Page 1 of Fast Kill

Chapter One

Dillon leaned against a sturdy tree trunk with his phone in his hand and watched as two of his men passed by with the loaded wheelbarrow. Normally at this stage of a job he was in full vigilant mode no matter how many men he had watching the site. Right now, however, he was too preoccupied to act as sentry to their security situation.

He paid only partial attention to the men as they dumped the wheelbarrow’s load on top of the pile of gasoline-soaked wood they’d built earlier for this purpose. In the sunlight, the plastic containing the body parts glinted. He didn’t worry about burning them in broad daylight. Not out here.

One lit match, and whoosh, the whole pile went up in flames. The wave of added heat hit him even over where he stood fifty feet away.

Dillon wiped his sleeve over his sweaty face. Wasn’t even May yet and Houston was already sweltering, the humidity clinging to his skin like a film and making it hard to breathe.

God, he hated this place. Wouldn’t have come back at all except for this job…and the recent lead in the investigation he had to follow up on.

He bit back a sigh, wishing there was another way. It wasn’t like him to procrastinate about something like this. When it came to business, there was no room for hesitation, and he always did what had to be done, without any twinges from his conscience.

This time was different.

While the remains of his biggest business rival burned before him in the small clearing, he stared at the prepaid phone in his hand, the stink of charred human flesh mixing with the acrid tang of smoke and gasoline. Back in the early days it would have made him puke. Not anymore.

Still, he wasn’t entirely dead inside.

He couldn’t be, because he dreaded what he had to do next. Had been putting it off for the better part of two days now. Since he was at a dead end, he was growing desperate. He couldn’t hold off any longer, no matter how unpleasant the task he had to undertake, and this was the only possible way he could find her now.

Letting out a slow, deep breath, he pushed aside the guilt threatening to resurrect what was left of his withered conscience, and locked it away where he couldn’t feel it. From memory, he dialed a number he’d learned years ago, let his mind go blissfully blank for the few moments while it rang and a plume of dark, oily smoke rose into the sticky air.

“Hello?” a familiar female voice answered, slightly raspy with age.

Thank God the old woman was still alive, because she was his best chance now. “Janet? It’s Dillon.”

A moment of stunned surprise filled the line. “Dillon! Oh, honey, how are you?”

Bittersweet pain arrowed through his chest. She’d always been so warm and sincere, had truly cared about him, for whatever reason. “I’m good. Sorry it’s been so long since I called last.” He forced his voice to be light, playing the part. It was good to talk to her again, but the purpose for the call ruined it.

He shot the shit with her for a few minutes, catching up while being vague about his activities until a natural pause happened. “So I was wondering, have you heard from Taylor at all recently?” he finally asked.

“As a matter of fact, I just talked with her about a month ago. She called me out of the blue one day, saying she’d moved out of the state.”

“Where did she move to?” Last he’d heard, she was still here in Houston. That had been a year ago, though.

“Washington.”

He tensed. “The state?”

“No, as in D.C. She started a new job there.”

“Really?” Long way to move for a job, although it synched with the rumors he’d heard. “Is she not doing accounting anymore?” He was fishing, but hopefully not in a way that Janet picked up on.

Of all the social workers he’d dealt with in his earlier life, Janet was the only one he’d liked. She was one of only two people on this earth who had ever truly loved him. And he had no choice but to betray both of them. Not if he wanted to stay alive.

Thinking about all the ways she’d gone above and beyond for him, even to the point of taking him into her own house when he needed a safe place to go, made him feel like shit that he was using her this way now.

“I think so, but now she’s working for the government or something.”

His stomach clamped tight.No.Were the rumors true, then? He didn’t want them to be.

He waited for Janet to elaborate, but when she didn’t he was forced to fill the gap to keep the conversation going. “Oh, that’s great, good for her. I’ve been thinking about her a lot lately, thought I’d try to get in touch with her again. When I tried her old number, it wasn’t in service anymore.” And now he understood why his search hadn’t turned up any leads here in Houston.

“I think she’d love that,” Janet said, her voice full of warmth. “You two were so close, I always hoped you would stay in touch.”

He squelched the twinge of guilt. He didn’t have time for it. “Would you mind giving me her number?” He would have asked if she had Taylor’s address, but didn’t want to come on too strong and arouse her suspicion.

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