Hunted
Terror stalks a small Virginia townFBI rising star and criminal profiler Evelyn Baine knows how to think like a serial killer. But she’s never chased anyone like the Bakersville Burier, who hunts young women and displays them, half-buried, deep in the woods. As the body count climbs, Evelyn’s relentless pursuit of the killer puts her career—and her life—at risk. And the evil lurking in the Burier’s mind may be more than even she can unravel.Terror is closer than she thinks…The Bakersville Burier knows he’s got an FBI profiler on his trail. He knows who she is and where to find her. And he’s biding his time, because he’s planned a special punishment for Evelyn. She may have tracked other killers, but he vows to make this her last chase. This time it’s her turn to be hunted!Praise for Elizabeth Heiter“Gripping from the first page, VANISHED will keep you on the edge of your seat all the way to its searing conclusion…a roller coaster of a thriller.” — Jeffery Deaver, New York Times bestselling author
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Terror stalks a small Virginia town
FBI rising star and criminal profiler Evelyn Baine knows how to think like a serial killer. But sheâs never chased anyone like the Bakersville Burier, who hunts young women and displays them, half-buried, deep in the woods. As the body count climbs, Evelynâs relentless pursuit of the killer puts her careerâand her lifeâat risk. And the evil lurking in the Burierâs mind may be more than even she can unravel.
Terror is closer than she thinksâ¦
The Bakersville Burier knows heâs got an FBI profiler on his trail. He knows who she is and where to find her. And heâs biding his time, because heâs planned a special punishment for Evelyn. She may have tracked other killers, but he vows to make this her last chase. This time itâs her turn to be hunted!
Praise for Elizabeth Heiter and Hunted
âHunted is a terrific, gripping, page-turning debut by a talented new voice in suspense. A great read.â
âNew York Times bestselling author Allison Brennan
âThis is a really excellent thrillerâfast-paced and exciting, with a memorable cast of characters. Well done!â
âNew York Times bestselling author Suzanne Brockmann
âHeiterâs Hunted is intriguing and tightly plotted. A strong debut!â
âNew York Times bestselling author Laura Griffin
âRelentless suspense, nonstop surprises, and a twist around every corner. So taut, so tense...I dare you to put this down! I could not turn the pages fast enough.â
âHank Phillippi Ryan, winner of the Agatha, Anthony, Edgar and Macavity Awards
âIf you like serial-killer thrillers...Elizabeth Heiterâs Hunted is the book for you. Troubled FBI profiler Evelyn Baine is an engaging new heroine who puts everything on the line to unravel the sick secrets of an evil mind. A real page-turner.â
âZoë Sharp, author of the bestselling Charlie Fox crime thriller series
For my mom,
who made up stories for me as a child and who always supported me in my pursuit to tell my own stories.
And for Robbie Terman, who has walked this
writing journey with me, and made every step better.
Contents
Prologue
HE SHOULD HAVE killed the old man.
The second heâd realized Harris had spotted him trespassing, he shouldâve flanked the old man. Just crept around behind him and snapped his neck. Instead, heâd disappeared. Blended right into the woods and slipped away.
And while heâd huddled in his car, cursing himself for getting distracted enough to let Harris spot him, the old man had kept looking. And the old man had found something.
An angry tirade screamed in his mind as he watched another police car swing into Harrisâs driveway, sirens blaring. All those months of scouting out the woods wasted. All that time finding the perfect place, making sure not even Harris would discover it, squandered. Itâd been his secret hideaway, where he could display his trophies, revel in his triumphs.
And Harris was ruining everything. Damn it! Why hadnât he stopped the old man when heâd had the chance?
By now, the cops were digging out his women, taking them away. By now, the cops were calling the FBI. Same way they had three years ago.
Unease surfaced, mingling with the anger, blurring with guilt. Three years ago, heâd made one mistake. Made just one kill he regretted.
But besides Diana, no one had ever suspected. And here in Virginia, no one knew him. The cops could call whoever they wanted; heâd taken precautions. They werenât going to catch him.
And he wasnât finished yet.
1
âBAINE. MY OFFICE. NOW!â
FBI Special Agent Evelyn Baine spun the chair in her tiny cubicle, but her boss was already slamming the door to his office.
She shrugged back into her suit jacket, buttoned it to cover the weapon at her hip and straightened her spine. Dan Mooreâs tone didnât bother her; the ASACâSpecial Agent in Chargeâwas always curt with her. In fact, getting called into his office this early was a good thing. It meant she was getting a new case to profile.
Her anticipation grew as she wove around cubicles in the unmarked office building in Aquia, Virginia, where the FBIâs Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) was housed. This was her favorite time, early in the morning before most agents arrived, before the smell of burned coffee and stale air-conditioning permeated everything, when it was just her and her cases.
She entered Danâs office and found him settled at his oversize desk. The head of BAU was, as usual, surrounded by an aura of stress that gave his skin a grayish hue and constantly slanted his eyebrows toward his nose. Today, he also looked frazzled.
âTake a seat.â Dan popped three antacids into his mouth and took a swig of coffee. âEver been to Bakersville?â
