Just Try to Stop Me
Highest Praise for Gregg Olsen
The Girl in the Woods
“Frightening . . . A goose-bump read by a very talented author. The characters are incredibly real, causing each page to become a nail-biter, as readers wonder who the killer could possibly be. And as the last pages come to pass, the final revelation is truly unforgettable.”
—Suspense Magazine
“Olsen weaves an intricate thriller that begins with a missing girl and ends up in unexpected territory. The characters of forensic pathologist Birdy Waterman and her colleague Detective Kendall Stark are both intriguing and compelling. The whodunit might be a big obvious, but the journey is still terrifying and the writing is stellar. Readers will clamor for more stories featuring Waterman and Stark.”
—RT Book Reviews, 4 stars
Fear Collector
“Thrills, chills, and absolute fear erupt in a story that focuses on the evil Ted Bundy brought to society. Readers will not see the twists and turns coming and, even better, they’ll get the shock of a lifetime. This author has gone out of his way to make sure this is a novel of true and utter fear!”
—Suspense Magazine
Fear Collector
“Excellent, well written, fascinating . . . an engaging story that will captivate from the very start. Olsen has combined the power of fiction with the stark reality of fact. It’s a book you’ll not easily forget.”
—Kevin M. Sullivan, author of The Bundy Murders: A Comprehensive History
Closer Than Blood
“Olsen, a skilled true-crime writer and novelist, brings back Kitsap County sheriff’s detective Kendall Stark in his fleet-footed novel Closer Than Blood.”
—The Seattle Times
“A cat-and-mouse hunt for an individual who is motivated in equal parts by bloodlust and greed.... Olsen keeps his readers Velcroed to the edge of their seats from first page to last.... By far Olsen’s best work to date.”
—Bookreporter.com
Victim Six
“A rapid-fire page-turner.”
—The Seattle Times
“Olsen knows how to write a terrifying story.”
—The Daily Vanguard
“Victim Six is a bloody thriller with a nonstop, page-turning pace.”
—The Oregonian
“Olsen is a master of writing about crime—both real and imagined.”
—Kitsap Sun
“Thrilling suspense.”
—Peninsula Gateway
“Well written and exciting from start to finish, with a slick final twist.... a super serial-killer thriller.”
—The Mystery Gazette
“Gregg Olsen is as good as any writer of serial-killer thrillers writing now—this includes James Patterson’s Alex Cross, Jeffery Deaver’s Lincoln Rhymes, and Thomas Harris’s Hannibal Lecter. . . . Victim Six hooks the reader . . . finely written and edge-of-seat suspense from start to finish . . . fast-paced . . . a super serial-killer thriller.”
—The News Guard
Heart of Ice
“Gregg Olsen will scare you—and you’ll love every moment of it.”
—Lee Child
“Olsen deftly juggles multiple plotlines.”
—Publishers Weekly
Heart of Ice
“Fiercely entertaining, fascinating . . . Olsen offers a unique background view into the very real world of crime . . . and that makes his novels ring true and accurate.”
—Dark Scribe
A Cold Dark Place
“A great thriller that grabs you by the throat and takes you into the dark, scary places of the heart and soul.”
—Kay Hooper
“You’ll sleep with the lights on after reading Gregg Olsen’s dark, atmospheric, page-turning suspense . . . if you can sleep at all.”
—Allison Brennan
“A stunning thriller—a brutally dark story with a compelling, intricate plot.”
—Alex Kava
“This stunning thriller is the love child of Thomas Harris and Laura Lippman, with all the thrills and the sheer glued-to-the-page artistry of both.”
—Ken Bruen
“Olsen keeps the tension taut and pages turning.”
—Publishers Weekly
A Wicked Snow
“Real narrative drive, a great setup, a gruesome crime, fine characters.”
—Lee Child
“A taut thriller.”
—Seattle Post-Intelligencer
“Wickedly clever! A finely crafted, genuinely twisted tale of one mother’s capacity for murder and one daughter’s search for the truth.”
—Lisa Gardner
“An irresistible page-turner.”
—Kevin O’Brien
“Complex mystery, crackling authenticity . . . will keep fans of crime fiction hooked.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Vivid, powerful, action-packed . . . a terrific, tense thriller that grips the reader.”
—Midwest Book Review
“Tight plotting, nerve-wracking suspense, and a wonderful climax make this debut a winner.”
—Crimespree magazine
“A Wicked Snow’s plot—about a CSI investigator who’s repressed a horrific crime from her childhood until it comes back to haunt her—moves at a satisfyingly fast clip.”
—Seattle Times
ALSO BY GREGG OLSEN
THRILLERS
Now That She’s Gone1
The Girl in the Woods1
Fear Collector1
Closer Than Blood1
The Bone Box (e-novella)1
Victim Six1
Heart of Ice1
A Cold Dark Place1
A Wicked Snow1
Shocking True Story
The Sound of Rain
YOUNG ADULT FICTION
The Girl on the Run (Run)
Envy
Betrayal
NONFICTION
A Twisted Faith
The Deep Dark
If Loving You Is Wrong
Abandoned Prayers
Bitter Almonds
Mockingbird (Cruel Deception)
Starvation Heights
Bitch on Wheels (Black Widow)
WITH REBECCA MORRIS
A Killing in Amish Country
If I Can’t Have You
Bodies of Evidence
Overkill
JUST TRY TO STOP ME
A WATERMAN AND STARK THRILLER
GREGG OLSEN
PINNACLE BOOKS
Kensington Publishing Corp.
www.kensingtonbooks.com
All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected.
Table of Contents
Highest Praise for Gregg Olsen
ALSO BY GREGG OLSEN
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
PROLOGUE
BOOK ONE - KARA
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
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
BOOK TWO - VIOLET
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
CHAPTER THIRTY
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
CHAPTER FORTY
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
CHAPTER FIFTY
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE
CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR
CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
BOOK THREE - KELLY
CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE
CHAPTER SIXTY
CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE
CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO
CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE
CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR
CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE
CHAPTER SIXTY-SIX
CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER SIXTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER SIXTY-NINE
CHAPTER SEVENTY
CHAPTER SEVENTY-ONE
CHAPTER SEVENTY-TWO
CHAPTER SEVENTY-THREE
CHAPTER SEVENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER SEVENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER SEVENTY-SIX
EPILOGUE
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
THE GIRL IN THE WOODS
Teaser chapter
Teaser chapter
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Notes
PINNACLE BOOKS are published by
Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2016 Gregg Olsen
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
PINNACLE BOOKS and the Pinnacle logo are Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.
ISBN: 978-0-7860-2998-3
ISBN-10: 0-7860-2998-6
First electronic edition: December 2016
ISBN-13: 978-0-7860-2997-6
ISBN-10: 0-7860-2997-8
For Doris Lobe
PROLOGUE
Janie Thomas looked at the laptop she’d been ordered to transport to her second-floor office at the Washington Corrections Center for Women in Gig Harbor, Washington. It was against prison policy to bring any electronic devices inside the secure facility, but Janie was the prison superintendent. When she reached the checkpoint, she told her favorite officer, Derrick Scott, that she was running late.
“Rough morning,” Janie said, an exaggerated look of displeasure on her face. She rolled her eyes. “Have a call with the governor’s office in five minutes.”
“He’s never on time,” the officer said. “Not with a meeting or getting a budget approved. But if you ask me, a crying baby in the middle of the night is at the tippy top of the ‘rough morning’ scale. I didn’t sleep a wink last night.”
“Tell me about it,” Janie said, going through the detector. “I haven’t forgotten those days. You’ll get through them.”
The African American man grinned, showing dazzling white teeth, as he passed Janie’s briefcase over the counter instead of opening it to review its contents or send it through the scanner. She was in a hurry. Besides, the superintendent was always so nice, asking about the kids, sharing photos of her family.
Later the corrections officer would say that the briefcase weighed more than usual and he probably should have opened it, but she was, after all, the boss.
“She runs the prison,” he later said to the FBI agent looking into her case. “What was she going to smuggle in? A set of keys? A file?”
* * *
A half hour later that same morning, Brenda Nevins was in Janie’s office, purportedly to take on a special work assignment to help other inmates with life skills. Other inmates saw a huge irony in that reasoning, but didn’t say a word. Speaking up against Brenda meant getting cut in the shower with a shank made of a mascara wand and the sharpened edge of a Pringles’ can top.
Or poisoned at lunch with meds ripped off from the infirmary.
Or, worst of all, cut off from visitation with family.
“I run this place,” Brenda had said when a new girl—a meth head from Black Diamond with more body tattoos then brains—stupidly challenged her. “You keep that in mind if you piss me off.”
* * *
In her office the day she disappeared, Janie Thomas opened the laptop for the benefit of the woman who had told her to bring it into the institution.
Brenda smiled. “Nice. Very nice. Does it have video capabilities?” she asked as the pair moved from Janie’s office to the records room—the only location in the Washington Corrections Center for Women that did not have the prying eyes of security cameras.
They stood face-to-face, a worktable separating them. Brenda had done her hair in the way she knew Janie liked—down, with slight curls that brushed past her shoulders.
The two of them were there to plot the escape.
Janie’s and hers.
“It’s an Apple,” Janie said, caressing the silver case of the laptop. “The best. My husband helped me set everything up.”
Brenda noticed a flicker of emotion coming over Janie’s face at the mention of her husband, Erwin. She moved her mouth into a slight frown, a mirror of Janie’s, albeit without the slight lowering of the chin. Quivering was too much. Not needed.
“Don’t be sad, Janie,” she said in a voice dripping with a practiced honey-sweetness. “I know this is hard. But your life belongs to you, and you have to live it as you were meant to. No more dreaming. No more wondering, baby girl. We are on the verge of our time. We have to take it together. We have no choice in the matter.”
A tear rolled, but Janie didn’t say a word.
“You know what we are?” Brenda asked. “You know what brought us together?”
Janie bit down on her lower lip. “We’re soul mates,” she said.
Brenda relaxed her frown, and her eyes brightened.
“Don’t ever doubt that,” she said. “Don’t ever. I know that God or some higher power—whatever She is—has brought us together. That’s right. The world will be all over us. You know that. They’ll be watching and hunting and trying to stop us from doing what we must do.”
“I guess so,” Janie said, a tinge of fear clearly evident in her voice.
Brenda reached across the table and grabbed Janie by the shoulders.
“Get a grip,” she said, her tone still compassionate, but a bit more forceful. “This moment will not only set us free but will define the future for so many others. The world will be watching, and we’ll need to tell them the reasons behind everything we’re doing.”
“To help them, right?” Janie asked.
It was more than a question, almost an affirmation.
Brenda gave her head a slight nod.
“Yes,” she answered. “It isn’t about just us. Just you and me. I wish both of us could have com
e from other circumstances. Backgrounds free of the torment that sent us here . . . me to be a zoo animal, you to be my zookeeper. But life isn’t fair. I get that. Life is what we make it. We’re the example of living with authenticity.”
Brenda watched Janie as a cat watches the family goldfish that twirls in the waters of its bowl.
Like the betta fish on Janie’s desk.
“And we’ll help people, right?” Janie repeated.
Exasperation was in order. Maybe a little bit of the takeaway.
Brenda threw up her hands. “God, are you even listening?” she asked as she let out a sigh. It was the kind of nonverbal punctuation with which she was particularly skilled. She was good with words. Good with presenting her concepts, no matter how outlandish. Repulsive even.
She could sell peed-on snow to an Eskimo.
“Really?” Brenda asked, drawing back as though she had been disgusted by Janie’s words. “Really? This isn’t about us. This is about the world. That’s why we need to get our act together and get out of here. I didn’t do any of those things they pinned on me. None of them.”