Page 1 of Until Death Parts Us (Dysfunctional)

CHAPTER ONE

QUIN

“I’m gonna go talk to people,” Kaspian says, zipping his puffer jacket.

I set down my cup of coffee and lean back into the couch. “Not too many people.”

He makes a face. “I have to figure out who to choose.”

“We don’t want too many people to be aware of us, or we’ll have to get rid of them all.”

“Would that be so bad?” he asks, grinning as he drops to his knees in front of me.

“Depends on how many people are here, I guess.”

“We’re in the wilderness of Canada. In December. There shouldn’t be many people, and if there are, they’ve got to be crazy,” he says, running his hands up my thighs.

“Talk to them individually if you can. Don’t get caught up in some weird campfire party where everyone’s singing songs.”

Kaspian snorts. “Fine.” Standing up, he reaches for his gloves. “You coming out soon?”

“Yeah. Soon.”

Once the RV door closes behind him, I get up from the small couch and grab my phone to do some research.

We’ve traveled from Alaska into Northern Canada.

The plan is to find a camping spot and see if there’s anyone that gets Kaspian’s attention.

According to the map I have, there’s a lot of wooded area around the lake we’re parked near, so that means there’s plenty of space to dispose of a body.

After we’re done here, we’ll continue our drive down into Alberta and see if we can find anyone near Banff National Park.

There, tons of winter-loving people participate in activities like cross country skiing and winter hiking, so it opens up the possibility of finding a solo traveler far into the wilderness, which makes cleanup a bit easier.

Once we’re done with Canada, we’ll drive into Montana, followed by North Dakota, and then we’ll take a minute to make sure people aren’t starting to put anything together.

Our actions started the rumor of a traveling serial killer in Vermont, and we don’t want to gain too much attention on this little Christmas trip of ours.

It’s been three years since we left Soledad Square, and the bodies were beginning to pile up.

While most were well-hidden and our tracks were covered, Willow was a co-worker.

She thought she could take Kaspian from me in the most permanent way.

I wore my mask around her until she gave me no choice to let it slip.

It was her or Kaspian, and nobody is more important to me than him.

That death wasn’t as high profile as the one that led me to Vermont in the first place, but we had become friends with her friends, and police would be involved, questioning everyone, so there was no way we could stick around.

Alaska has been good to us, but after our Valentine’s Day mishap, I knew I had to do something.

We fell into too much normalcy. We have jobs, we live together, eat together, and while I wouldn’t want to live without him, we need opportunities to break out of the skin we wear to fit in.

I need to kill. It’s just who I am. Kaspian needs to obsess and stalk.

We’ve forgotten about each other’s needs, and just like any other relationship, that causes problems.

And that’s how this trip was born. We’ll travel through Canada and across several states, and Kaspian will do what he needs to do while I reap the benefits of his stalking.

The door opens, and Kaspian bursts in with a smile on his face. “So, I’m talking to this guy.”

“Should I be worried?”

He makes a face as he closes the door. “He should be.”

I snort and grab my jacket. “What do you know?”

“He’s traveling by himself. Wife died. No kids.”

“That’s good.”

“Yeah.”

“Parents?”

“I have to find out. I’m gonna try to join him on a trek around the lake.”

“Well, have fun on your trek.”

“You don’t wanna come?”

“You know it’s best if I don’t. I’m not as charming as you.”

Kaspian strolls forward. “You’re charming enough for me.”

I reach out and grab his throat, yanking him forward and kissing his lips. “That’s because you find depravity charming.”

“Mmm. Who needs Prince Charming when you can have a depraved madman?”

I lean forward and sink my teeth into his bottom lip. “Remember that when you’re off with these other people. One wrong move and I will hurt you both.”

“I’d never cheat on you, my love,” he says with a smirk.

“I’d hope you were smarter than that, but you’d let me believe it in order to watch me wreak havoc.”

His teeth scrape across his bottom lip. “Don’t talk dirty to me now. I have to get to know Robert.”

I huff. “Yes. Go get to know Robert. I’m gonna go outside for a smoke.”

He plants another kiss on my lips before he flees the RV. I bundle up, putting on my gloves, boots, and beanie. With thermals already on under my clothes, I hope to withstand the six degree weather for long enough to enjoy my cigarette.

We’ve gotten used to the cold temperatures thanks to Alaska, but it’s much colder here in Canada.

As soon as I step outside, I light up my cigarette and walk around the RV until I hit the path that leads toward the lake.

I spot the trail that cuts between trees and follows the perimeter of the lake, knowing Kaspian is probably talking Robert’s ear off, trying to find out every bit of info he can.

At the frozen edge of the water, I stop and take the cigarette out of my mouth to flick the ashes.

The view is incredible—snow covered mountains sit in the background, trees covered in frost fill the land, and the sun setting low on the horizon has the sky turning purple.

“Risking your life to risk your life, huh?”

I spin around to find a woman walking up next to me.

“Excuse me?”

She juts her chin out. “The cigarette. The frozen tundra before us.”

“Ah. Yeah, well. Bad habits die hard.”

“Got a light?” she asks, producing her own cigarette from her pocket.

I pull the lighter from my jacket pocket and help her light up. “Guess you’re risking your life, too.”

“Well, I live life on the edge.”

“Me too.”

She laughs. “Clearly. We’re here, right? What the fuck are we doing out here in the dead of winter?”

I shake my head, staring out at the mountains. “Living.”

“Where you from?” she asks after a few seconds.

“All over.”

“A traveling man.” She waits for me to ask her about herself, but when I don’t, she divulges the information anyway. “I grew up in Oklahoma, and then I married a man who took me to Idaho. Then when that didn’t work, I took his RV and started traveling. Now I’m here.”

“Is this where you want to be?”

“Not forever. Just thought I’d go north, see a different country. I’ll go back to Idaho eventually.”

“Will your husband be waiting for you?”

“Probably not.” The silence stretches until I drop my cigarette to the ground. “You traveling with your brother? Friend?”

I snort. “Yeah, brother.” Kaspian will love that.

“That’s cool. Where you guys headed next?”

“Not sure,” I lie.

Voices and the crunch of snow get our attention and we both turn to see Kaspian and Robert emerge from the trailhead.

“Thought we’d have time to finish,” Robert says. “Left too late. Maybe tomorrow.”

Kaspian grins. “Yeah, let’s definitely try tomorrow.”

“They trying to walk the whole perimeter?” the girl asks me.

“Yeah.”

“Weird.”

I cut her a look but she doesn’t notice. Kaspian heads for me, his eyes bouncing between me and the woman at my side.

“Hey,” he says with a huff.

He pulls down the balaclava to reveal his nose and mouth. His exposed skin is red from the cold, but he has a wicked twinkle in his eye.

“Hey. Have fun?”

“Robert was afraid it would be too dark by the time we made it all the way around, so we backtracked, but it was fine.”

“Being out here is one thing. I want to see the northern lights, but I’d never be crazy enough to walk miles in this weather,” the girl says.

Kaspian cocks his head. “Who are you?”

“Oh. I’m Anna.”

“Anna,” he repeats.

“Yeah. I was talking to your brother about?—”

“My brother?” he cuts in, humor in his voice.

“Yeah,” she replies, glancing at me.

Kas nods once, eyeing me. “Hmm. And are you traveling with anyone? A boyfriend or girlfriend?”

“Nope. Just me.”

“She left her husband back in Idaho.”

“Ah. Newly single,” Kas says. “Probably looking for a rebound? Revenge sex?”

“Kaspian,” I say, warning him to keep calm.

Anna laughs. “Well, there’s nothing wrong with that, is there?”

I watch his eyes narrow. “Depends on who you find that with, I guess.”

“Well, we should head inside. You need to warm up,” I tell him. I turn to Anna. “So nice meeting you, Anna. If you’re still around tomorrow, I’d love to hang out. My brother is gonna be on a trek with Robert, so I’ll be free.”

She smiles. “Yeah. That would be cool.”

I grab Kas by the elbow and pull him along.

“What are you doing?” he asks in a low tone.

“Nothing.”