The Perfect Murder (A Jessie Hunt Psychological Suspense Thriller—Book Twenty-One)

By Blake Pierce

When a celebrity professor at an elite college in Los Angeles is found strangled, Jessie is called in to wade through his hidden life and abundance of secrets. Many people, it seemed, had reason to want him dead. But the true killer may be the most unlikely of all.

“A masterpiece of thriller and mystery. Blake Pierce did a magnificent job developing characters with a psychological side so well described that we feel inside their minds, follow their fears and cheer for their success. Full of twists, this book will keep you awake until the turn of the last page.”
--Books and Movie Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re Once Gone)

THE PERFECT MURDER is book #21 in a new psychological suspense series by bestselling author Blake Pierce, which begins with The Perfect Wife, a #1 bestseller (and free download) with over 5,000 five-star ratings and 1,000 five-star reviews.

The college community is shocked when the unthinkable happens: a famous, untouchable professor has been found murdered on campus. From harassed students to aggrieved colleagues, his list of secret enemies is long. Too long.

The deeper Jessie digs, the more she realizes that nothing is as it seems.

And that this killer may just strike again.

A fast-paced psychological suspense thriller with unforgettable characters and heart-pounding suspense, THE JESSIE HUNT series is a riveting new series that will leave you turning pages late into the night.

Books 22-24 are also available!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Blake Pierce
• Release date: Jun 6, 2022
• ISBN: 9781094375397

Book preview

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t h e   p e r f e c t

m u r d e r

(a jessie hunt psychological suspense—book 21)

b l a k e   p i e r c e

Blake Pierce

Blake Pierce is the USA Today bestselling author of the RILEY PAGE mystery series, which includes seventeen books. Blake Pierce is also the author of the MACKENZIE WHITE mystery series, comprising fourteen books; of the AVERY BLACK mystery series, comprising six books; of the KERI LOCKE mystery series, comprising five books; of the MAKING OF RILEY PAIGE mystery series, comprising six books; of the KATE WISE mystery series, comprising seven books; of the CHLOE FINE psychological suspense mystery, comprising six books; of the JESSE HUNT psychological suspense thriller series, comprising twenty four books; of the AU PAIR psychological suspense thriller series, comprising three books; of the ZOE PRIME mystery series, comprising six books; of the ADELE SHARP mystery series, comprising fifteen books, of the EUROPEAN VOYAGE cozy mystery series, comprising four books; of the new LAURA FROST FBI suspense thriller, comprising nine books (and counting); of the new ELLA DARK FBI suspense thriller, comprising eleven books (and counting); of the A YEAR IN EUROPE cozy mystery series, comprising nine books, of the AVA GOLD mystery series, comprising six books (and counting); of the RACHEL GIFT mystery series, comprising six books (and counting); of the VALERIE LAW mystery series, comprising nine books (and counting); of the PAIGE KING mystery series, comprising six books (and counting); and of the MAY MOORE suspense thriller series, comprising six books (and counting).

An avid reader and lifelong fan of the mystery and thriller genres, Blake loves to hear from you, so please feel free to visit www.blakepierceauthor.com to learn more and stay in touch.

Copyright © 2022 by Blake Pierce. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior permission of the author. This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. This 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 fictionally. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Jacket image Copyright lenaer, used under license from Shutterstock.com.

BOOKS BY BLAKE PIERCE

MAY MOORE SUSPENSE THRILLER

NEVER RUN (Book #1)

NEVER TELL (Book #2)

NEVER LIVE (Book #3)

NEVER HIDE (Book #4)

NEVER FORGIVE (Book #5)

NEVER AGAIN (Book #6)

PAIGE KING MYSTERY SERIES

THE GIRL HE PINED (Book #1)

THE GIRL HE CHOSE (Book #2)

THE GIRL HE TOOK (Book #3)

THE GIRL HE WISHED (Book #4)

THE GIRL HE CROWNED (Book #5)

THE GIRL HE WATCHED (Book #6)

VALERIE LAW MYSTERY SERIES

NO MERCY (Book #1)

NO PITY (Book #2)

NO FEAR (Book #3

NO SLEEP (Book #4)

NO QUARTER (Book #5)

NO CHANCE (Book #6)

NO REFUGE (Book #7)

NO GRACE (Book #8)

NO ESCAPE (Book #9)

RACHEL GIFT MYSTERY SERIES

HER LAST WISH (Book #1)

HER LAST CHANCE (Book #2)

HER LAST HOPE (Book #3)

HER LAST FEAR (Book #4)

HER LAST CHOICE (Book #5)

HER LAST BREATH (Book #6)

AVA GOLD MYSTERY SERIES

CITY OF PREY (Book #1)

CITY OF FEAR (Book #2)

CITY OF BONES (Book #3)

CITY OF GHOSTS (Book #4)

CITY OF DEATH (Book #5)

CITY OF VICE (Book #6)

A YEAR IN EUROPE

A MURDER IN PARIS (Book #1)

DEATH IN FLORENCE (Book #2)

VENGEANCE IN VIENNA (Book #3)

A FATALITY IN SPAIN (Book #4)

ELLA DARK FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

GIRL, ALONE (Book #1)

GIRL, TAKEN (Book #2)

GIRL, HUNTED (Book #3)

GIRL, SILENCED (Book #4)

GIRL, VANISHED (Book 5)

GIRL ERASED (Book #6)

GIRL, FORSAKEN (Book #7)

GIRL, TRAPPED (Book #8)

GIRL, EXPENDABLE (Book #9)

GIRL, ESCAPED (Book #10)

GIRL, HIS (Book #11)

LAURA FROST FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER

ALREADY GONE (Book #1)

ALREADY SEEN (Book #2)

ALREADY TRAPPED (Book #3)

ALREADY MISSING (Book #4)

ALREADY DEAD (Book #5)

ALREADY TAKEN (Book #6)

ALREADY CHOSEN (Book #7)

ALREADY LOST (Book #8)

ALREADY HIS (Book #9)

EUROPEAN VOYAGE COZY MYSTERY SERIES

MURDER (AND BAKLAVA) (Book #1)

DEATH (AND APPLE STRUDEL) (Book #2)

CRIME (AND LAGER) (Book #3)

MISFORTUNE (AND GOUDA) (Book #4)

CALAMITY (AND A DANISH) (Book #5)

MAYHEM (AND HERRING) (Book #6)

ADELE SHARP MYSTERY SERIES

LEFT TO DIE (Book #1)

LEFT TO RUN (Book #2)

LEFT TO HIDE (Book #3)

LEFT TO KILL (Book #4)

LEFT TO MURDER (Book #5)

LEFT TO ENVY (Book #6)

LEFT TO LAPSE (Book #7)

LEFT TO VANISH (Book #8)

LEFT TO HUNT (Book #9)

LEFT TO FEAR (Book #10)

LEFT TO PREY (Book #11)

LEFT TO LURE (Book #12)

LEFT TO CRAVE (Book #13)

LEFT TO LOATHE (Book #14)

LEFT TO HARM (Book #15)

THE AU PAIR SERIES

ALMOST GONE (Book#1)

ALMOST LOST (Book #2)

ALMOST DEAD (Book #3)

ZOE PRIME MYSTERY SERIES

FACE OF DEATH (Book#1)

FACE OF MURDER (Book #2)

FACE OF FEAR (Book #3)

FACE OF MADNESS (Book #4)

FACE OF FURY (Book #5)

FACE OF DARKNESS (Book #6)

A JESSIE HUNT PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE SERIES

THE PERFECT WIFE (Book #1)

THE PERFECT BLOCK (Book #2)

THE PERFECT HOUSE (Book #3)

THE PERFECT SMILE (Book #4)

THE PERFECT LIE (Book #5)

THE PERFECT LOOK (Book #6)

THE PERFECT AFFAIR (Book #7)

THE PERFECT ALIBI (Book #8)

THE PERFECT NEIGHBOR (Book #9)

THE PERFECT DISGUISE (Book #10)

THE PERFECT SECRET (Book #11)

THE PERFECT FAÇADE (Book #12)

THE PERFECT IMPRESSION (Book #13)

THE PERFECT DECEIT (Book #14)

THE PERFECT MISTRESS (Book #15)

THE PERFECT IMAGE (Book #16)

THE PERFECT VEIL (Book #17)

THE PERFECT INDISCRETION (Book #18)

THE PERFECT RUMOR (Book #19)

THE PERFECT COUPLE (Book #20)

THE PERFECT MURDER (Book #21)

THE PERFECT HUSBAND (Book #22)

THE PERFECT SCANDAL (Book #23)

THE PERFECT MASK (Book #24)

CHLOE FINE PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE SERIES

NEXT DOOR (Book #1)

A NEIGHBOR’S LIE (Book #2)

CUL DE SAC (Book #3)

SILENT NEIGHBOR (Book #4)

HOMECOMING (Book #5)

TINTED WINDOWS (Book #6)

KATE WISE MYSTERY SERIES

IF SHE KNEW (Book #1)

IF SHE SAW (Book #2)

IF SHE RAN (Book #3)

IF SHE HID (Book #4)

IF SHE FLED (Book #5)

IF SHE FEARED (Book #6)

IF SHE HEARD (Book #7)

THE MAKING OF RILEY PAIGE SERIES

WATCHING (Book #1)

WAITING (Book #2)

LURING (Book #3)

TAKING (Book #4)

STALKING (Book #5)

KILLING (Book #6)

RILEY PAIGE MYSTERY SERIES

ONCE GONE (Book #1)

ONCE TAKEN (Book #2)

ONCE CRAVED (Book #3)

ONCE LURED (Book #4)

ONCE HUNTED (Book #5)

ONCE PINED (Book #6)

ONCE FORSAKEN (Book #7)

ONCE COLD (Book #8)

ONCE STALKED (Book #9)

ONCE LOST (Book #10)

ONCE BURIED (Book #11)

ONCE BOUND (Book #12)

ONCE TRAPPED (Book #13)

ONCE DORMANT (Book #14)

ONCE SHUNNED (Book #15)

ONCE MISSED (Book #16)

ONCE CHOSEN (Book #17)

MACKENZIE WHITE MYSTERY SERIES

BEFORE HE KILLS (Book #1)

BEFORE HE SEES (Book #2)

BEFORE HE COVETS (Book #3)

BEFORE HE TAKES (Book #4)

BEFORE HE NEEDS (Book #5)

BEFORE HE FEELS (Book #6)

BEFORE HE SINS (Book #7)

BEFORE HE HUNTS (Book #8)

BEFORE HE PREYS (Book #9)

BEFORE HE LONGS (Book #10)

BEFORE HE LAPSES (Book #11)

BEFORE HE ENVIES (Book #12)

BEFORE HE STALKS (Book #13)

BEFORE HE HARMS (Book #14)

AVERY BLACK MYSTERY SERIES

CAUSE TO KILL (Book #1)

CAUSE TO RUN (Book #2)

CAUSE TO HIDE (Book #3)

CAUSE TO FEAR (Book #4)

CAUSE TO SAVE (Book #5)

CAUSE TO DREAD (Book #6)

KERI LOCKE MYSTERY SERIES

A TRACE OF DEATH (Book #1)

A TRACE OF MURDER (Book #2)

A TRACE OF VICE (Book #3)

A TRACE OF CRIME (Book #4)

A TRACE OF HOPE (Book #5)

CONTENTS

PROLOGUE

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

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

EPILOGUE

PROLOGUE

Phoebe walked down the long hallway, listening to the sound of her shoes echoing on the linoleum floor. It was a little unsettling.

She wasn’t used to being in Haines Hall at this hour. Professor Tobias’s class was in the afternoon and until today, she’d never had cause to come here mid-morning. It was 10:30 and most of the doors to the classrooms and lecture halls in the building were shut, as they were in the middle of class.

She took the stairs to Professor Roman Tobias’s third floor office, trying to keep her nerves at bay. She’d never had a one-on-one meeting with the man that USA Today had recently dubbed America’s Foremost Celebrity Academic, a title that normal people might find silly. But for an American history major like herself, personally interacting with Professor Tobias was like an unheralded college football player getting to meet with Tom Brady.

The walls of the first and second floors were covered with posters and flyers announcing upcoming UCLA events. But the third floor, where several professors’ offices were, was much more subdued. If not for the professor names, room numbers, and departments displayed, it might be mistaken for a standard private sector hallway.

Tobias’s office was at the end of the hall and she picked up the pace, realizing that she was now a minute late for their meeting. Phoebe hadn’t seen a single person since she entered Haines Hall and she glanced back down the long hallway to make sure she was still alone. With the slick, dusty floor, shoes didn’t squeak much. Someone might be walking right behind her and she’d never hear them. But she saw no one.

When she reached Tobias’s corner office door, she allowed herself a moment to catch her breath. Then, when she felt ready, she knocked. The door hadn’t been fully shut and the force of her hand opened it slightly.

Professor Tobias, she called out hesitantly. It’s Phoebe Lewis. I’m here for our 10:30 appointment. I’m sorry I’m a little late.

There was no reply. She debated what to do next. Should she just go in? What if he had ear buds in and hadn’t heard her? What if he’d gone to the restroom?

After several seconds of indecision, she got annoyed with herself and knocked again, this time much louder. The door opened halfway.

Professor?

The lights were out in the room and she suddenly had the terrible feeling that she had gotten the day of their meeting wrong. She pulled out her phone and double-checked. No—the appointment was for Thursday, March 17th at 10:30 a.m. He had insisted on the date and time.

She remembered being glad that he’d picked today and not tomorrow. She planned to do some St. Patrick’s Day partying tonight and didn’t want to be hungover for a meeting with the most famous professor on campus.

She heard a sound at the other end of the hall and turned around quickly but saw no one. Someone had probably just closed an office door, but she was getting seriously creeped out. Even though it felt impertinent, she stepped inside Professor Tobias’s office and closed the door.

She turned around and, from this new angle, she saw that the professor was laying on the sofa near the bay windows at the back of the large office. His back was to her and she couldn’t see his face, hidden by his longish black hair.

He must be taking a nap.

She coughed loudly to announce her presence but he didn’t stir. As she looked at him more closely, she thought it odd that he would go to sleep while wearing both his sports coat and loafers. Then she noticed what looked like still-wet coffee stains on the carpet, leading all the way from the sofa to right in front of his desk. For some reason she couldn’t quite explain—some odd sense that something was off—she turned on the lights.

In the now bright office, she saw that the stains were too thick and red to be coffee. They looked more like blood. She rushed over to Tobias.

Professor? she said urgently. Are you okay, sir?

He didn’t respond. Phoebe wasn’t sure if she was overreacting, but in that moment she decided it was better to risk being yelled at for waking up a groggy professor than to just leave his office when the situation seemed so wrong.

She tapped him on the shoulder. When he didn’t move, she delicately rolled him over onto his back. At first she was too stunned to scream. His forehead had a cavernous indentation in it, like a watermelon that had been smashed in with a hammer. Blood was dripping down his face, pooling into his wide open eyes.

Only after she had fully accepted the horror of what she was seeing did she start to scream.

CHAPTER ONE

Jessie moved with impressive speed.

She was supposed to be somewhere at 10:45 and it was going to be a challenge to make it. For what was supposed to be a quiet end to the week, things had gotten hectic.

She still had to do a final review of her lesson plan for next week’s seminar at UCLA. She and Ryan had agreed that they would prioritize nailing down a wedding date before the end of the week. She still hoped to check in with her sister, Hannah, at the rehab and recovery center where she was currently a resident. And to top it all off, she had to worry about what would happen at the parole hearing for Andy Robinson, the woman who tried to murder her less than two years ago. It was a lot.

She tried to prioritize. The lesson plan could wait a little longer. The truth was that since she was leaving UCLA at the end of the quarter, she could stall a little on seminar prep. They were just happy that they still had her around for a few more weeks.

Jessie had agreed to return to the LAPD’s Homicide Special Section Unit full-time at the quarter’s end. It had been a tough decision, but when Captain Decker offered her a big raise in addition to letting her remain a consulting criminal profiler rather than an employee, she found it hard to say no.

HSS was where the action was. It was a small, dedicated unit of the LAPD which investigated cases that had high profiles or intense media scrutiny, often involving multiple victims and serial killers. Her fiancé, Ryan Hernandez, was the lead detective for the unit. Jessie had determined that, at least for the time being, she could do more good solving cases in the field than training the next generation of investigators.

The wedding planning could also take a temporary backseat. After several communication hiccups along the way, she and Ryan had agreed to have a smaller wedding. It made sense considering that this was the second time around for both of them. The fact that Jessie’s first wedding wasto a man she later learned was a sociopathic killer, made her all the more intent on ensuring that this event was as different as possible. They just had to pick a date and location now.

Her sister’s situation was more complicated. Until last year, Jessie hadn’t even known that she had a half-sister. Both of them were the daughters of infamous serial killer Xander Thurman. Once he returned to town and killed Hannah’s adoptive parents, Jessie had become her guardian.

That official designation would only last until next month, when Hannah would turn eighteen. But until then, Jessie was officially responsible for the girl, who not shockingly, was pretty damaged. It was only recently that Hannah had conceded that she could only really feel emotions in heightened situations and sought those out, even at risk to her own safety.

That revelation seemed tame when Hannah finally revealed an even bigger secret: that when she shot and killed a man who was intent on murdering her, Jessie, and Ryan, she’d felt a massive rush. Worse, she’d been longing to recapture that feeling ever since.

That was why, at the urging of Jessie and her therapist, Dr. Janice Lemmon, Hannah had reluctantly agreed to admit herself to the Seasons Wellness Center in Malibu, where Lemmon served both on the advisory board and as a visiting psychiatrist. The facility specialized in treating mood disorders, loss and grief issues, PTSD, suicidal ideation, and addictions that many other centers steered clear of, like hardcore cutting and life-threatening eating disorders. But they’d never knowingly had a patient like Hannah, who seemed addicted to the high that came from killing a person.

Of course, no one at Seasons other than Hannah and Dr. Lemmon was aware of the real reason for her admission. When she had sessions with other doctors, she was only to discuss her need to put herself at risk to feel emotion. She would discuss the murder high issue with Dr. Lemmon exclusively. The problem was that Dr. Lemmon had been laid up in the hospital all week after suffering a herniated disk, so Hannah wasn’t getting the chance to make any progress on her more serious area of concern.

Add to that the fact that another patient at Seasons had apparently killed herself less than a week ago. Hannah seemed particularly fixated on the girl, even though she claimed not to have known her well. Whatever the truth was, now wasn’t the ideal time for her primary therapist to be unavailable.

That was why Jessie planned to call Seasons to check in on her sister ASAP. But first she grabbed her handbag off the breakfast table and did a quick check in the mirror to make sure she didn’t have any food in her hair or teeth. She thought she looked presentable, especially considering that she was fast approaching her thirty-first birthday.

Her brown, shoulder-length hair was food-free, as were her teeth. There were no shadows under her bright green eyes. As she stood straight, reaching her full five-foot-ten height, she thought she looked healthy and strong. That was partly a result of regaining her stamina and strength. Her athletic build felt sturdy, in part due to her five mile morning runs, as well as getting consecutive nights of decent sleep.

As she headed out the door to the garage of her mid-city home, she dialed the number for Seasons. She was just pulling out into the street when someone answered.

Seasons in Malibu, a friendly female voice said. How may I help?

Yes, hi, this is Jessie Hunt. I’m Hannah Dorsey’s legal guardian. I’d like to speak with her please.

Just a moment, ma’am, the voice said. After a brief pause, she resumed. I’m sorry but Hannah is in a group session until the top of the hour. Unless it’s an emergency, we don’t like to interrupt. Can I relay a message?

Jessie thought about it, but then decided not to leave one. She couldn’t say anything of significance to the receptionist and keeping it vague would only stimulate Hannah’s tendency to jump to conclusions.

That’s all right, she said. I’ll try again later.

"Yes,