the knife and scraping it alongside the wall as she walked down the hallway.
There was only one room between them now.
