by Sam Crescent
Evernight Publishing ®
www.evernightpublishing.com
Copyright© 2016 Sam Crescent
ISBN: 978-1-77233-815-7
Cover Artist: Jay Aheer
Editor: Karyn White
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
KILLER IN HIM
Sam Crescent
Copyright © 2016
Prologue
Ben watched the young woman as she made her way into her apartment. Joy Lewis, she wasn’t the woman he was after, not by a long shot. No, the woman he wanted was her neighbor, Joanne. Yeah, it wasn’t her real name. Witness protection believed giving people new identities was the key to keeping them safe. That and the two guards that were stationed close to her. She wasn’t considered a high risk witness, so they only placed two guards on her, fucking assholes.
The moment new evidence came to light, the Debusa family sent out the call. He picked it up, and he was the only one to pick it up. Most hunters, they tried to avoid the Debusa family as the targets were usually high risk. This was where he came in. He always found a way of taking out his target, and he never cared about the risk. Joanne, she was easy to take care of. It was kind of insulting to his level of skill to even think of dealing with someone as easy as Joanne, but the money was the draw to this target. The Debusa family wanted this woman gone, and he was going to be the one to do it.
It was the reason why he was sitting in his car, staring across the road at the woman who lived the closest to Joanne. This was the same woman who he’d seen the first day helping other people as if it was the most natural thing in the world. He watched her now as she grabbed her trash bins, pulling them back to her house. She wore a modest knee length skirt and a white buttoned shirt. It was hot, and her hair was pulled back into a messy bun at the back of her head.
Joy also had advertised for a roommate to pay rent. She lived in a modest two bedroom house, and it was one that she shared with someone. The woman who had been living with her had moved on, and now Joy was looking for the right person to rent the room.
Pulling out his cell phone, he dialed the number while watching her. He’d started to turn into a creep, watching, stalking, waiting. This was all part of his job—only Joy wasn’t his job, Joanne was.
He watched as she grabbed her phone out of her handbag and answered his call.
“Hello,” she said.
“Hi, I saw your advertisement in the paper about a room. I was wondering if I could stop by for a chance to take a look.”
“Oh, yeah, sure, what time would you like to stop by?” she asked, looking back at her house.
“Ten minutes.”
“Sure, I’ll see you in ten minutes.”
Hanging up the phone, Ben waited the ten minutes, and made sure to pull up a minute late even though he was only parked on the street.
Climbing out of his car, he looked up at the house, wondering what the fuck he was doing. This went against every single one of his own rules, and the warnings given to him years ago when he was training.
Still, even as every part of him was screaming to run, he made his way toward the front door, knocking.
Joy answered seconds later with a smile.
“Hi, you’re the person who called, right?”
“That’s me, Ben.”
“Okay, come on in.” She moved out of the way allowing him to pass, and the scent of her was just heaven. The whole house smelled like her, and he found it unusually comforting. “So, before we continue this is a rent-a-room scheme. I’ve done it successfully before, and the only reason the room is up for rent is because she left to be with her partner. Also, the rent is due on the first of the month. Is that okay?”
“I can pay in advance. I saw that you wanted a couple of hundred a month.” It was really fucking cheap for such a nice place, and a nice neighborhood.
“Yes. What kind of, erm, work do you do?” she asked.
Did her cheeks heat a little? Damn, his dick was responding to this woman, and she wasn’t usually the type he went for. Most of the time, the women he fucked were the easy kind that didn’t expect anything from him, ones who knew the score. This woman, she was the keeping kind. The kind of woman men took home to meet the family, the kind that men wanted to have as a mother to their children.
“I’m a photographer.”
“Oh, okay. Magazines?”
“Yeah, and other things. I’m not always allowed to say what I’m working on.”
“Right, right, let’s go see your room.” She was way too trusting.
He could have been a random serial killer, and he’d have already killed her now. Didn’t she have a clue of the dangers that surrounded her? There was no way a woman was that naive.
She wasn’t stupid though.
No, Joy was just … kind.
“So, you have everything here, electric, gas, heating, all of the works. You can also have full use of the kitchen. I do attempt to cook, but you might want to get accustomed to the local takeouts.”
“You don’t cook?”
“I can’t cook. Honestly, it’s a nightmare. I try, but I’d rather you have a second or a third plan in case you’re left stranded. I can recommend a local Chinese place. It’s what I use when I can’t even work a sandwich together. Some women were born with the skill in the kitchen, but I was born to prove that even women can fail in that regard.”
He laughed, which again surprised him.
Being around her was as natural as breathing.
Ben liked her.
Yeah, this was not a usual occurrence for him. He didn’t like anyone, and no one liked him. It made killing a hell of a lot easier.
She opened a bare room that had magnolia walls, very neutral colors. “It’s got a good space, and you can get a good sized bed, and set up all of your equipment.” She moved across the empty room, opening a door. “You have a private shower room through there and a toilet. There’s also a much larger room bathroom if that’s what you’re wanting.” She left the room, and he followed her, admiring how her ass was molded under the skirt. Joy possessed quite a nice rounded ass. “Here is the bathroom. My room is just down there.” She pointed at the door down the hall. “Spare towels, and then if you follow me.”
Down he went as she showed him the kitchen, sitting room, dining room, study, and also the garden.
The house was beautiful.
Once they were back in the sitting room, she turned, giving him that smile that he’d seen her give so many. She was too easy giving that smile away. Other people would hurt her, and they wouldn’t even care about the pain they inflicted. “So, what do you think?”
“I like it. I could be happy here.” He grabbed his wallet and pulled out three months of advance rent. “Can I move in now?”
“Oh, wow, you don’t need to give me all of this.” She went to hand him the money back, but he wouldn’t take it.
“I’m living out of my car right now. I was moving between jobs.”
“Oh, you’re homeless?”
“No, I’m not homeless. I like this.” He kept up the lie, enjoying the sound of her voice. “So, do you have a boyfriend I need to worry about?”
She laughed. “Yeah, right. No, there’s no boyfriend.”
This woman needed a keeper. She had victim written all over her, and she didn’t even see it.
&
nbsp; “I can move in right away?”
“Er, yeah, of course. I mean, it’s not like you’re a killer or anything.”
She had no idea, and he never planned for her to find out.
Chapter One
Dear …
Okay, I don’t know what to call you but seeing as this is my only source of outlet, I’m just going to be straight. My life got totally fucked up today, and there’s no way out. I’m just an ordinary girl. I work in a mail room in a huge corporation. I’m that woman who rolls a trolley and leaves the many different sizes of envelopes for you to read. I could be a receptionist, a secretary, but I ended up a postal lady for the company. Yep, that is me, totally boring. Anyway, I have nothing exciting going on in my life, well, up until tonight that is. You see, tonight, I witnessed a murder, and right now, these could be my final words, and you know what? I don’t have a fucking clue what to say. I wonder if I’ll be here to talk tomorrow.
Until then, goodnight.
****
Five hours earlier
“Why the fuck did you come here?”
Joy Lewis cried out as Ben grabbed hold of her arm. She didn’t know his last name, and now looking back, she probably should have asked him for it. Tears filled her eyes as she stared at the carnage in front of her. Ben was just supposed to be a nice guy, a friendly guy who paid rent, and left her alone. Sure, he was a hot guy, but she didn’t give him the room just because he was hot. Ben had been sweet, and he paid his damn rent on time. Not to mention the fact he was always willing to try the food she cooked, even though she couldn’t cook at all. Most of the time she either made herself a sandwich or toast, as otherwise she’d have killed herself by now. Takeout was a great alternative.
“Stop!” She tried to pull her arm away, and when she stared down at the dead body, she couldn’t help it. Leaning over, she vomited all over his expensive looking shoes. The pork lo mein had been so nice going down, but not so good coming back up.
“Fuck.” He hurled her toward the bathroom of the woman that lived across from her. Joanne was a nice woman, or at least she thought she was a nice woman.
She’s dead.
Holy crap. This couldn’t be happening. All she had done was get a note from her neighbor to say that she needed to pick up a parcel that had come for her. Joy never expected to walk into that … that carnage. She and Joanne had a weird kind of relationship. They weren’t all that close, but they cared about each other. Joanne could go freely into her home, so Joy could do the same with Joanne.
Holy crap.
Holy crap.
“There, there, throw up in there,” he said, pushing her head near the toilet. She couldn’t handle it anymore. Closing her eyes, she saw the body of her dead neighbor, and when she opened her eyes, she saw the same image. “You just had to come on over, didn’t you? You couldn’t keep your fucking nose out of it.”
He wrapped her hair around his fist, so she had no choice but to follow his movements. When she had finished throwing up everything she could, he dragged her out toward the main kitchen. There was no sign of blood where he forced her to sit at the table. Staring at the back door, leading out to the yard, Joy didn’t give herself time to think. She ran toward the door.
“No, you don’t.” Ben grabbed her, dragging her back and forcing her to sit back in the chair.
“Let me go!” She tried to fight, but when he wrapped his fingers around her neck, with a gun pointed at her head, Joy ceased her struggle.
“Ah, so you want to live.” She nodded, unable to do anything else. He released the hold he had on her neck and let her go. Ben kept the gun trained on her. “So, we’ve got a little problem.”
“You killed Joanne.” She slapped her hands against her mouth, wishing she had shut up.
“And you’re a witness, baby. I wonder where that leaves you.”
Tears filled her eyes. She had come home from her job as a mail distributor in a big corporation to see the card from the delivery guy. This was why she shouldn’t buy crap off the internet. It was supposed to be safe, reliable, and easy shopping. She and Joanne had been getting along for the past couple of months, so they had started to knock and walk into their homes. Joy had never expected to walk in on Ben staring down at the body.
Joanne could cook; she couldn’t.
She had not only lost a neighbor but also a friend, or at least, the start of a friend.
“You’re going to kill me?”
Ben leaned back, staring at her as he ran the tip of a finger across his lip. She hated the way he was assessing her. Was he imagining the ways that he could cut her into little bits, and distribute her out in the yard? God, she watched too many horror films.
“Is Ben even your real name?”
“You’re asking a lot of questions.”
“Why not? I’m dead anyway right? You’re not going to let me just walk out of here, and live my life.”
Again, he just turned his head as he looked at her.
“I should have told you to fuck off,” she said, folding her arms. She turned her head toward the sitting room, and quickly averted her gaze.
“You’re not even curious as to why she’s dead?”
“You mean there’s going to be a suitable excuse for that?” she asked.
Ben chuckled.
“Is that why you needed the room?”
He kept on staring, and where his intense blue eyes once intrigued her, they now gave her the creeps. Rubbing her arms, she forced herself to stare right back at him. She didn’t want to die. Her life may be a boring one, but it was still her damn life.
“Yes, I needed the room. You see, Joanne had a bounty on her head. A really fucking high bounty, a million dollars worth of bounty.”
“You’re a bounty hunter, like the ones on television?”
“No, I’m not that kind of bounty hunter. They get paid with the person alive. I get paid when they take their last breath.”
She shivered. “Who paid you?”
Ben smiled. “I’ve got your interest now.”
“Is that the only reason you wanted to take my spare room?”
“You needed someone to pay rent for the room, and I needed a room to watch Joanne. It worked out for the both of us.”
“You bastard!” She started to shake with her anger. “You used me to get to Joanne.”
“Actually, I used the room you provided me with.”
Joy’s anger took over, and she threw herself across the table, launching herself at him. He clearly wasn’t expecting it as he crashed to the floor, only just catching her as they both fell down. She hated him, and what was worse, she had led to the woman’s death. Joy didn’t care what Joanne had done. The last thing she wanted to do was cause another woman pain.
Ben grabbed her, catching her wrists. Drawing her knee up, she connected with his dick. In response, he turned them so that he was over her. Joy cried out as her body hit the leg of the table, and screamed as it started to tumble on the both of them. Ben covered her, and the table didn’t hit her face. He grabbed her hands, pressing them above her head.
She paused as their intimate position was hard for her to ignore.
His cock pressed against the front of his jeans between her thighs.
“Let me go.”
“You keep saying that. How long is it going to take for you to finally realize that I’m not going to let you go?” Ben leaned in close so that his mouth was close to hers and then pushed himself up off her. He caught her hands in one of his, and she watched as he tore his belt off. “So, the little kitten has claws, does she? That’s okay. I can figure that shit out.” He wrapped the belt around her wrist and pulled it tight. Once she was secure, he dragged her over to the wall, and she watched as he removed a picture frame, and then pushed the leather belt through the hook on the wall. She was stretched tight. “Now, I’ve got to clean up this mess. While I do, be a good girl, and stay.”
“You can’t keep me here.”
“I’m not goin
g to keep you here.”
“You’re not going to get away. Someone is going to find out who you are, and when they do they’re going to put you away.”
She kept on talking, and Ben was staring down at Joanne’s dead body. Her eyes were now closed, and she couldn’t be quiet. This entire situation was crazy and out of her control.
You’re bound by a fucking belt to a wall.
“You’re not going to shut up. Lucky for us, I have tape.” He pulled a roll out of his bag, which she only just noticed was in the corner of the room. Ben moved toward her, and slapped the tape across her mouth, silencing her. “Now, it’s time for me to talk. That’s so much better. I really do love silence. Ah.” He walked away, going back to spread out a clear plastic sheet. “You see, Joy, there are reasons for everything in life. Joanne here was a very naughty girl. She had a bit of an addiction that led her to borrow money from people that didn’t exactly like her not paying it back. To add insult to injury, she then decided to tattle on the people, who put her in witness protection, and gave her the identity of ‘Joanne’. She was Lindsay before that. Those people wanted her dead so the evidence died with her, and I get a nice big paycheck. So you see, Joanne wasn’t a good girl.”
She shook her head and looked up at the belt. There was no way for her to see anything, and tears spilled down her cheeks. She started to pull on the belt, using her weight to try to tear the leather.
Nothing budged, which only made her angrier and more pissed off.
“So you realize, Joy, she wasn’t a good woman, and at least I benefited from what happened.” He gave a whistle, and she couldn’t do anything but watch. The sun was starting to set, and when darkness hit, she didn’t know what to expect. Tugging on the leather, she sobbed behind the tape, wishing it would all be over.
With Joanne’s body wrapped up in the plastic cloth, he set to work cleaning up the blood, and when that was done, he started to put away his tools.