The Naturals, #2
Killer Instinct
by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Contents
Chapter 10
Overview
Dean withdraws after the copycat murder, venting his turmoil on a punching bag until Cassie intervenes. Tending his bleeding hands, Cassie shares her conflicted feelings about Locke, and Dean reveals his father forced him to watch killings. Their mutual vulnerability deepens their bond and underscores that only solving the case will bring relief.
Summary
Dean skips dinner and isolates himself. Cassie, unable to ignore his pain, follows the sound of repeated blows to the garage, where she finds Dean savagely working a punching bag with bare fists. She recognizes he is spiraling—seeking both control and punishment—and breaks through his fugue by addressing their recent kiss.
Dean dismisses the kiss as a game and insists Cassie deserves better, projecting an idealized version of her he believes he cannot deserve. Refusing to be put on a pedestal, Cassie confesses her complicated feelings about Locke and the token she keeps, admitting the sliver of darkness that might enable their work.
When Cassie notices Dean’s bleeding knuckles, she takes charge, cleans his wounds, and anchors him in the present. As they sit in fragile calm, Dean acknowledges he had been “somewhere else,” and then profiles Cassie’s guilt over Locke and its fallout. In turn, Dean reveals a devastating truth: his father made him watch the murders, a burden he has carried in silence.
Sharing this pain binds them, but it cannot resolve their turmoil. The sight of the latest victim on the news lingers between them, and Cassie recognizes that neither she nor Dean will rest until the copycat case is solved.
Who Appears
- CassieNarrator; follows Dean to the garage, stops his spiral, tends his injuries, shares guilt about Locke.
- Dean ReddingWithdraws and self-punishes on a punching bag; confesses his father made him watch murders.
- JuddQuietly saves Dean a dinner plate, signaling concern and routine around Dean’s disappearances.