Don't Look (Pike, Wisconsin #1) - Alexandra Ivy Page 0,120

shaking the poor thing so hard it was obvious he was going to end up breaking the tiny dog’s neck. Instant fury had overcome her as she’d charged toward the stranger, indifferent to the fact he was an adult with what was obviously a violent temper.

“I remember.”

“You started throwing rocks and screamed so loud that a dozen people came running.” His nose flared with pleasure as he recalled what she’d done to his father. “My dad slunk away like a scared rat and I took the puppy to the woods where no one could find him. It didn’t matter that I was punished when I got home. I had my dog. It was the only thing in the world that ever loved me.”

She shook her head in confusion. “Why are you angry with me?”

“I’m not angry,” he protested. “I’m disappointed.”

“Disappointed?”

“In my mind you were nothing less than an angel come to earth,” he told her, that hunger still smoldering in the depths of his eyes. “I held on to that image of you, and when I returned to Pike I discovered that nothing had changed. You were still the fierce protector of the vulnerable. Such a beautiful warrior. I decided I was going to make you mine.”

She shuddered at the mere thought. Even when she’d assumed he was a handsome, fairly successful journalist there had been something about him that had squashed any attraction toward him. Almost as if her inner alarm had been warning her there was something sketchy.

A damned shame she hadn’t paid more attention to her instincts.

“I . . .” She had to stop and clear the lump of horror from her throat. “I had no idea.”

“Because of Nash,” he snapped in a harsh voice. “I couldn’t believe when I first heard the two of you were dating. How could my angel be with that . . . Neanderthal?”

“It was a mistake,” she assured him.

He wasn’t satisfied. In fact, his face darkened to a strange shade of puce. As if he was having trouble breathing. “Not just a mistake. It was a betrayal,” he insisted. “I expected others to disappoint me. It was as inevitable as the sun rising. But not you.” He paused, visibly regaining control of his temper. “That’s when I realized I had to do something very special to punish you.”

“Special?” That didn’t sound good.

He smiled, pulling one hand out of his coat pocket to reveal the switchblade clutched in his fingers. With a smooth flick of his wrist the long blade was revealed, the razor-sharp steel shining with lethal promise.

Chapter 31

Kir halted at the edge of the opening that led to the massive octagon-shaped room in the very center of the air base.

After a frantic call to 911 he’d driven straight across the snow-packed fields and jumped out of his SUV to scale the chain-link fence with more haste than grace. Then, dropping to the other side, he’d jogged across the frozen runways. He didn’t try to hide his approach. If someone was watching, there was no way to get across the wide, empty space without being seen. Besides, he was in too much of a hurry.

Passing by Lynne’s truck, he came to a sharp halt. He was going to need a quick getaway once he managed to rescue Lynne. Pulling open the driver’s door he was relieved to discover the keys still in the ignition. Obviously the killer hadn’t expected anyone to enter the abandoned parking lot. Kir switched on the engine. Then, remembering Lynne’s heavy flashlight, he reached behind the seat to grab it before slamming the door and continuing forward.

Once at the main terminal, he shoved open a loose door and slipped into the darkness. A heavy cold shrouded around him, the shadows so thick he was virtually blind. He paused, tapping into the knowledge he’d gained as a boy sneaking around this building. Moving forward, he made a hard right and entered the narrow space between the outside wall and the inner wall. The construction of the terminal followed ancient castle designs with layer after layer of cinderblock to offer protection against explosions. The result was a spiderweb of tunnels that led to dead ends and occasionally into the various rooms. It’d made an awesome place to play hide-and-seek when he was young, or to keep away from prying eyes when he got older and wanted someplace to party in privacy.

Traveling through the tunnel, Kir passed by the hallway that opened to the inner rooms and instead searched the