Books by Lisa Jackson Stand-Alones SEE HOW SHE DIES FINAL SCREAM RUNNING SCARED WHISPERS TWICE KISSED UNSPOKEN DEEP FREEZE FATAL BURN MOST LIKELY TO DIE WICKED GAME WICKED LIES SOMETHING WICKED WICKED WAYS SINISTER WITHOUT MERCY YOU DON’T WANT TO KNOW CLOSE TO HOME AFTER SHE’S GONE REVENGE YOU WILL PAY OMINOUS RUTHLESS ONE LAST BREATH LIAR, LIAR PARANOID ENVIOUS LAST GIRL STANDING Anthony Paterno/Cahill Family Novels IF SHE ONLY KNEW ALMOST DEAD YOU BETRAYED ME Rick Bentz/Reuben Montoya Novels HOT BLOODED COLD BLOODED SHIVER ABSOLUTE FEAR LOST SOULS MALICE DEVIOUS NEVER DIE ALONE Pierce Reed/Nikki Gillette Novels THE NIGHT BEFORE THE MORNING AFTER TELL ME Selena Alvarez/Regan Pescoli Novels LEFT TO DIE CHOSEN TO DIE BORN TO DIE AFRAID TO DIE READY TO DIE DESERVES TO DIE EXPECTING TO DIE WILLING TO DIE Published by Kensington Publishing Corporation LISA JACKSON YOU BETRAYED ME KENSINGTON BOOKS www.kensingtonbooks.com All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected. Table of Contents Also by Title Page Copyright Page CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 2 CHAPTER 3 CHAPTER 4 CHAPTER 5 CHAPTER 6 CHAPTER 7 CHAPTER 8 CHAPTER 9 CHAPTER 10 CHAPTER 11 CHAPTER 12 CHAPTER 13 CHAPTER 14 CHAPTER 15 CHAPTER 16 CHAPTER 17 CHAPTER 18 CHAPTER 19 CHAPTER 20 CHAPTER 21 CHAPTER 22 CHAPTER 23 CHAPTER 24 CHAPTER 25 CHAPTER 26 CHAPTER 27 CHAPTER 28 CHAPTER 29 CHAPTER 30 CHAPTER 31 CHAPTER 32 CHAPTER 33 CHAPTER 34 CHAPTER 35 CHAPTER 36 CHAPTER 37 CHAPTER 38 CHAPTER 39 CHAPTER 40 CHAPTER 41 CHAPTER 42 CHAPTER 43 CHAPTER 44 CHAPTER 45 CHAPTER 46 CHAPTER 47 CHAPTER 48 CHAPTER 49 CHAPTER 50 CHAPTER 51 CHAPTER 52 CHAPTER 53 EPILOGUE KENSINGTON BOOKS are published by Kensington Publishing Corp. 119 West 40th Street New York, NY 10018 Copyright © 2020 by Lisa Jackson, LLC 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. Kensington and the K logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off. Library of Congress Card Catalogue Number: 2020931279 ISBN: 978-1-4967-2222-5 First Kensington Hardcover Edition: November 2020 ISBN-13: 978-1-4967-2223-2 (ebook) ISBN-10: 1-4967-2223-X (ebook) CHAPTER 1 The Isolated Cabin Cascade Mountains Washington State December 10 A live! I’m still alive! I blink. Disbelieving. Stare up at the ceiling that seems to dance and spin above me. My body trembles on the floor. Twitching. Flailing. Sputtering. But I wasn’t killed. At least not yet. The twin burn marks on my neck are painful. They remind me that I could well be dead, that if the nose of a pistol had been pressed to my skin, rather than the cold metal tips of a stun gun, I’d be lying in a pool of my own blood, dead to the world. It’s only a matter of time, my mind warns. I try to focus, blinking as I moan and twitch uncontrollably, feeling the hardwood of the tiny house against the back of my head. The vaulted ceiling seems higher than usual as it stretches over a small living area. It reels as my eyes try to focus, but they still jiggle in their sockets, my vision fragmented. I stare at the built-in couch with its vibrant throw pillows, then spy the ladder leading to the loft, but everything in my vision pitches and weaves, refuses to stay steady. I try to focus on one item: the door leading outside, my only chance of escape, but it’s closed down and appears to shift and sway. God help me. For just a second, I close my eyes, try to stop the shaking, but I fail to gain control of my body again. Click, click, click. Footsteps! The floorboards vibrate. Boot heels striking the hardwood remind me I’m not alone. With effort, I twist my trembling neck and roll my head to one side to see my captor slipping something into the small refrigerator. “Why?” I try to say, but nothing but a garbled groan slips past my lips. “Why?” I try again, but the person who’s trapped me doesn’t respond, just slams the refrigerator door shut and, with a disparaging glance at my shaking body, steps over me to the single door of the cabin and throws it open. A blast of wintry air rushes inside, a few flakes of snow following. No, I try to scream. “Nnnnnneeeeeooo.” Again, the sound is a cry of despair, the single word unclear. But my captor understands. Pauses for the briefest of seconds. Then steps through the door and yanks it shut. Thud! I try to crawl toward it. Click! The lock’s engaged. Don’t leave me, I silently scream, my mouth opening and shutting like a just-landed bass gasping for air. How can you do this? You, who swore you loved me? How can you leave me? The betrayal is gut-wrenching, sitting sour in my stomach as I make another attempt to stop my muscles from shaking. Pull yourself together! Do it! I try to stand, manage to get my feet under me, but the soles of my shoes slide, and my body flops to the floor again. All I can do is scoot, limbs palsied as I push my way to the door. Over the frantic beating of my heart, I hear boots crunching on icy snow and the inevitable beep of a vehicle’s keyless lock responding to a push of a button on a remote. Don’t do this! I reach up, take a swipe at the door handle, and fail to clutch it. With all the effort I can muster, I try again, this time connecting, my muscles finally responding. Groaning, I haul myself to my feet, and I slump against the door frame. An engine revs as I reach for the door handle again, grasp it, and find it locked. Unmoving. As it always is. Locked tight. Damn it. Tears spring to my eyes as I hurl my body to the ladder and teeter for a second. My muscles quiver, and I grit my teeth, make a false start, and slide a bit. Locking my jaw against my chattering teeth, I grip harder, then slowly, rung by rung, climb until I can just peer over the windowsill of
