Blake Crouch: Birds of Prey

There’s still a patch of skin there.

Now would be a good time for the salt and vinegar. Rub it in good.

It doesn’t make you gay. Enjoy yourself. He’s at your mercy.

How does it taste? Different than that other part you tried?

Try feeding his eyelids to him.

Don’t worry, it’s not your fault. He had a heart attack. It happens sometimes. You did well.

Donaldson sat nude next to the dead thing. The portly killer was covered with blood and bits of tissue, and he couldn’t think of any time in his twenty-something years of life that he’d ever been happier.

Mr. K finished wiping off the cheese grater with a rag and some bleach, and placed it back into his tool kit. Then he told Donaldson to douse the corpse with gasoline.

“Fire will take care of any evidence you’ve left behind. But wait until I’m gone. I don’t want you attracting any attention.”

Donaldson emptied the can and stared up at Mr. K, who stood silhouetted against the setting sun. He looked enormous.

Donaldson offered him the empty can, said, “Take me with you.”

“You’re naked and covered in blood, Donaldson. You’d ruin the interior of my car.”

“I thought you stole the car.”

“Stealing cars is for stupid children. The police have radios. It’s too easy to get caught. If you manage to get out of here, remember that. You’d be wise to remember everything I’ve said to you.”

“You’re not going to kill me?”

“Why should I? Even if you remembered my license plate number, which I don’t think you have, I just shot two rolls of you torturing a man to death. I have nothing to fear from you.”

Mr. K picked up his toolbox and turned to walk away.

“Can I get my gun back?” Donaldson asked.

Mr. K dropped the box, took out the .38, and wiped it off with the rag. He emptied the bullets onto the ground and tossed Donaldson the weapon, then reached into his breast pocket and tossed something else at him.

Wet wipes, from a fast food chicken place.

“I’d recommend getting some of that blood off before you try hitchhiking again.”

Donaldson nodded, picking a morsel of something out of his front teeth. “Next time I won’t get so much on me.”

“There’ll be a next time?”

“Yeah. Oh yeah.”

Mr. K stared at him for a moment, then lifted his toolkit. “Goodbye, Donaldson. I wish you luck on your future exploits.”

“You, too.”

Mr. K smiled. Not a hint of a smile. Or a half-smile. But a full one, like he was genuinely happy.

“And you be careful hitching,” Mr. K said. “Never know who’s going to pick you up.”

BLAKE CROUCH is the author of DESERT PLACES, LOCKED DOORS, SNOWBOUND, and ABANDON, which was an IndieBound Notable Selection, all published by St. Martin’s Press. His latest thriller, RUN, was released in February 2011. His short fiction has appeared in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, Thriller 2, Shivers VI, Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, and other anthologies. In 2009, he co-wrote “Serial” with JA Konrath, which has been downloaded over 500,000 times and topped the Kindle bestseller list for 4 weeks. That story and ABANDON have also been optioned for film. Blake lives in Colorado. His website is www.blakecrouch.com.

JA KONRATH is the author of seven novels in the Lt. Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels thriller series. The latest is Shaken, published by AmazonEncore.

JACK KILBORN is the pen name for JA Konrath. Under the Kilborn moniker, he wrote ENDURANCE, TRAPPED, and AFRAID, all structured in the same way as DRACULAS, but decidedly darker. Konrath currently has twenty-seven ebooks available on Kindle, most of them inexpensively priced. In 2011, Ace Books is releasing TIMECASTER, a sci-fi ecopunk novel written under the nom de plume Joe Kimball. You can visit all of his personalities at www.jakonrath.com.

JA KONRATH’S/JACK KILBORN’S WORKS AVAILABLE ON KINDLE

Jack Daniels thrillers

Whiskey Sour

Bloody Mary

Rusty Nail

Dirty Martini

Fuzzy Navel

Cherry Bomb

Shaken

Shot of Tequila

Banana Hammock

Jack Daniels Stories (collected stories)

Serial Uncut with Blake Crouch

Killers with Blake Crouch

Suckers with Jeff Strand

Planter’s Punch with Tom Schreck

Floaters with Henry Perez

Truck Stop

Symbios (writing as Joe Kimball)

Jailbait (with Ann Voss Peterson)

Wild Night is Calling (with Ann Voss Peterson)

Shapeshifters Anonymous

The Screaming

Other works

Afraid

Endurance

Trapped

Origin

The List

Disturb

65 Proof (short story omnibus)

Crime Stories (collected stories)

Horror Stories (collected stories)

Dumb Jokes & Vulgar Poems

A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing

Visit the author at www.jakonrath.com

BLAKE CROUCH’S WORKS AVAILABLE ON KINDLE

Andrew Z. Thomas thrillers

Break You

Desert Places

Locked Doors

Other works

Run

Draculas with JA Konrath, Jeff Strand and F. Paul Wilson

Abandon

Snowbound

Famous

Perfect Little Town (horror novella)

Bad Girl (short story)

Serial with Jack Kilborn

Serial Uncut with JA Konrath and Jack Kilborn

Killers with Jack Kilborn

Birds of Prey with Jack Kilborn and JA Konrath

Killers Uncut with Jack Kilborn and JA Konrath

Serial Killers Uncut with Jack Kilborn and JA Konrath

Shining Rock (short story)

*69 (short story)

On the Good, Red Road (short story)

Remaking (short story)

The Meteorologist (short story)

The Pain of Others (novella)

Unconditional (short story)

Four Live Rounds (collected stories)

Six in the Cylinder (collected stories)

Fully Loaded (complete collected stories)

Visit Blake at www.BlakeCrouch.com

Stirred by Blake Crouch and JA Konrath

Flee by JA Konrath and Ann Voss Peterson

Pines by Blake Crouch

Mummies

Wolfmen

Draculas 2

Compilation copyright © 2011 by Blake Crouch & Joe Konrath

BIRDS OF PREY copyright © 2011 by Blake Crouch & Joe Konrath

Cover copyright © 2011 by Jeroen ten Berge

BIRDS OF PREY is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the authors’ imaginations or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from Joe Konrath & Blake Crouch.

For more information about Blake Crouch, please visit www.blakecrouch.com.

For more information about JA Konrath, please visit www.jakonrath.com.

For more information about Jack Kilborn, please visit www.jackkilborn.com.

For more information about the cover artist, please visit www.jeroentenberge.com.