Trial by Fire Read Online Free PDF Page A

not such a dull boy after all.”
    He let the barb go. Sensations swept him that he’d believed long dead. Waking his senses as though surfacing from a coma. For the first time in ages, he held out hope tomorrow wouldn’t dawn as just another endless, lonely day. A thrill of excitement sang in his blood, knowing he’d see Kat again. Soon.
    Beyond tomorrow, who knew?
    In spite of his joy, the prickle on the back of his neck returned. Like the devil staring a man down, unseen in the shadows. A menacing presence pulling the strings, making them all dance to whatever wicked tune he’d chosen.
    “Christ, I need some sleep,” he muttered, rubbing his eyes.
    Peaceful, uninterrupted shut-eye. Perhaps sweet dreams of his angel would keep the nightmares away, just once. Please, God .
    The rosy glow from Kat’s bold invite began to fade, common sense returning to claw his heart with vicious talons.
    A man can’t exist on wishes and dreams. Hurts too much when your heart is ripped out. He’d learned that lesson a lifetime ago, and learned well. Sometimes the most unbreakable bond on earth isn’t enough to hold the one you love and depend on most.
    But Kat’s impulsive kiss had been warm and solid, not a dream. A soothing balm over those old, aching wounds.
    Heaving a tired sigh, he trudged to join the rest of the team. A man who’d been awake for twenty-four hours had no business poking a stick into a badger hole. After he’d been unconscious a few hours, the world would right itself again.
    And this ridiculous itch between his shoulder blades? History. He was thirty-six years old, for God’s sake. There weren’t any demons lurking in the shadows, waiting to devour him.
    Just the flesh-and-blood kind, and they were dead and buried.
    Look at the clueless assholes swarming, a bunch of ants on a kicked mound. Scurrying to salvage the ruins. Getting their very first taste of his power.
    Frank smiled. So fucking simple, the truth literally staring them in the face. They would investigate, test, take samples, photograph, autopsy. And in the end, they’d find exactly what he’d intended. The truth lay not in the what or how , but the why . Step back from the details, boys, and see the big picture.
    And they would, eventually. They’d search for the pattern, and he’d gladly oblige them. He had control of the game board, and they were his pieces to move at will. Pattern leads to motive. Then the stakes peak, and the game becomes a nerve-racking race to the finish line. Winner takes the prize.
    Vengeance.
    “I’ll get there first, ’cause I chose the destination.” He chuckled. “Yeah, you’ll know my name, you piece of shit.”
    By game point, the others would, also. Reward was never without risk. He wanted— needed —them all to learn who had dragged the entire Sugarland Fire Department into the pit of hell, and why. He craved it like heroin, this mad desire to feel their shock and horror wash through him when they understood why the master of the game had fucked them up the ass. In more ways than one.
    “But you have to find out before the others.” Relishing the idea, he shifted in his hiding place. “I’m going to tighten the vise until you crack under the pressure. Until you beg for mercy and fall to your knees. And when you’re beaten like the mongrel you are, I’ll rip your heart out.”
    Narrowing his eyes, he watched from a comfortable vantage point as his prey commanded the team. A man among men. He’d be a fool to underestimate the big son of a bitch, extremely powerful not only due to his size, but his presence. They hung on his every word, scurried like mice at a flick of his hand. One more reason to hate the lieutenant.
    They don’t know the truth.
    It would be all too easy to obtain a high-powered rifle with a scope and simply take his sorry ass out. Fuck this bullshit.
    Careful. Harness the rage. Play the game.
    And add a new piece to the board—the woman.
    Goddamn, the bitch had seen him. The