id="ua4cd0716-869e-50c0-988a-41c4173f5341">
To Catch a Killer
Kimberly Van Meter
Table of Contents
Special thanks go to Lieutenant Vernon Gladney for
putting a gun in my hands. He said I couldn’t write about an FBI agent without knowing what it feels like to shoot the guns they use every day. He was right. Knowledge is power. And guns … are still scary. To Sally Grigg, the mistress of the Howard Creek Ranch in Westport, California. Thank you for sharing your knowledge of local flora and fauna and your delicious cooking. I’m still pining for more of your fresh mint tea and homemade biscuits. To “that guy” in Shelter Cove who filled me in on the “Emerald Triangle” of the northern California coast. Your candid comments were priceless. Lastly, to John. My traveling partner, friend, husband and lover. Every day you help remind me why love is worth fighting for. Thank you.
KIMBERLEY VAN METER wrote her first book at sixteen and finally achieved publication in December 2006. She writes for Mills & Boon Cherish and Mills & Boon Intrigue.
She and her husband of seventeen years have three children, three cats and always a houseful of friends, family and fun.
Dear Reader,
Sometimes a story comes out of nowhere and the characters grab you by the throat, demanding that you put words to paper. That’s what happened with this book. Kara Thistle and Matthew Beauchamp materialised in my mind and wouldn’t let go. Theirs is a dark story, but the light of their love ultimately illuminates the path to happiness and joy.
This is my first M&B Intrigue novel, and I’m proud of the way it turned out, even if the writing of it was incredibly difficult. I shudder at the places I took my characters, but their strength helped me as well as them as they raced to save a child from a killer.
I hope you enjoy this roller coaster of a read as much as I enjoyed writing it. Hearing from readers is one of my greatest joys (aside from really good chocolate), so don’t be shy. Feel free to drop me a line at my website, www.kimberlyvanmeter.com, or through snail mail, PO Box 2210, Oakdale, CA 95361, USA.
Happy Reading,
Kimberly Van Meter
The morning broke gray and dismal. Cloud cover drifted, creeping among the trees of Wolf’s Tooth ravine, overgrown with hundred-year-old cedars and western red hemlock. It was a place Matthew Beauchamp would normally enjoy hiking to, but today was no ordinary day.
A freelance photographer taking photos of the area had stumbled upon the body of a little girl. Now, looking down at the body, Matthew thought he had not come across a more heart-rending scene in his entire law enforcement career. Having grown up in the sleepy town of Lantern Cove, Matthew, as chief of police, was more accustomed to crimes of opportunity: petty theft, vandalism, the usual pot smokers and growers. Nothing like this.
Mud spattered her short-sleeve “Princess” shirt and pink sweatpants; she was missing a shoe. Her small toes had the remnants of pink polish and her flaxen hair was matted with dirt and underbrush. Someone had tossed this child away as if she were garbage.
“Feds are on their way. Should be here anytime,” Sgt. Oren Lawrence said, coming to stand next to Matthew. Wiping his ruddy nose with the back of his glove, he sucked back the rest of the snot before continuing, “You thinking what I’m thinking?”
Cold seeping into his bones, Matthew nodded. “It’s that Linney girl. Went missing a week ago in San Francisco.”
“Far from home.”
“Yeah,” Matthew said grimly. “But only someone who’s familiar with this area would’ve known about Wolf’s Tooth. It’s not like this place is popular with tourists. It’s hard to get to and you risk a broken ankle coming down that ridge.” He shook his head.
“How about