Five years. Five years and he’s still out there. He’s still watching. When is he coming back?

Parker Lewis’s feet pound on the pavement as she races up the steps of her apartment building, Lose Yourself by Eminem blaring in her headphones. It’s one of the only songs with the ability to drown out the constant nagging thought she has about her murderous brother still on the loose.

Five years ago, she found out she had a secret brother. Five years ago, he not only murdered innocent women who happened to look like her, he also killed her parents. Their parents. Five years ago, she had a plan for her life, and five years ago that plan changed abruptly. And it’s been five years since she last heard from Kane.

Stopping to stretch before walking inside, she lifts her leg up onto the railing. It’s a fairly cold morning for August, so she’s clad in black leggings and a light orange sweatshirt. She takes a deep breath before entering the apartment building. She didn’t expect to still be living here five years later, yet, here she was. Living with a fiancé who isn’t Ryder Edwards.

Ryder Edwards was the new deputy in town who saved her life multiple times. Not only had he helped her find out about her brother, he was the only person she could trust when she learned a huge secret had been kept from her from everyone she ever knew for most of her life. He was also the only solace she found after watching her parents brutally murdered by an angry sociopath.

Lightly jogging up the steps to her third floor apartment, she unlocks the door and kicks off her shoes as soon as she walks into the entryway. There is just something calming about eating breakfast after a long post run shower by herself in the sunshine of the morning. It was the few times in any given day where her mind was completely at rest.

Parker didn’t have a day job, but she was a two-time best selling author. The first book she published was Kane Without Abel, and it recalled the horror and torment of her secret brother. Her second book was written on how she was able to move past the death of her parents, which she titled I’ll Always Love You. The royalties from both books, along with the life insurance policies of her parents provided her the ability to live very comfortably.

She walks into the kitchen, and she’s startled to see her fiancé standing in the kitchen eating a piece of toast. “What are you doing home?” Her heart is racing, and he knows she doesn’t like surprises. That never seemed to stop him from constantly trying to do so.

“My meeting got cancelled, so I thought I’d come home and surprise my favorite girl by taking her to breakfast,” Jacob Smith says. He’s standing there with crumbs on his dark gray suit jacket over a white dress shirt and red tie. He looked like he should work in a funeral home rather than an investment company.

“You’re already eating.”

“I was a bit starved waiting for you. Do you always run for that long? You left before I did this morning. But you know I can always eat.”

He flashes a bright smile at her, and she feels a twinge of guilt at her annoyance. He was a nice guy with blonde hair and blue eyes. He was only a couple of years older than her, and she met him when she reached out to his company to get advice on her funds. “I have to shower and then we can go.” She hopes her disappointment doesn’t show through as her happy time of the day has just been pulled away.

“Want some company?” he calls after her.

“No, that’s okay,” she calls back. “I’ll be quick.” Shower sex reminded Parker of Ryder. Morning sex reminded her of Ryder. Most things did, if she’s being completely honest with herself, but she had to push him out of her mind. He made his choices, and so did she. She was with Jacob now.

Ten minutes later she’s dressed and putting product in her hair to keep the curls at bay. She didn’t have the energy or motivation to put effort into drying it. After washing her hands, she sighs and heads out to the kitchen with a forced smile on her face. “Ready?”

“I grabbed the mail quick. I was hoping the contracts for my dad were in there,” Jacob says and nods to the pile of mail he’s set on the kitchen island.

Absent-mindedly she shuffles through it. She knows she should know what the contracts are for, but she wasn’t even going to try and recall it. She was a terrible person. It’s not that she doesn’t care about Jacob. She does. She loves him. But if she is being honest with herself, she’s not in love with him. She’s not sure if she ever was.

He’s a great guy, with a good job, treats her like a queen, and he was perfect on paper. But there was always something missing. No passion. No longing. No lust. Then again, compared to Ryder, their relationship was boring. Which is exactly what she thought she needed after how everything ended with them. The two of them were like comparing a rice cake to a brownie. Good for you in theory, but you just didn’t pick it if you were given a true choice. Yep, she’s a terrible person.

“Did they come?” she asks without looking up. She can feel her wet hair soaking through the shoulders of her shirt, but she doesn’t care.

“No, but hopefully tomorrow.”

Parker’s phone rings, and she pulls it out of her pocket. Sam Baker. Her godfather and sheriff of her hometown. “Hi Sam.”

“Parker, how are you?”

“I’m okay. What’s wrong?”

“I knew I couldn’t hide it. We got a letter here at the station addressed to you. White envelope, no return address, no stamp, and the handwriting is familiar.”

“Shit.”

“Everything okay?” Jacob asks.

Parker holds her hand up telling him she’ll be just a minute. “Open it.” She can hear paper ruffling, and she’s holding her breath. Kane hasn’t reached out in almost five years.

“It’s him.”

“I’ll be right there.” She hangs up and can hear her heart beating in her ears. Why is he reaching out now? And why send the letter to the Sheriff’s department? Maybe he didn’t know where to reach her. Although she knows Kane can find out anything he puts his mind to. He’s a psychopath, but he’s smart and resourceful. “I have to go.”

“What’s going on? I thought we were having breakfast. Who was that?”

“It was Sam. He got a letter at the station addressed to me. From Kane.”

“Your brother?”

“Yeah. I have to go.”

“I’ll go with you.”

“No, I’ll only be a couple of days. You have meetings and a life to keep running here. I’ll be back soon, I promise.” She rushes into the bedroom to pack a bag before calling Paige.

It’s mid-afternoon by the time she reaches the sheriff’s office, taking a quick detour past her childhood home with a For Sale sign still sitting in the front yard. The windows are dark, and a lump forms in her throat. The last time she was there, her parents had just been murdered. In front of her. And that’s exactly why she can’t seem to sell the damn place. No one wants the murder house where the murderer is still on the lamb.

Taking her turns as though on autopilot, she realizes nothing in the town has changed aside from a few coats of paint. It’s only been three years since she was last here, but it felt like an eternity. She half expected there to be some drastic change to shock her. There wasn’t.

Butterflies take flight in her stomach as she pulls into the parking lot of the Sheriff’s office. Will Ryder be inside? Will he avoid her? Will he try and talk to her? She didn’t know which would be worse after everything that happened between them.

She pushes the questions down as she opens the door. Being hit with the familiar sights and smells and sounds she’s known since she was a small child fills her with nostalgia. The feeling is replaced with dread when she enters the squad room to see Sam, Mack Young, Scott Rogers, and Travis Bell standing in a circle with a white sheet of paper between them. Everyone is wearing the same gray uniform, and she almost smiles.

Sam looks up and sees her. A sad smile forms as he walks over to her and pulls her into a big hug. “How are you, Park?”

“I’m good,” she says and hugs him back hard. It’s been a few years since she saw him. She no longer held any anger or resentment for what happened with her parents. Sam hadn’t taken her letters from Kane seriously, and as a result, they found him too late to stop him. But therapy helped her to understand Kane was going to kill her parents regardless of Sam’s actions. He was a man on a mission, and nothing they could have done would have stopped him. And he’s already proven that by getting away.

“Nice to see you, Parker,” Travis says and takes his turn to hug her.

“It’s nice to have someone pretty around here!” Scott says as she moves to him.

“Doesn’t your girlfriend stop in here from time to time?” Mack asks sarcastically. “Guess she doesn’t count.”

“Hey Mack,” Parker says.

“Hi,” he says and avoids looking at her. Clearly, he’s angry with her.

“Can I see the letter?”

“It’s yours,” Mack says and holds the letter out to her.

Ignoring his tone, she scans the sheet of paper in familiar handwriting and her stomach drops.

Hello Sister,

Normally I’d send this letter to you, but I wanted you to be in town for what’s about to happen next. It’s been awhile since we last talked, hasn’t it? Well, you’ll be pleased to know I’ve finally healed enough from the wounds your ex lover gave me. I’m as good as I’ll be, I supposed. Not that you really care. I read your book, by the way. I guess it’s true when they say the winning party always writes history.

I heard you and Ryder ended things. Sounds like you’ve finally come to your senses. Not that it’ll save either of you. He’ll get his. I can promise you that. I guess the big brother in me is still wanting to avenge you, even if I still feel the desire to kill you.

Sitting here, surrounded by all of these familiar yet unknown faces, I’ve realized just how I’ll enact my revenge. I’m going to make sure he feels pain. Pain like he’s never felt before. I’ve thought about it long and hard, and killing him directly would be too easy. He deserves to suffer. And he will. Slowly. As all of the those he cares about disappear one by one until he’s alone. And he’ll know it’s all his fault with nothing he can do to stop it.

Don’t worry, little sister, he’ll get what’s coming to him.

Then I’ll come for you.

K

“This is much longer than his previous letters,” Parker says. “Does Ryder know yet?”

“No, we haven’t been able to reach him,” Sam says.

“Okay, when does he work next?” She’s struggling with how blasé they are about this.

“He’s not here anymore,” Travis says.

“What do you mean?”

“He got suspended after going off the deep end when you walked out on him.” Mack’s explanation explains more than just Ryder’s absence. Apparently, Mack blames her for this.

“Is he still at the same house?”

“You’ll have better luck at the bar. You know, the place you drove him to?”

“Mack,” Sam warns.

“It’s okay. I didn’t expect any of you to have the full story anyhow. But just so you know, Mack, his time spent at the bar is a big reason why I left. I wasn’t the one to drive him there. He did that all on his own. He’s a big boy, just like you are, and you are all accountable for you own actions.”

Parker turns on her heal and decides to head to Paige’s house before heading to the bar.