Page 27 of Stalking His Prey

Could Hawkactuallybe The Tree Saw killer?

I desperately don’t want to believe it, but am I thinking emotionally or rationally now?

Mack, despite being a jackass who clearly still thinks he has a chance with me, has actually made some decent points that I can’t ignore.

Why the blood in his truck? Why would the cops be on him like that without reason? Living in a cabin off the grid would provide him with a perfect place to commit his crimes…

But you know him!I scream at myself inside.

But is that true? How well do I know him really?

I know that he’s touched me in a way no one else has before, and I don’t mean just physically. I came alive after my experience with Hawk. I became a new person thanks to him. And doubting him now makes me feel likeI’mbetrayinghim.

“Anna?” I finally manage to say, turning to look at her. “What do you think?”

I can see the hesitance in her eyes, but after a moment, she shrugs softly and looks back at me with sympathetic eyes. “I think there’s just too much to ignore here.”

My stomach sinks.

“Thank you! Finally!” Mack says loudly.

Something inside me breaks, and tears flow from my eyes with abandon. I bury my face in my hands as despair washes over me. I’m on the brink of a full-fledged nervous breakdown when there’s a loud knock at the door.

“Are we expecting someone?” Todd asks as he stands. We all shake our heads. “Maybe it’s that grocery order I called in yesterday that never showed up.”

Todd chuckles at his bad attempt to lighten the mood, then opens the door.

Hawk stands there, his face stern, filling the doorway with his broad shoulders.

Anna gasps as he steps past Todd into the living room, and I nearly have a heart attack as I’m flooded with an overwhelming urge to throw myself into his arms, but at the same time, am nearly paralyzed by fear.

I hate myself for being scared of him.

But how else should I feel?

He turns to me, and our eyes meet, and all those wondrous feelings start to rise up again, and I realize that I’m absolutely nowhere near in control of myself.

“Are you okay, Pen?” he asks in a tone that reaches out like a warm hand to touch me.

“I’m–”

“Whoa, buddy,” Todd says, immediately stepping in front of Hawk to block his path. “What the hell do you think you’re doing here?”

“How’d you get out, more importantly?” Mack snarls. The tension in the room is tangible. Todd and Mack both look ready to throw down if need be, but Hawk simply stands there calm and cool, his eyes fixed on me.

“The cops released me,” he says coolly.

“Released you!?” Mack looks like he cannot believe what he’s hearing. Hawk looks directly at him with such severity in his eyes that the entire room bloats with pressure.

“That’s right.” He nods.

“But how?”

“Simple really,” Hawk replies, something close to a smile creeping into his lips. “I had alibis for every one of The Tree Saw Killer’s murders.”

Elation overwhelms me. My entire body begins to relax as more tears pour from my eyes.

I knew it couldn’t have been him!

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