Total pages in book: 159
Estimated words: 149301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 747(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 498(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 149301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 747(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 498(@300wpm)
Who the fuck else hangs around at a hardware store for the fun of it, follows a fucker home, and attacks with a hunting knife?! Stabbed twenty-four times! It was the lone wolf… Kage’s signature was all over this shit. In the bastard’s typical fashion, he managed to stay out of the range of the cameras as the hardware store footage yielded nothing. Kage was out of his fucking mind, but he had become able to control his impulsivity as he got older, known to wait months, sometimes years, to strike and kill.
What would look like a crime of passion to most criminal investigators was just Kage being Kage. The man was one of few people he knew who enjoyed the art of killing. He relished the sight of blood. He laughed when people died and cried out in pain. He was dark and sadistic. At times philosophical. He was patient, yet conniving. A dangerous man—the walking definition of unadulterated insanity. While he made the rounds of several mental institutions as a youth, he’d been diagnosed with Antisocial Personality Disorder.
Grandpa scoffed at the very idea of slapping labels on folks, but in Kage’s case, something was definitely off. He couldn’t even pretend to care. If he hated you, he’d try to hurt you. If he hurt you, he always wanted to inflict more pain. The only exception to that rule seemed to be his ex-wife, Lorna.
He’d gotten married when he was in his twenties—a short-lived marriage. Kage had been too young and volatile to handle such things. Grandpa trusted that possibly Kage’s wife couldn’t stomach his behavior, and left. He was a time bomb, threatening to ignite at any moment. He worked hard at his job, but simply existed outside of work. He tucks himself away in that wilderness next to the river. Wasting away. Sloth. It was a shame, because he was also truly brilliant… a hunter to his core. He was too vile and gifted to not have on his team. Kage was the perfect shake-down man. The guy you send to deal with the situation when discussions haven’t worked. Just his appearance alone sent chills down many spines. Kage needed a push in the right direction. He simply had to understand what he’d lose and what he’d gain. It needed to be made clear as glass. Kage wasn’t his only problem though. Other things were bothering him, too…
Tina, seemingly realizing she’d been discovered, had vanished into thin air. Now, she was completely undetectable. The little bit of hope he’d had that she’d be found was dashed. She was blowing in the wind. A tiny spec of sand gliding through the air.
He’d hired another detective to work the case but that didn’t make a difference, either. Maybe he’d try someone else to take a look at the situation? It was as if she’d made it her duty to stay three steps ahead. For all he knew, she may have fled the country. If she even suspected he was looking for her, that made her run off like some skittish kitten again. I have to play this lowkey… I have to revise the plan. One thing at a time. Let me address this Kage situation first…
He poured himself a glass of brandy, and smoked. He drank, and smoked some more. With a sigh, he dialed.
“Hello, Daddy,” came the raspy, worn voice of his daughter. He could hear ruckus in the background, and yet Sarah sounded as if she’d just awakened from a long nap. “How are you?” she asked, followed by a husky cough, then a yawn.
“Are you entertain’ someone, Sarah? Is this a bad time?”
“Oh, just a few friends at the house, Daddy.” He could hear the sounds of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ‘The Needle and the Spoon.’ “We’re just playin’ cards and talking.”
“Sounds fun. Sarah, let me tell you somethin’. Kage is out of control. I need your help. That boy of yours needs a good talkin’ to. Now, I know he doesn’t listen to anyone, but you have a better chance of convincing him that—”
“Not this again, Daddy. I don’t rule over him. Kage is his own man, and he’s not a little boy. You know I love you, I do, but that’s my son. My child. My only baby. I can’t just hand him over to you, make him work for you if he don’t want to.”
“Sarah, that’s just it. Kage doesn’t know what the hell he wants! He’s become a recluse, and that’s not healthy. He lives out in those woods, on all of that land, like some day-walkin’ vampire. Talk to him! I can bring out the best in him!”
“Kage does what the hell he wants to do, Daddy. Has done so since the day he was born. You know that.”
“…Devil’s spawn! Eleven letters… I wrote him eleven letters.”