Without Mercy

An ex-cop plunges into a missing-child cold case in this heart-racing short story by the New York Times–bestselling author . . .

Mallory Russo left the local police force two years ago to join the Mercy Street Foundation, an elite unit for finding the missing and lost. Karen, the thirteen-year-old daughter of Donna Ralston, disappeared a decade ago. Donna tells Mallory that a woman who moved away years ago has recently come to town and told her that she used to see Karen walking home from school with her friend, "the Tripp girl." Mallory's investigative juices start flowing and it's not long before she has a hunch about what might have happened. Her beau, a police detective, doubts her. Find out whose instincts are right . . .

Originally published in Love is Murder, edited by #1 New York Times–bestselling author Sandra Brown