Pledging to Die (An FBI/Romance Thriller Book 11) Read online

  It was hard not to grin over how clever he was.

  No one could stop him.

  He was powerful.

  Genius.

  He was giving the world a gift.

  One slut at a time.

  * * * B l a c k h a w k - W h i t e f o x * * *

  Two Days Later

  Veronica Libbey’s disappearance made too much noise. It stirred up the campus, terrorizing the women and co-eds. While he knew he should be afraid, he wasn’t.

  This had to be done.

  He had no choice.

  If he lost his nerve now, so much would be ruined, and he couldn’t risk that.

  There was something bigger urging him on, and that meant he had to keep going. Even though the prey was getting wiser, that didn't mean he wouldn’t have a chance to take her.

  A part of him wanted to make the next one suffer for making his job that much harder, but he couldn’t be rash.

  Tonight, he had a delicate job at hand, and that meant being calm. So, instead of being strung out, he tried to breathe deep.

  He’d picked his girl.

  He’d watched her head to the party, lost in a flock of floozy’s.

  They believed that traveling in bigger numbers would save them. It amused him that this was their biggest defense.

  It wouldn’t help.

  Nothing could save the next one. She was marked down in his book, and he had to follow through.

  Now he only had to wait for her to come out. This one he liked a lot. He had to admit that she made his lower body stir when he saw what she was wearing to the party.

  Sue him.

  He was only male and human.

  He couldn’t help that the little blonde slut made him hot. He knew he shouldn’t want her, but he did. Maybe tonight, he’d cross a line and do something for himself.

  After all, sex might calm his nerves. She’d never sleep with him in real life, so maybe he’d take what he wanted. What could it hurt?

  He pondered it as he sat in the shadows dressed in all black, trying to blend into his surroundings. His hands, encased in leather, shook despite his deep breathing.

  He was scared.

  Someone was going to find him.

  He knew it.

  Yet, he stayed. The sex lured him in. He saw her on campus and wanted her. Now he’d fulfill his mission and get the girl.

  She didn't have a choice.

  Tonight, she was going to make the ultimate sacrifice, and for that he was grateful.

  He watched as a bunch of girls left the party, heading back to the dorms. They were still flocking together, and he was filled with rage. They were ruining everything.

  Never before had they left in a group. Arriving, yes, but leaving was always simple. Now, he would have to risk himself. Just the idea of being more reckless pissed him off. The whole point was to get her, take what he wanted, and get away.

  But that didn't look possible.

  He singled her out in the crowd. His eyes never left her lithe body as she giggled her way to the safety of her dorm.

  Well shit!

  This sucked.

  It looked like he was going home empty handed and horny as hell.

  Then, by one small miracle, the most amazing thing happened. She stopped outside her door, pulled out a smoke, and lit up. The rest of the debutants said goodnight, heading inside.

  She was alone.

  This was a sign.

  He had a matter of minutes to circle around—like the wolf in Red Riding Hood—to catch his little prize. He moved fast, silently, and with intent in his eyes. He could smell the cheap smokes and wanted to admonish her.

  Men didn't like chimneys.

  And after tonight, she was going to wish she’d never picked up a smoke in her life. Her vile addiction was going to be how he caught her.

  When he approached from behind, she was just about ready to crush out the butt. That’s when he moved. Fast as lightning, he grabbed her and dragged her back into the shadows.

  She lost her shoe in the struggle, and he debated on going back for it or not. When she bit him on the arm, leaving marks, he was enraged. In the shadow of the building, he threw her against the brick wall.

  Head met stone, and the thud sickened even him.

  As she fell to the ground, he saw that she wasn’t wearing panties. “You’re such a whore,” he hissed, yanking down his own zipper.

  While she was out, he was going to take her. No one would notice, since she’d been partying at the fraternity. What was one more dick in the mix?

  He made sure no one was around as he pounded himself into her body. Not once did she move, struggle, or make a peep. It made him happy. He could concentrate on getting off. Then he could take what he needed.

  As soon as he was done, there wasn’t a second to waste. If his moment of weakness got him caught, so much would be at stake. Touching her bloodied cheek, he noticed she wasn’t breathing.

  She was dead.

  He couldn’t let the fact that he’d just had sex with a dead girl bother him. There was a job to do. Instead, he pulled out his knife and got to work. When he was done, he stashed his prize before plotting his dumping location. He couldn’t take her to the pond, so instead he rolled her into the gulley behind the dorm and into the storm drain.

  Trash deserved to be left where it belonged.

  Grabbing his prize, he raced into the darkness, leaving the shoe, forgetting her name, and ignoring how close he was to the edge.

  His job was done.

  He could go home.

  He was satiated and had a prize to cross off his list.

  It was a good night.

  Well, for him anyway…

  * * * B l a c k h a w k - W h i t e f o x * * *

  Galeton University

  of Social Science

  Friday Night

  Three Weeks Later

  She couldn’t believe she was back in college. After all, it wasn’t really that long ago that she’d walked the hallowed halls of a different institution. The FBI required all of its agents to have a degree, and she’d recently gotten hers.

  Now she was back.

  Only this time, she was undercover and trying to ignore the mess that what was back at FBI West.

  Johanna Madden was trying to forget what she’d walked away from in the homicide division. Broderick Seaton was still on her mind, and she suspected that he always would be. For the rest of her life, she’d see him when she closed her eyes. There was no doubt that he’d haunt her dreams too.

  It sucked.

  There was something about him that made her heart pound in her chest. Maybe it was his brown hair and gentle blue eyes. Maybe it was the way he kissed her or held Johanna in his arms. Whatever it was, she was broken since walking away, and she had no one to blame but herself.

  Johanna intentionally pushed him away.

  She’d closed the door in his face months ago, refusing to let him into her home. He already lived in her heart, but she had to be strong. Someone had to save him, and that meant building a wall between them. When that didn't work, she had to do whatever it took to set him free.

  Even if it meant hurting him.

  See, she was broken. Inside, there were parts of her that would never work right, and he deserved more than that. If she got sick again, she couldn’t make him live through that with her.

  Johanna wouldn’t do it to Brody. She loved him far too much to make him suffer. He was the one man in the world who could hurt and heal her, but his heart had to come first.

  She had to make a sacrifice, so instead she walked away.

  Yes, she was a coward.

  Yes, she missed him.

  Yes, she regretted every second of it, but in that moment, it seemed like the best thing to do. He’d scared her.

  When he professed his love for her, she didn't know how to react. She’d loved once before, and when she got sick, he left her to fight for her life all by herself. The man she thought would be hers bail
ed, leaving her alone, broken, and trying to fight something so horrible that she’d nearly died.

  She couldn’t live that again.

  Johanna couldn’t handle that feeling of having her heart ripped out, thrown on the ground, and stomped on. Broderick Seaton had that power over her. After all, she loved him, and she wanted to be with him more than anything else.

  So, she had to walk away.

  If she got sick again, Johanna couldn’t risk that Brody would abandon her. So instead, she did the deed. He was far stronger than her, and Brody could handle it. She knew he’d be fine.

  Granted, he didn't give up easily, and he chased her down.

  Every day at FBI West, as they waited for their new partners, she was forced to sit at her desk knowing he was staring at her. It was uncomfortable, but she deserved it.

  He’d sent her flowers.

  Candy.

  A giant pink teddy bear that made her weep.

  The man even slept on her porch, waiting for her to come out in the morning so they could talk, and yet she stood her ground.

  Brody deserved better.

  She loved him but couldn’t break him.

  One day, he’d want a family, and she couldn’t give him that. Johanna was barren inside, stripped of everything that made her a woman in an effort to save her life.

  Now, she was nothing more than a shell of a human being and a losing bet.

  Sweet and gentle Brody would make one hell of a father one day, and when he found a wife, the new woman would give him everything she couldn’t.

  Johanna was the opposite of perfect.

  She was a dead end, but he just didn't see it.

  As soon as she was moved to the vice department, Johanna was glad. A case came up, and she jumped at the chance to take it. Yes, her new partner was a newbie, but then again, so was she. The FBI wanted her on the team because she looked young.

  Thank God for small miracles.

  It got her out of the office and away from the sexiest man in the world. With each moment near him, Johanna was weakening. What she wanted to do was find Brody, kiss him, and tell her old partner how sorry she was.

  It took everything not to do just that.

  In fact, it broke a piece of her.

  Sitting on the bed in her dorm room, she let her fingers run over the pink teddy bear. She brought it with her because it was something so teen-like, that it would fit in with the college surroundings.

  Then she laughed.

  That wasn’t why she did it.

  Johanna brought it along because at one point, Brody held it against his body, and it smelled like him. That was one of the few ties she had left to the man, and she couldn’t sleep without it.

  In her dreams, he was still there.

  She was with him.

  Once awake, reality set in.

  She forced herself to stand and move away from the bear. If she wanted to have any focus on the case, she shouldn’t be thinking about him.

  Broderick Seaton tied her up in knots.

  Instead, Johanna forced herself to worry about the missing girls. The FBI had been called in by the board of trustees. The university suspected that the co-eds were being taken for a sick, sex ring. It was a horrible crime, and Johanna was undercover in the sorority where the women had gone missing.

  When she was in college, she’d pledged. She’s lived the Greek life, so this was nothing new. Kappa Omega Alpha was a wild house of girls. They liked to party, get drunk, and keep up with their brother fraternity—Beta Phi Ti.

  It wasn’t easy. Those boys made ‘Animal House’ look tame. If they weren’t sexing it up, boozing until dawn, or breaking the law, they were having their secretive meetings.

  Johanna knew about them from word of mouth, but as a woman, she couldn’t get access. When she reported to the Blackhawks, they said they’d handle it.

  She only hoped they did. At that point, three women were missing, scooped right up off the face of the map, leaving no trace.

  No, that’s not true. Poppy Gauger, the latest victim, had left behind her ID and a shoe. To Johanna that proved one thing—she was definitely taken.

  Now the race was on to find them. Three weeks had passed, and they still hadn’t been found. Johanna was really beginning to worry that this job was bigger than she and her new partner could handle. Agent Jason Blaise was working the daylight angles, and she was trying to get into the fraternity by way of sex and booze.

  She was getting too old for this, and she knew it.

  Glancing down at her pink watch, she checked the time. Soon, she would be heading out to another party. In all honesty, she was sick of them. As she paraded herself around in slutty gear, she was forced to endure copious ass grabs, a few suggestive whispers, and many phone numbers shoved into her shirt.

  It was getting old.

  This was exactly why she preferred being in homicide division. The dead didn't try to get into your panties.

  Instead, your incredibly hot partner did.

  Damn it!

  He was back in her head again. Pulling open her dresser drawer, she found the one other memento she’d put away. It was a single selfie.

  In it, she was smiling brightly as Broderick Seaton did the same, only he was staring at her. His eyes told the tale.

  There was love there.

  Seeing it made her want to weep.

  That’s why she kept the one picture. They’d taken it on a case, and she didn't want ever to forget what it felt like to have someone want her.

  To have Brody see something in her that she couldn’t—it was miraculous.

  When Johanna heard the knock on her door, she tucked the photo away as she fought for composure. She couldn’t do this here and now. This was the job, and personal issues had to come second to work.

  Besides, if she blew her cover, they’d be screwed. There would go three weeks’ worth of undercover work down the drain. The Blackhawks would have her ass in a sling. It wasn’t easy to get her into the sorority and with a cover story.

  Now she had to keep up the charade.

  “Come in,” she called, running a brush through her straw colored hair. Johanna only prayed no one noticed she looked like hell.

  “Hey! Are you ready for tonight?” Lori Denny asked from the doorway.

  “Yeah, I am, but we both should be studying for that psych test.”

  She laughed. “You’re such a geek. Don’t you want to have some fun with the boys from Beta Phi Ti?”

  Yeah, she really didn't.

  Unless Broderick Seaton went back to college, she didn't care to lock lips with anyone there. In fact, she would rather kiss a snake. Who knew what venereal diseases that frat was spreading around? There was nothing less appealing than some drunken horny man, trying to lure you into a STD ridden, frat bed.

  Yeah, no thank you.

  “Sure I do,” she said, bullshitting her sorority sister. Hopefully, Lori wouldn’t see through her sarcasm.

  “Well, if you want one of them to notice you, then you have to dress better,” Lori stated, coming into the room. When she flopped on the bed, the big pink bear fell off onto the floor.

  Johanna immediately rescued the precious treasure.

  “Tonight you could cuddle up with a real man,” Lori teased, “not some bear.”

  She’d take that bear any day, especially since it was from someone she loved.

  “Yeah, I hope I find a winner tonight,” she stated.

  Oh, and she hoped that they tried to take her. They’d be in for a surprise when they found out that she was lo-jacked. Her partner would be monitoring her location all night long.

  If she was lucky, they’d make a grab for her, and she’d lead the FBI right to the missing women.

  “You better get ready.”

  “I am,” Johanna protested, looking down at her clothes. She was already dressed like the village harlot. How much more sluttiness could she possibly pull off without looking like a twenty dollar hooker on a Friday night?


  “Hike up your skirt, unbutton that top, and take off your panties.”

  “WHAT?” she hissed, her mouth agape at that sick suggestion. Over her dead body was she going to a frat party buck naked beneath her skirt. It was like asking to get raped.

  Yeah, not happening in this lifetime.

  “You heard me. The men in Beta Phi Ti like bareback babes.”

  “Well, that’s not happening. What if there’s an accident? I think I should keep my panties on.”

  “Well, suit yourself. I’m out to attract Arman tonight. He’s going to take notice of me.”

  When Lori stood, Johanna knew what would be catching their attention. The girl was braless, and if she wasn’t wearing that, chances were she was going naked beneath the tight skirt.

  “You’re asking for more than attention,” Johanna stated.

  “Lighten up, Mom,” she said, fluffing her hair in the mirror. “I’ve shaved, creamed, and gotten myself prepped to party.”

  Johanna wanted to smack some sense into her. Working for the FBI, she’d seen so many victims who did stupid shit, and this girl was the poster child. A part of her wanted to save the woman from herself, but the other half knew she couldn’t break cover.

  “We should stick together tonight,” Johanna stated. Then she could babysit the idiot.

  “Joey, you’ll get in my way. I’m going to the basement with Arman if it’s the last thing I do.”

  She rolled her eyes. At this rate, it could be the final thing the woman did.

  Jesus! What happened to girls when they went to college? Did someone suck out their brains?

  When Lori approached her, she yanked Joey’s skirt up another three inches. Her pink panties peeked out from underneath.

  “Hell no!” she stated. “It’s not happening. I’d prefer not to be on the evening news as a victim of some frat gang bang. Girls have been going missing or have you forgotten?”

  She shrugged. “They were stupid. Besides, for all we know, they ran away and ditched college. Poppy always said she wanted to head to Hollywood to make movies.”

  Yeah, that was the problem. For all they knew, she was being forced into the sex industry at that very moment. That was why Johanna was there.