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if he refused her request.
    Truth was, Harper had his own reasons for wanting the Player. Spears’s protégé, Matthew Reed, had almost killed Lori. Harper had a big stake in this game, too.
    Braced for another disturbing layer to this nightmare, she read the response from Spears:
    Your impatience intrigues me, but this game is for you, Jess. Hold on, it’s going to be a thrilling ride!
    “Son of a bitch.” Jess struggled not to lose it in front of Harper. If she’d ever wanted to kill another human being in cold blood she had no recall of the time. She wanted to kill Spears. She wanted to watch him die, a slow merciless death by her hand.
    “What now?” Harper’s voice was strained with a fury he visibly struggled to conquer.
    Anything she did carried some amount of risk. But she had to do something. “I can taunt him with this new interest from the Man in the Moon in hopes he’ll get jealous and make a move to take me out of this other perp’s reach.”
    That fury flattening his lips now, Harper shook his head. “This is wrong, ma’am. You’re taking too big a risk.”
    “What should I do then, Sergeant? Tell me.” She almost sloshed coffee before she remembered the mug inher hand. The anxiety crushing her rib cage prohibited an adequate breath. “How do I get his attention? Divert his path? Because if I don’t figure out a way to intercept his plan one of those women”—she pointed to the duplicate case board she’d created on her apartment wall—“is going to pay for my lack of ingenuity.”
    Harper took the coffee from her and carried it to the sink. Jess tore off her glasses and rubbed her eyes. She fought for the calm that had totally evaded her since the arrival of that damned package containing the photos.
    As if he understood she needed a moment to pull it together, Harper steered her to the sofa and ushered her down. He sat beside her and waited a minute or two before he spoke. “So what do we do?”
    Jess stared at the prepaid phone in her hand and struggled to find the right words. Slowly she tapped the impotent letters into the text box. “How about this?”
    I’m a little busy with a new case. You aren’t the only admirer of my work.
    Harper read the warning. “What if instead of coming after you, he just speeds up the game he’s already set in motion?”
    Pointing out the rest wasn’t necessary. Jess glanced back at the photos on her wall. Three beautiful young women who had done nothing to deserve this. God knew this sort of push-the-killer strategy she was contemplating had backfired on her before.
    “Thank you, Sergeant.” She deleted the words. “You’re right. You can’t second-guess a psychopath. You’ll lose every time.” She typed in a new message and then hit Send. “Okay.” She handed the phone back to Harper. “You can dispose of that. I won’t need it anymore.”
    Harper read the message she’d sent. Simple and to the point:
    I can’t wait to watch you die, Eric. See you soon.
    “Ma’am, I really am concerned about how this is going to end. What if we can’t protect you? Or anyone else in his path?”
    Jess mustered up a smile for him. “I’m going to end this, Sergeant. The only variable is whether or not I can get the job done before he kills again.” If she accomplished nothing else before she took her last breath, she would get this done. She understood part of Harper’s fear was for Lori. Being Jess’s friend could be hazardous.
    According to Agent Gant, her former boss at the Bureau and the man in charge of the Spears investigation, there was evidence the Player had slipped back into the country. He could be anywhere… right outside watching the cop who was watching her, for that matter.
    Dear God, what if she was pregnant? That was another life she needed to protect.
    Don’t borrow trouble, Jess.
    Harper gestured to the stacks of files on the floor. “How you coming with this one?”
    Jess took her place on the floor once more and picked