Dedication

1

December 22, 2005

"He's here."

"Laura?" I ask into the phone, disoriented, voice sandy with sleep.

"Kate."

"Yeah," I murmur, my head sinking, pushing the receiver deeper into the pillow.

"He's here," she repeats. "In Croton."

Her words register and my eyes fly open. I sit up.

"Awake now?" she asks.

"Yes." I look over to my bedside table, tilting up straighter to see over the

stack of books. The glowing numbers on the clock read 4:43 a.m. "How -- "

"Mick's been throwing up -- some kind of stomach flu slash candy cane binge

with the baby-sitter. I look out the bathroom window and his mother's house

is lit up like Disney World, called the sheriff's office and they confirmed it.

He's here. He's here, Kate."

I fling off the duvet. "I'm coming." Dropping the cordless into its metallic

stand, I swing both feet to the smooth wood floor of my bedroom.

He's here -- there. Jake Sharpe. Of course it's not three P.M. on

a Saturday. Of course you reappear in the middle of the night like some

nocturnal blood-leech.

Adrenaline surges. I grab yoga pants from the ... read full excerpt from Dedication ebook