There was no mistaking her daughter's handwriting. And the words... "If you're reading this, I'm already dead.

For two years, she and Cassie had been inseparable. And then one night, Cassie had disappeared from her bed. In her place, her abductor had left his calling card, a macabre nursery rhyme. Cassie had never come home.

As Evelyn slid to a stop in the center of the hallway, Butler calmly shook his head. Then he lifted his machine gun and fired.

Bakersville was never going to be the same. She'd been to other small towns where the residents all thought serial killers looked like monsters, that no member of their community could hide such dark desires. Once upon a time, she'd lived in one.And the monster there had ripped her life apart.

My gut is telling me you're innocent." His gaze went to the gun and then back to her face. "Relatively innocent.

She saw a lone figure running across the dark parking lot toward her, a weapon in his hands. ...*Not again.* And this time she was all alone. No Cole Walker, heroic police detective and star in too many of her fantasies, to save her.

After all these years, he couldn't believe he'd recognized her so instantly. He prayed that she wouldn't recognize him, but as her eyes widened, he knew she had."Marcos?" she breathed.And his worst nightmare came true. His cover was blown.

He also had deep brown eyes, light brown skin and an infectious grin, even in the middle of a grueling SWAT workout. In short, exactly her type. If only he wasn't a teammate, making him off-limits. And if only she didn't have baggage from her past that weighed more than he did.

Nine people had died today. And it didn't matter what the FBI had thought of her actions. Her career as a negotiator had ended before it had even begun.

The instant Isabella Cortez left the safety of the FBI building, goose bumps skittered across her skin and her senses went on high alert.