Live Free or Die Complete Series Boxed Set: Age Of Madness - A Kurtherian Gambit Series by Hayley Lawson (pdf e book reader .TXT) 📗

to the next of kin, family, and friends. The murderer was usually someone the victim knew—at least, that was always the case on television.

Massimo decided to start with the body. He didn’t know what he was looking for, but he hoped there’d be a clue.

“Have you moved the body?” Massimo asked.

Kelvin gave him a look. “Of course not.”

Massimo knelt for a closer inspection. It did look like he’d fallen from the window, but he might have been pushed.

“Do you have any gloves?” Massimo asked.

Kelvin looked confused. “What do you want gloves for?”

“True.” Massimo smiled. He didn’t have to worry about fingerprints or DNA evidence, but he liked how he’d quickly fallen into the detective’s role. He always thought he would have made a good detective before the world went to shit.

Massimo placed his hands under Scott’s body and rolled him over, and both men gasped at the sight. Scott’s intestines were on the outside of his body, and half of his neck was missing. It looked like it had been ripped off.

Massimo gulped. “This doesn't look like a human attack, or someone was trying to make it look that way at least.” Massimo hoped it was the second option. He didn’t want to come up against the animal that had done this.

He looked at his hands, which were covered in Scott’s blood. The vampire in him wanted to taste the blood, and the human part wanted to throw up.

“Let’s go inside. We can check for any clues, and I need to wash the damned blood from my hands.”

They went inside. After scrubbing his hands, Massimo looked around the house for anything out of the ordinary. The only odd thing was that the home was pretty empty, with very few personal belongings lying around. Even in this era, Massimo expected to find some clutter.

“Were there any problems between Scott and Annie?” Massimo asked as he sat in a creaky chair at the kitchen table.

Kelvin shook his head. “You know I can't share what my customers say when they’re in the Old Dog.”

Massimo looked at Kelvin and laughed. “I was the one who made that rule. You’re allowed to break it with me.” Apparently, Massimo had trained Kelvin too well in bartending skills.

Kelvin sighed. “Okay, look. Scott has been spending a lot of time in the Old Dog. Like a lot.”

Massimo shrugged. “And?”

“Well, he didn't say much. He wasn’t the chatty type. It’s more what the other patrons said.”

“What were they saying?” Massimo asked, leaning forward.

“That Annie was having an affair behind Scott’s back.”

“The plot thickens!” Massimo got up and started pacing in the kitchen. “Nine times out of ten, it’s the spouse. Scott could have come home and seen his wife with another man. Then, a fight broke out, and Scott lost.”

“That would have to have been one hell of a fight,” Kelvin said. “Scott was no pushover.”

Massimo nodded. “True. Maybe a knife was used to cut his stomach open.”

Kelvin frowned. “And the neck bite?”

“That could have been from an animal after Scott was already dead. Let’s go see what Annie has to say for herself.”

Terrier was hiding down a tunnel off the women’s level where the men worked to keep the bunker running. It was hot and humid, but a great hiding spot. Like Mama Lou had told him, Ryder had broken the cameras in this tunnel. Afana wouldn’t be able to see him there.

He was behind some huge pipes, and since it wasn’t well-lit, he was able to hide in the shadows. The only problem was that there wasn’t enough room to sit, and he was getting tired. He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes, hiding the whites of them from any hunters.

Terrier heard a groan coming from down the tunnel, but it didn’t sound human.

Were none of these damn tunnels empty? He felt drawn to peek out from his hiding spot, but he didn’t want to reveal himself. His hand gripped his axe; Terrier was ready for anything—anything but Afana.

Terrier could be scary, but Afana was fucking terrifying.

The groaning got louder and closer. Then, it stopped. Terrier was about to hazard a glance into the tunnel when a hand reached behind the pipes, and grasping fingers came toward Terrier.

He jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding the grasping claw. Terrier swung his axe at the hand, but it moved before he could hack it off. Another hand reached around the other pipe, this time ripping at Terrier’s shirt. The man was strong—really strong—and he pulled Terrier out of his hiding spot.

It was Nestor.

Blood dripped from his mouth, and his eyes glowed red. Whatever had happened to Ivan was happening to Nestor, and he was hungry for Terrier’s blood. Nestor charged him, arms out and slavering mouth agape.

Terrier swung his axe. “Fuck off, you scrappy prick.” The axe connected with Nestor’s side. Terrier quickly pulled it out, but Nestor kept coming for him. It was like the fucker didn’t even feel it. Ivan had been the same way, and they had only stopped Ivan by chopping off his head.

“Nestor, fucking quit it, or I’ll end you like I did Ivan!”

Terrier was trying to keep his voice down. He didn’t want anyone else to hear the commotion and come to investigate. But Nestor didn’t listen to the warning, leaving Terrier no choice but to make good on his threat.

The big man swung, and Nestor’s head tumbled to the floor with a thud. His body quickly followed. Breathing heavily, Terrier shoved Nestor’s body out of sight behind the pipes. Then, he dropped in the head for good measure before he took off running, cursing his luck.

He needed to find another place to hide.

Chapter Fifteen

The girl was no longer in the thorn bush circle. Instead, she was asleep close to the rocks at the base of the mountain. She looked peaceful.

Leandro inched closer to her. He wanted to speak to her, but he had no idea what to say. He got too close, and his fur brushed her