The Mistress: Book Four in The Doll Collector Series

Chapter 2: Kristopher

The two suited men held stern gazes as she absorbed all the attention in the room. Maria never seemed shorter than today, standing between me and those men. Her stance was protective, but there was little that she could do.

I placed both hands on her shoulders to calm her down. She thought she was tough, but she couldn't take on two federal agents.

"How long did you think it would take before time ran out?" one of them asked.

I gripped Maria's shoulders to keep her from speaking.

"How did you find me?"

"Not that difficult. Her brother Jared reported her missing after her parents were unable to get in contact with her. Since we was a survivor of your antics, we felt inclined to find her. We spoke with the hospital and they were under the impression that she'd gone back to LA, but that wasn't the case, now was it? So we asked questions and one thing stood out. She was close to one person and that person was Zach Aleksandrov. If anyone would know where she went, it would be him. So we looked into him and found this place. He usually rents it out, but he hasn't been receiving payment from here in over a year, the length of time that Maria has been missing. In fact, the deeper we looked, the more information we got. Maria had protected you, lied to the police, and was the doctor treating you at Whitecrest under an assumed name. You can see how this looks bad for both of you, and the LAPD."

Would you look at that, the FBI could be smart.

"But that's not why we're here. Sit down." the other one ordered.

I led Maria to the sofa and took a seat as they did.

"I'm agent Valentine and this is agent Porter. We're here investigating a string of murders. I'm sure you've heard of them, men and women getting their hearts carved out and having them placed on their chests." Agent Valentine said.

"I'm not the one doing it if that's what you're getting at." I told him.

"Serial killers don't normally change their MOs. We figured you wouldn't be the exception." Agent Porter said.

I lightly grinned, proud of myself for having had such a pronounced MO that I was instantly cleared of all other crimes.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"We need your help finding her." Agent Valentine continued.

"Her?"

Oh, this was interesting. There weren't that many woman serial killers around. Although, I had escaped one not a year earlier.

"Yes, from the notes left behind and the way victims have been killed, we believe it's a woman. Women kill out of passion, and there is strong symbolism with the carving out of the heart. Not to mention that every note has lyrics from Hank Williams' song 'Your Cheatin' Heart.' Infidelity strikes a chord with women a lot more than men. She's called herself The Mistress, and that pretty much confirms it."

She'd named herself, what a power move.

"These are a lot of assumptions, what are the facts of the case?" I asked.

"All the victims have two things in common, accounts on MadameDaphne.com, and the women found alongside or after the male victims all were having affairs with said male. In fact, they were the last woman they'd had an affair with before meeting The Mistress."

"Madame Daphne the affair website." I said.

"How the hell do you know?" Maria cut in.

I placed a hand on her thigh and gave it a squeeze. Shh.