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Category: Erotica/Erotic Romance
Description: Brenna Collins shouldn't have worked late that night. She was exhausted, had the migraine from hell slamming inside her head, and she was nowhere near being finished.
eBook Publisher: New Concepts Publishing, 2011 2011
eBookwise Release Date: August 2011

18 Reader Ratings:

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Available eBook Formats: OEBFF Format (IMP) [219 KB]
Words: 49884
Reading time: 142-199 min.

Chapter One

Des Moines, Iowa

November, 1997

Brenna Collins sat back in her chair and closed her eyes to the tight band of red-hot pain over her right brow. Nausea was already lurking at the base of her throat. Pinpoint flashes of light played along her peripheral vision and sound was muted in her left ear. Next would come the tunnel vision, the vomiting and shivering, then the pain would be so intense she'd have no choice but to go home.

Brenna knew all too well the signs of a looming migraine headache--she'd suffered with them since her fifteenth birthday.

Placing her fingertips at her temples, she massaged in small circles the agony that throbbed mercilessly there. In passing, she thought about going outside in the thirty-degree weather and standing long enough to numb the pain in her head, but it was too much of a hassle for a few moments respite. Besides, she thought with a grimace of distaste, standing alone at night in downtown Des Moines wasn't exactly a smart thing to do anymore.

She leaned back in her chair and sighed. It was nearly ten o'clock on a Friday night and here she was still at work. The day had been a bitch, her boss had been a bastard and the light at the end of the tunnel was getting farther and farther away.

Brenna sighed heavily as she looked at the clock over the row of filing cabinets. She should be in bed instead of sitting at her desk crunching numbers.

Making up her mind to add only one more entry in the computer before her head exploded from the pain, Brenna hunched forward over her keyboard. As she finished the first quarter's data, she was jostled out of her concentration by a succession of thwumping sounds down the hall from her office.

For a moment Brenna just sat there, listening as the sounds came again, a bit closer this time. She was puzzled by the odd noise, unable to identify the source. When it came again, she listened more carefully, cocking her head to one side in concentration.

As far as she knew, she was alone in the building. McGregor, A'Lex and Brell did not employ night security guards--there was no need. The company carried no night cash and, other than the computer equipment, there wasn't that much for a thief to want.

Suddenly, she heard someone running down the hallway outside her office. This new sound so surprised her she stood up. What the hell was going on? she wondered. She was ready to investigate when something slammed against the sturdy oak door of her office. A loud groan punctuated what could only be a hard collapse to the floor.

"Don't," someone pleaded. "Don't kill me."

The hair on the back of Brenna's neck stood up and chill bumps popped out all over her arms.

"You've outlived your usefulness, Mr. Jenner," an unfamiliar voice said softly. "I doubt anyone will miss you."

"No! Please don't shoot me!"

Three loud thwumps cut off Jenner's plea.

The wet sound--so final--galvanized Brenna into action. She snaked out her hand and punched the button on the base of her desk lamp, plunging the room into pitch-black darkness. Although she knew no one could see even a trace of light under her door, her natural instinct for survival was working of its own accord. She could feel the rushing adrenaline now pumping through her body and her heart was beating so fast she could hear it rushing through her veins.