The Dead of Winter

By Jennifer Welsh

Devastated by the news of her sister, Andy's murder, Emma travels to Maryland to settle her sister's affairs. After losing her parents and brother only a year earlier, Emma is barely keeping it together. The past year has been a rough one and her relationship with her brother's best friend, Will, has only complicated matters. She loves Will, and he loves her, but she feels he is too young for her.
Against her better judgement, Emma lets Will move into her home, but only because he has no place else to go. At first things go very well, and they fall into a comfortable routine. One night it all changes when Emma, celebrating her recent divorce, drinks too much and sleeps with Will. She immediately tells Will it was a mistake and can never happen again, but she is afraid she will give in to temptation. Will acts like he has accepted that they will only be friends, but when he looks at her, she can see the desire. The worst part is she feels it too.
While staying with her cousin, Paul, in Maryland, she meets Paul's best friend, Mark. Mark is the handsome detective investigating Andy's murder. Mark seems to be everything Emma wants in a man. He is handsome, smart, and fun to be around. When they get snowbound in Andy's isolated country house, they develop feelings for each other. Emma tries to forget about her feelings for Will.
After discovering Paul was in love with Andy, Emma encourages Paul to tell Mark. Paul listens to Emma and on Christmas informs Mark of his relationship with Andy. A fight between Mark and Paul erupts, and guilt ridden Emma drives back to Indiana. Arriving in Indiana in the middle of the night, Emma has no idea that the killer is waiting for her.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jennifer Welsh
• Release date: Apr 2, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311898579

Jennifer Welsh

JENNIFER WELSH was born in Regina, Saskatchewan. She holds a doctorate in international relations from the University of Oxford, where she studied as a Rhodes Scholar and is currently a professor. Author of four books on international relations and co-author of Chips and Pop: Decoding the Nexus Generation, she lives in Oxford, England, and spends her summers in Saskatchewan.

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The Dead of Winter

By Jennifer Welsh

Smashwords Edition

Copyright © 2014 Jennifer Welsh

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Table of Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-one

Chapter Twenty-two

Chapter Twenty-three

Prologue

Andy strained to see the snow covered road. She glanced at the clock and was surprised to see it was after two in the morning. She was exhausted. Her eyes were so heavy that she had a hard time keeping them open. It had been snowing and sleeting all day, and the roads were treacherous. The lines on the road were barely visible. Even though she knew she should have started home earlier, she couldn't help herself. She had taken some incredible shots. Once she got caught up in a project, she always lost track of time. Did she eat lunch? She couldn't remember. Andy knew she skipped dinner, but what happened to lunch? It really didn't matter, she told herself. She hadn't had much of an appetite lately anyway.

She finally made it down the long winding country road that led to her house. "Why did I ever move so friggin far out in the middle of nowhere?' she asked herself as she eased up beside her mailbox. She rolled down the passenger side window and a big gust of wind blew snow in her face. As sleet hit her skin, it felt like little needles jabbing her. She quickly grabbed the stack of mail out of the mailbox and flung it on the passenger's seat. After she closed the mailbox, she hurried and rolled up the window.

She slowly turned down her driveway and eased her little red truck down the long tree lined drive toward her house. The truck slid several times before she reached her house. She parked and wished she could magically transport herself into her house. The light was on in her front window. She had set a timer so all the downstairs lights would turn on before sunset. She flipped down her visor and looked at her reflection in the mirror. She was a mess. Her shaggy shoulder length blonde hair was sticking out in all directions. Stress had definitely taken its toll on her. She was still beautiful, but she had dark circles under her eyes. She hadn't had a good nights sleep in weeks and it showed. Opening the glove compartment, she searched for an elastic tie. She quickly found one and pulled her unruly hair into a ponytail.

That's better, she said as she looked in the mirror. She knew she was going off the deep end, but she didn't know how to stop. Fighting back tears, she cursed herself for being such a coward. Andy was afraid to leave the security of her truck to try and reach her home. She had considered staying the night in Baltimore, but she had to feed Tom. She wished she would have left him extra food out, but she hadn't thought of it. The bushes by the house were so dark that she could barely see them. What if he was hiding in them, just waiting for her to come home?

Yeah, right, Andy. In a snowstorm. You really are going crazy. Just get out and run to the door, she told herself.

The front door was approximately a hundred feet away, but it seemed a lot farther. She looked at the clock. She had been sitting in the truck for twenty minutes. She picked up the stack of mail and decided to look through it before going in. Maybe the snow would die down some, and she could see better.

I hate junk mail, she muttered as she looked at several sales bills. She stopped dead when she came to a blue envelope. It looked exactly like all the others. She hadn't gotten one in a week and hoped it was all over. No such luck. She failed to notice this one didn't have a postmark. Unable to leave it unopened, she slowly tore the envelope. The typed words all but stopped her heart.

TONIGHT YOU WILL DIE No, no, no! she screamed. Tears started streaming down her face. She stuffed the note in her pocket. Knowing there was no way she could make it back to town, she jumped out of the truck and ran toward the house. She slipped on some ice and fell on the front steps. She grabbed the railing and pulled herself to her feet. Her hands were shaking so badly that she could barely get the key into the lock. Finally, she had the door open and was safely inside. Still shaking she shut the door, locked it, and punched in her security code to set the alarm. She looked for the portable phone to call the police. She had her cell in her purse, but it needed to be charged.

Unfortunately for Andy, she was always misplacing her phone. Why hadn't she listened to Emma and bought a gun. She considered buying one, but she was scared of them. She could just picture her shooting herself. While she was still searching for the phone, she heard a meow and spotted Tom, her huge orange tabby running toward her. She picked him up and scratched his head. Weighing almost fifteen pounds, he was the size of a small dog. She sat him down and wiped the tears from her eyes. After taking a couple deep breaths, she sat down on the sofa and tried to remember where she left her phone. She leaned down and rested her head in her hands. Unable to stop crying, she reached into her coat pocket for a tissue. The note tumbled out and fell under the sofa. Tom came over and rubbed against her leg, trying to calm her.

She jumped when she heard footsteps. Tom left her and headed toward the kitchen, toward food.

Oh, my God! He's here! Her voice was barely a whisper, but it felt like a scream. She searched for a place to hide. Praying quietly, she dropped down on her hands and knees and hid behind the sofa.

Andy, Honey, is that you? a familiar voice called from the stairs.

Andy stayed where she was. Afraid to move. She knew him well enough to be scared even if he wasn't the stalker. She had given him the alarm code. What was she thinking? At the time, she was in love with him and not thinking. She was planning on breaking things off with him, but she was scared. He scared her. He had a temper. She had started seeing someone else that she adored, loved. She was afraid he knew, but she had been so very careful.

Where is she, Tom, old boy? he asked the cat who always liked him. Tom betrayed her and ran to the back of the sofa. No way around it, she came out and forced a smile. You scared the shit out of me. He stood across the room staring at her. He smiled but the smile didn't reach his eyes. He certainly was a handsome man but not a kind man. She made herself go to him. She put her arms around him and gave him a hug.

What's wrong, baby? he sounded so concerned, genuine.

I got another note. I'm so scared, her voice shook. He held her tightly and told her not to worry that it would all be over soon. She wondered what he meant. You can stay with me?' he offered. Andy accepted and tried to seem grateful. Can I bring Tom? she asked. Of course, but first you need to calm down. Here, turn around and let me rub your shoulders, get rid of that tension," he spoke softly. Andy turned around. She felt her body start to relax as his strong hands massaged her shoulders. She felt trapped. Something popped into her mind. She didn't see his car.

"Where is your car? she asked.

It's near the woods, on the main road. I was afraid I'd get stuck in your driveway. Relax.

Suddenly, she felt something cold against her neck. A sharp pain quickly followed. Her vision blurred. Instinctively she reached up and felt her neck. She felt the blood. She turned and looked in his eyes, searching for the man who she once loved. He was gone. She tried to scream but couldn't. Losing her balance, she fell to the floor. The last thing she remembered as her life slipped away was his laughter.

He watched her die. He couldn't believe she had planned on leaving him. The nerve! Who did she think she was? It had been so easy at first. She fell for him hard. It all changed in a moment when he mistakenly let the real him out. Ever since then, she wasn't the same. He had followed her on several occassions and knew she was seeing someone else. He was shocked when he found out who it was. She looked happy with this man, like she use to with him. He decided then that she deserved to die. If she could fall out of love with him so quickly, what kind of person was she really? He had loved her, and she threw it all away.

He stepped over her lifeless body and walked into the kitchen. She hadn't even fed Tom. He filled the bowls with plenty of food and water. He thought of himself as a good person for doing this simple gesture. He always liked the cat. He hoped someone would take care of him.

He had been at Andy's for a couple hours gathering up his things and rubbing the place down, removing any sign that he was ever there. He went upstairs to retrieve the bag with all his things. While doing so, he smiled to himself thinking how clever he was. He deactivated the alarm and set it before he closed the door behind him. He barely noticed the cold as he made his way back to his car.