Vicious. Kevin O'Brien

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      VICIOUS

      He watched her unload the jack, wrench, and spare tire from the trunk of her old Toyota. All the while, Susan Blanchette kept looking over her shoulder. He’d given her the flat tire, his way of welcoming her to Cullen—and an ominous start to the weekend he’d planned for her. Susan had no idea he was calling all the shots. He knew Susan would be coming to Cullen before she did.

      And he knew she would die.

      He’d been watching her for weeks now, and she continued to fascinate him. He’d seen her coming and going at Dr. Chang’s office. He often parked across the street when she picked up Matthew at Yellowbrick Road Day Care. And sometimes he watched from outside her bedroom window as she climbed into bed alone.

      He knew the whole layout of her first-floor duplex. He’d even broken in once. He smelled her hair on her pillow—and thought about how he could touch her and smell her as she was tied up.

      He could do whatever he wanted to her.

      And maybe after he killed her, he would even taste her blood….

      Books by Kevin O’Brien

      ONLY SON

      THE NEXT TO DIE

      MAKE THEM CRY

      WATCH THEM DIE

      LEFT FOR DEAD

      THE LAST VICTIM

      KILLING SPREE

      ONE LAST SCREAM

      FINAL BREATH

      VICIOUS

      DISTURBED

      TERRIFIED

      UNSPEAKABLE

      TELL ME YOU’RE SORRY

      NO ONE NEEDS TO KNOW

      YOU’LL MISS ME WHEN I’M GONE

      HIDE YOUR FEAR

      THEY WON’T BE HURT

      THE BETRAYED WIFE

      Published by Kensington Publishing Corporation

      KEVIN O’BRIEN

      VICIOUS

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      PINNACLE BOOKS

      KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP.

       www.kensingtonbooks.com

      This book is for my friend and fellow author,

       David Massengill.

      ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

      John Scognamiglio has been my editor and friend for fourteen years, and he’s the best. Thank you, John! Thanks to everyone else at Kensington for all their hard work and support, especially my pal, the marvelous Doug Mendini.

      I’m grateful to my hardworking agents: the lovely and talented Meg Ruley and the talented and lovely Christina Hogrebe. Thanks to all the cool people at Jane Rotrosen Agency, and that includes Peggy Gordijn, for helping make me an International Man of Mystery with all those foreign sales.

      Thanks also to Thomas Dreiling, for believing in me. Tommy, you rule.

      My writers’ group is terrific, and I’m very, very lucky to share works in progress with generous, supportive friends like Cate Goethals, Soyon Im, David Massengill, and Garth Stein.

      For sharing his expertise in psychology, I want to thank my neighbor John Simmons. And for information on boats and boating equipment, my thanks go to Peter Sherman of Orcas Boats.

      Many thanks to the following friends for their encouragement or for pushing my books to their friends: Dan Annear and Chuck Rank, Marlys Bourm, Terry and Judine Brooks, Kyle Bryan and Dan Monda, George Camper and Shane White, Jim and Barbara Church, Anna Cottle and Mary Alice Kier, Paul Dwoskin and the gang at Broadway Video, Tom Goodwin, Debbie and Dennis Gotlieb, Cathy Johnson, Ed and Sue Kelly, Elizabeth Kinsella, David Korabik, the cool people at Levy Home Entertainment, Cara Lockwood, Stafford Lombard, Jim Munchel, Jake, Sue, and Conor O’Brien, Meghan O’Neill, David Renner, Eva Marie Saint, John Saul & Michael Sack, the gang at Seattle Mystery Bookshop, Jeannie Shortridge, Dan, Doug, and Ann Stutesman, George and Sheila Stydahar, Marc Von Borstel (photographer extraordinaire!), Michael Wells and the gang at Bailey/Coy Books, and my nice neighbors at the Bellemoral.

      Finally, thanks to my family. Adele, Mary Lou, Cathy, Bill, and Joan, you’re the greatest.

      CONTENTS

      CHAPTER ONE

      CHAPTER TWO

      CHAPTER THREE

      CHAPTER FOUR

      CHAPTER FIVE

      CHAPTER SIX

      CHAPTER SEVEN

      CHAPTER EIGHT

      CHAPTER NINE

      CHAPTER TEN

      CHAPTER ELEVEN

      CHAPTER TWELVE

      CHAPTER THIRTEEN

      CHAPTER FOURTEEN

      CHAPTER FIFTEEN

      CHAPTER SIXTEEN

      CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

      CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

      CHAPTER NINETEEN

      CHAPTER TWENTY

      CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

      CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

      CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

      CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

      EPILOGUE

      PINNACLE BOOKS are published by

      Kensington Publishing Corp.

      119 West 40th Street

      New York, NY 10018

      Copyright © 2010 Kevin O’Brien

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

      This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

      If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

      All Kensington titles, imprints, and distributed lines are available at special quantity discounts for bulk purchases for sales promotions, premiums, fund-raising, educational, or institutional use. Special book excerpts or customized printings can also be created to fit specific needs. For details, write or phone the office of the Kensington sales manager: Kensington Publishing Corp., 119 West 40th Street, New York, NY 10018, attn: Sales Department; phone 1-800-221-2647.

      PINNACLE BOOKS and the Pinnacle logo are Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

      ISBN-13: 978-0-7860-4521-1

      ISBN-10: 0-7860-4521-3

      First printing: June 2010

      First premium mass market edition: December 2019

      10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

      Printed in the United States of America

      Electronic edition:


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