Twelve: The Naturals E-novella (Naturals, The) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Author:Jennifer Lynn Barnes [Barnes, Jennifer Lynn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Disney Book Group
Published: 2017-11-06T18:30:00+00:00
âHow are you doing, son?â
Dean stares at the FBI agent. What are the chances that Agent Briggs isnât thinking about how Dean is doing? What are the chances that heâs thinking about what Dean has done?
âFine.â Fewer words are better. Dean learned that pretty quickly after his fatherâs arrest. Yes, maâam and no, maâam, yes, sir and no, sir, and not causing trouble.
Not that it helps.
âYouâre fine,â Agent Briggs repeats, eyeing the bruise on Deanâs cheekbone.
âIt doesnât hurt.â Dean isnât lying. The pain is there, but it canât touch him. Thatâs part of being what he is, isnât it? A lack of sensitivity to pain? To fear? To feeling?
Dean wonders, sometimes, if thatâs how it started for his father. Every day, he remembers the feel of the knife in his hand. The smell of burning flesh.
âYou did what you had to do, Dean. If you hadnât played your fatherâs game, if you hadnât convinced him you wanted to play, he would have killed Veronica.â Special Agent Tanner Briggs is awfully forgiving for someone whose wifeâs flesh is now branded with Deanâs initials. âYou hurt her so that heâd leave you alone with her.â
Donât tell me I helped her escape. Donât tell me Iâm the reason sheâs alive. Donât tell me Iâm the reason my father is behind bars. Heâs a monster.
So am I.
âIs someone giving you a hard time?â Briggs tries again. âBecause of your father?â
âI should go.â Dean is twelve. Heâs not stupid. He knows that people want to say that theyâve done what they can for him.
He knows, even at twelve, that thereâs nothing anyone can do.
âWait.â Agent Briggs doesnât touch him, but Dean has to push down the instinct to react like he has.
No one touches me. No one should touch me. If Dean doesnât let people touch him, if he doesnât touch backâhe canât hurt them.
He canât become his father.
âThereâs something else I wanted to talk to you about,â Agent Briggs says suddenly. âA case.â
Suddenly, Dean can hear himself think again. âLike my fatherâs?â
âNot exactly.â Briggs pauses. âThe UNSUBâunknown subjectâthat weâre currently tracking has killed at least three prostitutes in the last eight weeks.â
How? The question echoes in Deanâs mind, again and again until he has to ask it out loud.
âThe women were beaten to death.â
âBeaten bare-fisted?â For Dean, the question is automatic. Heâs already imagining the way the women would have fought back, the way that might have made the person beating them feel. âOr with a blunt object?â
âNeither.â Briggs pauses for just a moment. âOur killer beats women to death wearing gloves.â
Dean pictures it. Something gives inside of him, something visceral and hopeful and dark. Maybe he can make a difference. Maybe he can atone.
Maybe thinking like a killer is enough.
Download
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.
Action & Adventure | Fantasy & Supernatural |
Historical | Law & Crime |
Mystery & Detective | Romantic |
Thrillers & Suspense |
One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus(4135)
Crooked Kingdom: A Sequel to Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo(3547)
Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart(3170)
The Dazzling Heights by Katharine McGee(3071)
Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson(2984)
Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo(2879)
The Ring of Sky by Chris Bradford(2746)
Sadie by Courtney Summers(2517)
The Becoming of Noah Shaw by Michelle Hodkin(2480)
Hunting Prince Dracula (Stalking Jack the Ripper Book 2) by Kerri Maniscalco(2249)
13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher(2248)
Lair of Dreams (The Diviners #2) by Libba Bray(2207)
Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen M. McManus(2197)
The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas(2166)
Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco(2162)
Lair of Dreams by Bray Libba(2003)
Follow Me by Sara Shepard(1991)
Don't Look Behind You by Lois Duncan(1916)
As Old As Time: A Twisted Tale (Twisted Tale, A) by Liz Braswell(1804)
