W.L. Knightly's Blog, page 4
November 15, 2023
THE GRACEFUL SILENCE CHAPTER ONE
Nolan
Nolan stood in front of a small group of hungry reporters, glad that Chief Holbrook had decided to answer most of the questions about Darla’s disappearance. Chief Holbrook had not only given a full update and report about the situation and where they stood with the Candle Maker’s latest move, but he had prevented Detective Sonnier from hogging the spotlight like an attention whore.
“Are there any new leads that give you confidence that this killer will be caught?” asked one of the more impatient reporters. The man had been looking at his gold watch the entire time as if he needed to get the information by a deadline.
“With the recent discoveries that link the cold cases to the Candle Maker, the answer is yes,” said Chief Holbrook, who looked as if he wanted to be anywhere else. “But again, this is an open investigation, and we are not willing to comment on too many specifics at this time.”
“So, what is the public supposed to do?” asked one of the women reporters who had been staring at Nolan since she arrived. “Certainly, we can all agree that precautions are important, but are they enough? The killer seems to find a way to get these women.”
“The precautions we’ve suggested are important,” said the chief, avoiding the point of the question, which was more about them being enough and what law enforcement could do about it. “And I do hope that the public will continue to follow the suggestions we have given. Once again, I’ll remind women not to go out alone at night. If you have to go out, go in pairs. Use the buddy system. And stay in touch with those close to you. Check in daily or hourly if you feel that you are at risk.”
“We understand you’ve hired a new detective to the team, but are there other changes to the department that you feel are important? There have been statements made by the family of Samantha Rupert that Detective Sonnier dropped the ball in their daughter’s disappearance. Do you think that more vigorous measures are needed in order to catch this killer?”
“I feel that we have an outstanding team who are working hard and doing their best with what we have.” The chief glanced at Detective Sonnier and Nolan as if giving them instructions.
Nolan squared his shoulders and tried his best to look ready for anything while Detective Sonnier glared right through the woman who had insulted him.
Nolan got the message the chief was trying to send as well. He wanted them to work together and to get along. But it wasn’t that easy. There was too much said and done to change the way they felt about each other.
Chief Holbrook quickly turned his attention back to the reporters. “Now, I believe that’s all for today. I appreciate you all coming out.”
The reporters tried to get in a few more questions, but Chief Holbrook avoided all of them, thanking them again as they left the room.
Nolan was in the lead and stopped just inside the back hallway of the station. “Well, that is becoming too often a thing,” he said. “And it’s only going to get worse until we catch this asshole.”
Chief Holbrook let out a heavy sigh. “I’m glad we got it over with. But I agree.”
“Well, I’d love to stand around and chat, but I’m going back to work,” said Sonnier, who had no desire to stand around with Nolan, and the feeling was mutual.
But Nolan couldn’t let him go. Not yet. “There is something I wanted to tell you both before we go. There is another missing girl. Her name is Quinn Larson. She’s fifteen years old, and she goes to South High. I took the report last night. Her parents are worried. I checked in with them this morning, and they still haven’t talked to her.”
“A missing fifteen-year-old?” Chief Holbrook looked disturbed by the thought of it as he rubbed his temples.
“Yes, and while I don’t think it’s related to the Candle Maker cases, we can’t blame her parents for being worried that he took her or that she might run into him on the streets.”
Detective Sonnier shook his head. “I don’t think it’s him. From what we know, he’s never taken a girl when he has another girl in his possession. That’s just part of his pattern. And so far, it’s been consistent.”
“I’m aware, which is why I don’t think it’s related, but considering the last time we thought we had a runaway, we turned out to be wrong, I say we at least take it seriously.”
“I agree,” said Chief Holbrook. “There’s a first time for everything.”
“Yeah, I agree too,” said Detective Sonnier. “But how much time are we going to waste on it?”
Nolan wanted to say something to him. He was the only one wasting time at the office. The only thing holding Nolan back was the poor work that had been done before he was promoted, not to mention being slowed down by the influx of evidence from the cold cases and the fact that he had been on patrol. He was spread much thinner.
But those were all just excuses, and he didn’t have time for those either.
Nolan looked at the chief. “Officially, she hasn’t been missing long enough to make a formal report, but since we’re not treating missing person’s reports on the clock as usual and she still hasn’t gone home, I want to put out an APB and inform all units to be on the lookout for her. If she’s in this city, we’ll find her.”
“Sounds good,” said Chief Holbrook. “I’ll make sure that it’s taken care of.”
“I filed the report last night,” said Nolan. “The parents wanted to go ahead and file it, and I thought the sooner, the better.”
“Sounds good,” said Detective Sonnier. “I came in last night as well. I looked over the priors we discussed, but there are hundreds of men who have a history of violence against women, as well as domestic abuse and drug charges. I pulled some of the worst ones, but it would take a year to go through them all.”
Nolan didn’t think that was true. “Let me take a look at them. I’ll see if anything rings a bell. Something might stick out.” He had a lot on his plate since he had not yet gotten a chance to look at Samantha’s diary, but that would have to wait. He couldn’t trust Detective Sonnier’s judgment.
“Are you sure you have time?” asked Chief Holbrook.
“Yeah, I’m good.” What was one more thing added to the list of many other things he had to do? If he was lucky, something would break, and they would get this guy. And hopefully, with any luck, it would be in time to save Darla.
He didn’t think he could stand going to Frenchie’s again if he found her in the same shape as Miriam Smallwood.
“Oh, and did you find anything in the diary?” asked the chief, earning Nolan a dirty look from Detective Sonnier.
“What diary?” he asked.
“It was Samantha Rupert’s. And no, I haven’t. I haven’t had time yet, but I will get to it. I’m really interested in seeing what I can find out about her life and who she was hanging out with at the time.”
“I thought you left the diaries here,” said Detective Sonnier. “I thought they were evidence.”
“I only have the most recent. Besides, you can’t find evidence unless you read them.”
“Shouldn’t they be properly processed first,” he asked.
Nolan wanted to tell him that was all handled while he was hanging out in bars but decided not to. “They have been.”
“I signed off on it,” said Chief Holbrook.
“Well, as the lead detective, I don’t think I like the idea of that. I want everything brought to me first.”
“I couldn’t find you. Where was that you said you were again?”
“Don’t worry about what I do and where I go. You’ve got a lot to learn.”
“And hopefully, I’ll learn it from her diary.” Nolan still wasn’t sure why Detective Sonnier had buried the girl’s case, but if it was in the diary, he wanted to find it before Sonnier did.
“I agree,” said the chief. “There could be something in that diary that is of value, especially if we can all agree that it appears Ms. Rupert was his first victim.”
“Yeah, I was going to look at it, but I spent the night going over the missing girl’s report with her parents.”
“I can take a look at it,” said Detective Sonnier. “I have time. Bring it to me.”
“I have time, too,” said Nolan, wondering why he was so eager to take a look at it.
“Not if you’re going to look through the enormous list of men I gathered.” Detective Sonnier gave Nolan a hard look. “Your plate is awful full already.”
It was time for the truth. “I have time for both. Besides, you’ve had your chance with Samantha’s case, and her family hates you. So, if you want something to do, get an update on surveillance for Darla’s case.” He needed to find something to make himself useful.
“Oh, so now you’re telling me what to do?” Detective Sonnier narrowed his eyes.
Chief Holbrook cleared his throat. “I don’t want a fight between you. I just said that I wanted you to work together on this. You’re supposed to be a team.”
Nolan shrugged. “I’m not fighting. I’m just saying. We’re going to need that information. That and her cell phone records as well.”
“I can do that. But what we need to do is go search her room,” said Detective Sonnier. “There might be something there.”
“I agree,” said Nolan. “I was already going to do that. I thought I’d pay a visit to her mother when I went back to work.”
“I’ve got an idea,” said Chief Holbrook. “You can both do it. Ride out there together now. See what you can find.”
“I really don’t think that’s such a good idea,” said Detective Sonnier, who was about to continue when Chief Holbrook spoke up.
“I don’t care what you want,” he snapped. “I said go together. It’s far past time the two of you learn to rely on each other. And how to work together.” He walked away, leaving Nolan looking at a very irritated Detective Sonnier.
“I’m driving,” said the old man.
“That’s fine with me. That will give me a chance to look over the report you made. Where is it?”
“I left it in my car.”
“Perfect. Maybe I can narrow down that list a little.”
“You’re not going to find anything. It’s a mile long, and it could be any one of them.”
“Someone fits into the puzzle. I just have to find him. Besides, I can narrow it down using a few facts.”
“Oh, now you think you know it all? That’s just great.”
He walked with Detective Sonnier to the parking lot and got into his car, which still had a hint of a new car smell.
“Do you know where she lives?” asked Sonnier.
“Yeah, it’s across town. Take Main to Eleventh. I’ll show you when we get there.”
Nolan buckled up and found a manila folder tucked beside the console. “Is this it?” he asked.
“Yeah, that’s it. Knock yourself out.”
Nolan took the folder and opened it. There was a large stack of mugshots in it, but not nearly what Sonnier had said. “This is it?”
“Yeah, I narrowed down the ones who were incarcerated and the ones who were incarcerated when Samantha went missing or during any of the murders.”
“Why didn’t you say that?” asked Nolan, thinking he was trying to make the task seem more intimidating. “You made it sound worse than it is. There’s only about two hundred and fifty here.” It was still a lot, but he had gone through much more doing research at home.
“Yeah, there’s about two seventy, so have fun.” Sonnier gave him a sideward look and drove out of the station parking lot.
Nolan settled in and began to look at the records one by one.
November 1, 2023
THE SHADOW ELEMENT CHAPTER ONE
Cora turned off the main highway, and Kinsey let out a heavy sigh. It had been a long evening, and the sun was finally close to going down on a day that had been filled with surprises.
Not only had a body been found in the woods behind her rental house, but she had just identified the girl who had broken into her new place. As it turned out, she was the previous tenant’s daughter who used to sleep in the bedroom Kinsey was using now.
“So, what are you going to do?” asked Cora as she drove closer to Kinsey’s neighborhood, which was just minutes away.
“About?” Kinsey wasn’t sure what she was talking about with everything going on.
“The girl. The murder behind your house. Pick one.” The last thing Cora needed in her life was one more thing to be dramatic about.
“We don’t know if the murder happened there,” said Kinsey, hoping to calm her down. “I’m pretty sure it was just where the killer dumped her body.”
“Whatever.” Cora was freaking out, and Kinsey knew that she wasn’t going to let it go anytime soon.
Kinsey was still going to try and calm her down as always, even though it never worked. “Well, it matters. It’s not the same thing. Besides, I’m sure he’s long gone and probably won’t be coming around the neighborhood after that.” Why would he come back to a place that was crawling with cops?
Cora shook her head. “Do you ever watch TV? Didn’t you at least pay attention to some of the shows we watched when you stayed with me?”
She had stayed on Cora’s couch for a while when she first came to town, but it was easy to forget the true crime shows she had been forced to sit through. “Not really. I mean, I watched, but I didn’t want to dwell on them. It’s not something I prefer to do when I live alone.”
Cora let out a heavy sigh. “Well, knowledge is power. And it helps to know what you should do in certain situations. Or ways to avoid being a victim. They are very helpful. That’s important. Besides, the killer is probably there now. Did you know that most offenders go back to the scene of the crime? They get off on seeing the results of their actions.”
“I’m sure the cops are gone by now.” They had been there a while already.
Cora approached Goldwater Street. “Well, we’re about to find out.”
Kinsey sat back in her seat and held her breath. If they were still there, it was going to be even harder to convince Cora that she would be fine at her house alone.
When Cora made the turn onto Goldwater Street, it was still apparent by the flashing lights ahead that they were still looking for pieces of the poor nurse who had gone missing a little more than a week earlier. At least they were pretty sure it was her.
“See?” she said. “And do you see those people standing there? He’s probably right in the middle of them gloating about what he’s done.” She gave Kinsey a warning glance.
“I thought they would have already wrapped things up by now.” Kinsey spotted Nolan’s car sitting where it had been. “I wonder what they’re doing?”
“Probably finding the rest of her,” said Cora, making a face as if she had just smelled something awful. “There’s no telling what that sicko did with her remains. And it’s a crime scene, so they are going to be gathering all the evidence they can to try and catch this guy.”
“We should walk down there,” she said as Cora pulled into her driveway.
“And rub elbows with the killer? Not with you looking like that.”
“Relax.”
“No,” she said, and her voice changed to a higher tone. “Don’t you know what this means?”
“What what means?” Kinsey rolled her eyes, sure that Cora would tell her.
“Now that this body has been found, he’s going to be looking for his next victim. And the last time I checked; you are just his type.”
“Not this again.” She was sick of hearing it. The killer was going after brunettes who were the same build as she was. And no one in town had let her forget it since she first came to Adenridge.
But Cora wasn’t finished. “You need to take this seriously. I think you need to come back to my place with me. At least for a week or so until this blows over.”
“No,” said Kinsey. “This is just what I thought would happen. I didn’t get my own place to go back to sleeping on your couch. I’m fine. Besides, now that I know the girl who came into my house was Quinn Larson, I don’t feel so afraid to be there anymore.”
“I still can’t believe you didn’t just come right out and ask her why she was in your house. What if you’re wrong and it wasn’t her?” Cora gave her a sideward look.
“It’s her, trust me. I told you that I would never forget her face, and it makes the most sense with her still having a key. I’m sure Mr. Boone didn’t bother changing the locks. From what I hear, he’s not the best when it comes to maintenance of his houses, which is probably why my pipes sound like an orchestra warming up for a concert.”
“Right.” Cora looked down the street, and after a minute of silence, she turned back to Kinsey. “It’s really close. The place where the body was found most likely butts up to your backyard.”
“I know.” She had already mapped it out in her head. And even if that wasn’t entirely accurate, it was damned close. “But I have Chandler here. He’ll look out for me.”
Cora chuckled incredulously. “No offense, but what is he going to do? He’s not the biggest, baddest guy in town.”
Kinsey ignored her. “Come on. Let’s go down there. There are cops all around, so I’m sure it’s safe. Besides, most of those people were there earlier. And don’t you want to see what happens with a real crime scene and recovery?” She didn’t think Cora had thought about it that way. And she was dying to find out if it was the nurse and, if so, what else they had found. Nolan alone made it worth the walk.
Cora shrugged. “That’s true. But if we see any weirdos, I’m macing them.” She turned off her car and rattled her keys, which had a bulky can of pepper spray dangling off the chain.
As Kinsey got out, she looked up to see Chandler’s light on in his apartment, and the lights were on in the garage below it as well. She wasn’t sure if he was home or down the street, but she’d soon find out.
As they approached, some of the crowd was thinning as the day was growing darker. Most of the crowd was media, and the officers wouldn’t let them get too close.
As they sat watching on, Cora nudged Kinsey. “So, what’s your plans for talking to the girl anyway?”
“I’m going to see her at school. She shouldn’t be too hard to find.”
“Did you know her from school?”
“No, I didn’t know her. I haven’t been there long enough to notice every kid except the few who are always hanging around the office. But she shouldn’t be too hard to find. I just wish I was in the office this week.”
“Oh, that’s right. You get to sub, don’t you?”
“Yeah, so I won’t have access to her schedule like I hoped.”
“Hey, just remember she’s a kid, Kinsey. You don’t want to get in trouble for harassing her. There’s no telling what she’d say to get you in trouble.”
“I’ll be fine,” she said, watching the woods and hoping for Nolan to walk out.
What she could see was just a few officers standing around, keeping the public back. There was also a truck with a dive team logo on the back window that was parked nearby.
“Why is there a dive team?” asked Cora.
“I don’t know. I didn’t even know there was water back there.”
A woman standing next to them leaned in. “Yeah, there’s a creek out there. It’s deep in a few spots. I think they’re still looking for the rest of her.”
Kinsey learned something new about her neighborhood every day. And most things she didn’t like.
Another woman walked over to talk to the woman about that time, and Kinsey overheard the woman as she approached. “Well, there goes our property value,” she said. “I should have sold last year.”
Cora glanced at Kinsey wide-eyed, and she shook her head, hoping that Cora wouldn’t say anything. How anyone could think about such a thing at a time like that was beyond her.
“I guess everyone deals with things like this differently,” said Cora. “Just don’t get in trouble. I got you that job by saying how trustworthy and dependable you are. If you get canned for harassing some kid, that’s going to reflect badly on me.”
“I’m not going to harass her. She’s lucky I didn’t throw her under the bus or press charges for breaking and entering, so she can do the right thing and tell me what she was doing in my house.”
“You saw her. Her parents say she’s trouble. Just be careful. It might not be as easy as you think.”
“She’ll talk to me,” said Kinsey. She wasn’t going to give her a choice.
She watched on as the cops continued their search.
October 11, 2023
THE HAUNTED COUNTER CHAPTER ONE
As Kinsey entered her new rental house with her best friend Cora, she could see the look of disappointment on Cora’s face.
“Did you say there’s a man living above the garage?” she asked, narrowing her eyes and throwing a glance in the direction of the outside stairs.
“Yeah, it’s a separate unit, and he also apparently uses the garage for his workspace.”
“He gets the whole garage?” Cora asked, rolling her eyes as she stepped into the house. “That doesn’t seem fair.”
“Well, considering there is a carport that we both have to use, I think it’s fair enough. And I really don’t mind someone else being so close. Living alone is going to be a big change for me.”
“Wow, it’s really big.”
“I know. They said a family lived here before. But I’ll use the space eventually, especially if I decide to open my own home organization and interior design business.”
“I’m sure your ex’s mother will love that.”
“She doesn’t live anywhere close, so I’m not going to be stepping on her toes. That’s the beauty of moving away from him and her. I don’t have to worry about running into them.” It wasn’t as if she’d run into many people she knew in Adenridge, considering she was new to town and only knew Cora from when she lived back home.
They had met in high school and had been friends ever since.
“I don’t hate it. But are you sure it’s not haunted? Maybe something horrific and tragic happened here.”
Kinsey sighed. “Are you trying to scare me back to your sofa? Because all of that ghost talk isn’t going to work. I’ve told you a million times I don’t believe in that stuff. Besides, I can’t stay at your place forever. The whole point of moving out here was to get my own place so that I could work and save enough money to open the business of my dreams.”
“I’m the one afraid of you living here all alone, and you know why. It’s not safe for you.”
“I don’t want to talk about that either. Look how nice the kitchen is.” Kinsey tried her best to distract Cora, but Cora wasn’t having it.
“Don’t change the subject. You know I’m not trying to scare you, but you can’t just ignore the fact that there is a killer on the loose. A killer who is targeting young women who look like you.”
“We don’t know that for sure. It could be a coincidence.” Kinsey gave a nonchalant shrug.
Cora looked outraged. “No way. All of the victims have brown hair and eyes, and all are around our age, and let’s face it, you’re just the right build.”
“Right. So, I’m instantly a target.” Kinsey shook her head at the thought. “What did they call him again?”
“The Candle Maker,” said Cora, rolling her eyes.
Kinsey chuckled. “The Candle Maker,” she said mockingly. “What happened to calling him the Adenridge Ripper? Now, that was scary. The news needs to make up their minds. It makes people think there is a whole new killer out there. And no one needs that.”
“They should just call him the Kinky Maker with all of that kinky wax play he does with his victims.” Cora gave her a playful look.
“How do you know it was kinky? Maybe it was just part of some wild satanic ritual.” There was a lot of speculation, and the entire community of Adenridge was obsessed with the murders and who would be next.
“At least dye your hair.”
Kinsey was not about to do that. “I’m not jumping on the bandwagon of women dying their hair to avoid being killed. I like my hair just fine, thank you.”
“But it’s one way to stay safe,” said Cora. “Besides, I’m thinking of adding some color to mine.”
“Your hair is gorgeous, and you’re not even a brunette. The last I checked, by your theory, the killer is not into strawberry blondes.”
“Well, it’s the style. Everyone is doing it.”
“That reminds me of the time you pierced your nose, and it got infected.”
Cora gave her a dirty look for bringing it up. “This is different. It’s your life that’s at risk. I’m trying to save you.”
“I can promise you if there is one woman in Adenridge who is not on the killer’s radar, it’s me. Hi, I’m New Girl. Nice to meet you.” She held her hand out to Cora.
“Funny. But you’re just the type he’s looking for. A young, naïve woman living alone.”
“Oh, so now I’m naïve?”
“If you think it can’t happen to you, yes, you are.”
“I’m truly hurt. Just because I don’t want to live my life in a panic.”
“Why are you hurt? Because I’ve called you naïve? I’ve done that before.”
“No, because you won’t stop talking about this killer, which does freak me out, by the way. And you won’t tell me what you think about the house.”
“It’s big. You’ll have plenty of room here.” She glanced around the room with her tongue set in the corner of her mouth. She always did that when she was thinking of what opinion to give Kinsey. “Can you paint the walls here, or is that forbidden?”
“Oh, I asked on the walkthrough. As long as it’s not some crazy color, yes, I can paint it. The landlord said something neutral and light. But if he hates it, I lose my deposit.”
“In that case, I think it has great potential. And I’d consider that deposit gone.”
“Oh, I am. Anyway, I’m not going to be painting it anytime soon.”
“Why not? We’ll make it a party. I’ll bring snacks.”
“I’ll have to see what’s in the budget. For now, I’ll be focusing on getting some furniture together. Come and see what I’ve done.” She walked over to the coffee table she had put together from milk crates and an old door that was left behind by the other tenants.
“Did the last tenants leave that?”
“No, I made it.”
“Where is the hole that door goes to?”
“I’m not sure, but it makes a great coffee table for the time being. The couches look clean. I don’t think whoever lived here before smoked or had any pets.”
“Well, that’s a plus, I guess. They look alright. How do they smell?”
“I didn’t stick my nose to them. But be my guest.”
“No thanks.” Cora let out a chuckle.
Kinsey had already thought of a solution. “I thought about finding some covers for them when I decided to change them. Or maybe you could help me reupholster them.”
Cora walked into the dining area that was attached to the kitchen. “At least you don’t have to eat at the milkcrates.”
There was a nice table and three mismatched chairs left behind. “Yeah, I hope the fourth chair is around here somewhere.”
“It’s probably in the basement with God knows what else.”
“I said stop it,” she scolded her again. “I’ve peeked down there. It’s not so bad as basements go, especially considering the age of this house.”
“Are you sure there isn’t someone living down in the basement too?”
“No, it’s not finished like that. It’s just plain with a nice little wash area. And thankfully, the washer and dryer came with the place, too, as well as all of the other appliances, so I really don’t need anything.”
“That’s good. Going to the laundromat sucks. I did it for two years before getting my own washer and dryer. You’re really lucky. No one wants to be out at the laundromat alone these days.”
One of the victims had been on her way home from the laundromat when she went missing. “I feel for those poor owners of the place. Their business is hurting.”
“Yeah, but sales are up at the appliance store.” She gave a shrug as if to say, What can you do? Most conversations led back to the killer.
Kinsey looked around. “I think I’m really going to like it here.”
“Well, I’m glad, and I’m really happy for you. I can’t wait to help you decorate and go shopping. We’ll have to go out to some of the shops in town.”
“Sounds like fun.”
“You know my couch is always there if you need it. And if you really wanted, we could find a two-bedroom unit. Living alone isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”
“Well, you can come and stay with me when you want to.”
“I’ll bring my spirit board.”
Kinsey laughed, knowing that there was no use telling her not to. She’d show up with candles and a deck of tarot as well. Her house was full of divination tools, and Kinsey knew they were well loved and used. Cora loved all things paranormal and even had a standing appointment with the local psychic medium, who she had been trying to get Kinsey to meet since coming to town a month ago.
“Do you want to stay and have some dinner with me? I don’t have food, but we can order something over.”
“I don’t know. I really need to get home before dark.”
“You shouldn’t let this asshole dictate what you do,” said Kinsey. “But I understand.”
About that time, there was a thud that sounded like it was coming from somewhere in the house. “What was that?” asked Cora.
“I’m not sure. Maybe it was the house settling or something. I’m sure I’m going to be hearing all sorts of creaks and noises here.”
“It’s haunted, I’m telling you.”
“You’re jumping to a big conclusion based on one sound that we haven’t heard again? I think it’s fine. I’ll let you know if I see any ghosts.” She gave a soft chuckle and shook her head. Cora could always go overboard where ghosts and the paranormal were concerned. Every little bump in the night was connected to something from the other side.
“You know the other alternative, right?”
“What’s that?” asked Kinsey.
“Rats. An old place like this? I’d have it checked out. You don’t want to be lying in bed one night and have one crawl up your leg.”
“And now I’m afraid of mice. Thank you for that.” It wasn’t that she was truly afraid, but Cora did nothing for a person with fear. She had even developed the ability to scare herself with her wild imagination.
“Sorry. I think you’ll be fine.”
“Liar, but I know I will be fine. And don’t worry, if anything ever happens to me, I’ll come back and haunt you if ghosts are real.”
Cora’s blue eyes brightened. “Would you? Not that I want you to die, but we should really have a pact so we can figure out if the paranormal really exists.”
Kinsey was sure Cora would find a clue in everyday things if anything ever happened to her, just to say she was right all along. “Okay. It’s a deal.” She held out her hand to shake it, and Cora obliged.
“I just hope I can get settled in before I start the subbing job you got me.” Kinsey was going to work as a substitute teacher at the local high school when the art teacher went away to have surgery.
“You will,” said Cora. “I’ll help you. So, when does Tits McGee go in for her surgery?”
“Don’t call her that. I’ll laugh in her face next time I see her just thinking about it.”
“Well, if you have a name like McGee, it’s going to happen. Especially with those huge implants she’s rocking. I mean, can we talk about pushing the limits? All her students call her Tits behind her back. Why shouldn’t we?”
“How do you know that?” Kinsey hadn’t been around long enough to hear it.
Cora shrugged as if it wasn’t the only thing she knew. “Most of the teachers frequent the public library for one reason or another. So, I hear a lot of things. How do you think I heard about the job in the first place?”
“I didn’t know. I was just so grateful that you chose me to refer.”
“Well, you were sleeping on my couch at the time. Oh, and I found out that this trip under the knife, she’s having more plastic surgery.”
“I don’t care if she’s getting a horn in the top of her head. I just want to make some extra money.”
Cora glanced at her phone and frowned. “I am going to have to go. But I’m glad I finally got to see it. Are you sure you don’t need a hand with anything?”
“I got almost everything while you were at work. So, I’m all set. I guess this will be my first real night here.”
“Well, good luck. And know that I’m just a phone call and ten minutes away.”
Kinsey walked her to the door and hugged her. “Thanks again for everything. I would not have had the courage to move here if you hadn’t offered to help me out.”
“You can thank me by letting me come back tomorrow night and dye your hair. I am amazing with highlights, and if we just go down a shade or two, you won’t be on the killer’s radar.”
Kinsey shook her head. “No. I’m not dying my hair. But thanks for the offer.”
“I’ll pay the salon if you want.”
“No. Really, I’m fine.” She was never the type to dye her hair. She was always so afraid it would fall out or look ridiculous, and she wasn’t taking any chances.
“Fine,” said Cora. “I’m just trying to save your life. I’ll call you when I get home to let you know I made it.”
“Don’t forget.” She walked her friend out to her car.
“I’m going to get in and lock the door. You should go back inside, and I’ll wait for you to lock up.”
“Okay,” said Kinsey, who turned and went back to the house. She went inside and shut and locked the door, and only after did Cora drive away.
She turned and looked at her house. It was all hers, and she was going to make the most of it and try not to let fear get the best of her.
September 20, 2023
THE ANTIDOTE CHAPTER ONE
Shortly after seeing Molly Decker drive away from the house in the black Tesla, Jude could tell that Thomas was ready to snap.
Jude didn’t like the fact that the woman had gotten away or what it meant, and delaying his trip to the island to go after her wasn’t how he planned on spending his afternoon.
All he wanted to do was go to the island and be with Monica, but there were two people to interrogate, a house full of bodies to torch, and all while they figured out Molly’s next move.
It was a shock to Jude that the girl could be involved, much less be the ringleader, but Thomas was convinced she had been the one to kill his wife. She had the motive, means, and opportunity. There was a lot to sort out, and Jude was going to start with the couple he had tied up and hope that they had answers.
Jude left the garage and went back to the front of the house where they were being held. When he walked into the room, the girl began to cry, and her boyfriend moved a little closer to her as if that was going to save them both.
“Are you going to shoot us?” asked the girl, whose eyes were full of fear as Jude walked over and stood them up against the wall. Her skinny legs trembled like a newborn deer.
“Not if you help me sort a few things out.” He hated to lie, but if she knew the truth, she wouldn’t be honest. He didn’t need her crying and begging any worse than she already was.
“Are you two cops?” asked her boyfriend.
Jude shook his head. Did the kid really think playing dumb was going to help him? “Come on, I’m sure you already know who we are. So, who is in charge here?”
“No one.” The guy shrugged.
Jude knew that was bullshit. “Oh, so is it a group effort? Maybe you should start by telling me what part everyone plays. And I’ll decide who the leader is.”
In the next room, Kyle was busy posing dead bodies, and Vance was one of them. While Jude was still unsure what happened to him, he couldn’t worry about it. They would stage him and let him burn with the rest. The firemen would find proof of the drug-making and think the house blew up in the process.
“I knew I shouldn’t have come here,” cried the girl. “I’m supposed to be in class.”
“Are you a student at Crestman?” asked Thomas.
“I go to Timbrook,” she said. “I’m in my second year.”
“Is that your new hunting ground?” asked Jude. “Crestman wasn’t big enough for you?”
“Hunting?” the girl asked, looking sincerely confused. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“What do you know about the deaths at Crestman?” Thomas asked the young man. “And don’t even act like you don’t know what I’m talking about. I know you know.”
“I know that the drug didn’t work like it was supposed to,” he said. “And a few of the kids killed themselves. They’re pretty sure the drug did something to them, but it wasn’t intentional.”
“Oh, so you didn’t mean to kill anyone?” Jude’s eyes narrowed. Had they been trying to kill or not? “But you didn’t know what the drug would do?”
“Kill?” The girl looked at her boyfriend. “What are they talking about? Did you kill someone?”
“No! I’ve never killed anyone,” he said. “I’m not like that. Don’t listen to them.”
“Oh, sure you are.” Jude looked at the girl. “He just sat by while a big group of young college students just like yourself took drugs that killed them. Tell me, has he made you any promises about a miracle drug lately?”
Jude watched as the girl’s eyes narrowed. “Why is he asking me that?”
“I don’t know,” said the young man. “Just ignore it. They’re crazy, and they’re lying.”
“And I’m losing my patience,” said Thomas, who got in the young man’s face. “My wife was a professor at Crestman. And she’s dead because of you, Molly Decker, and these other assholes. And I’m not leaving until you tell me what’s going on and who planned this shit.”
“Molly said the professor had found out about the study she was going to do. That’s all it was, just a study. They had to see if the drug worked and what its effects were. She wanted to make it and market it.”
“So, you and your friends needed guinea pigs. I’m starting to see a much clearer picture now.”
“It was Molly’s idea to use the students at Crestman. She works in a lab there.”
“So, is she the one who has been orchestrating everything? She killed my wife so she could run her tests without getting the whistle blown on her?”
“Your wife got in her way. She liked her. She hated that it had to happen, but Molly said it was too serious and that if things led back to her, everything was off. She said that she knew someone with the FBI or something like that.”
Thomas stared a hole through the young man and seethed. Jude knew he was minutes away from unleashing his wrath, and he wanted answers.
“So, you make the drug here. You wanted to test it. Where did you get the formula?”
“I’m not sure,” he said. “Molly had connections. She knew people. She said that she heard it was a miracle drug, and the military even used it. It was supposed to make you more mentally sound and focused. She wanted everyone to experience life like that. And what a better class of people than students?”
“I don’t guess any of you have taken it, have you? You weren’t brave enough to try it on yourselves?”
“Of course not,” said the young man. “We’re not stupid. We wanted to make sure it worked. But things went south, so they wanted to come up with a different plan.”
“You call the deaths of all those students going south?” Thomas shook his head.
The guy was about as sensitive to what was going on as Molly seemed to be. He had to be getting something out of it. But that wasn’t important, and Jude needed to steer Thomas back on track.
“Who are they? Molly and these guys?” Jude looked into the young man’s eyes.
The young man hesitated a moment. He nodded slowly. “Yeah, it was all Molly’s idea. She got Jason Foster and Dax Smith to help. She heard of a different drug. One that Dr. Morrison had created that was supposed to be even better than Precision-X. So, we wanted to figure it out and see if we could get a sample.”
“And how did she hear about that?” Molly didn’t seem like the type to run in Monica’s circles.
“I don’t know. Some guy she was hooking up with.”
That might explain it. “Do you have a name?”
“I don’t know. Look at her phone. It’s probably there.”
“Do you mean the phone that belonged to an old woman in Dendale?” asked Thomas. “I guess she’s the one who helped fund all of this.”
The young man nodded. “Molly lived with her a while. But when she died, Molly inherited all of her money and her stuff.”
“No, she didn’t. She saw an opportunity to take advantage of an old woman, and she stole it,” said Thomas. “And I would bet she had one of her buddies, Jason and Dax, murder her to speed things along.”
“I don’t know anything else,” he said.
“I don’t know. It sounds like you do. Who told her about the other drug?” Jude was ready to beat the guy to a pulp if he had to. “I want a name.”
“Was it Nick Bonin?” asked Thomas.
Jude knew it was a possibility. If Nick had been with Monica, Meredith, and Rosalynn, perhaps there wasn’t a young woman in Caldwell he hadn’t slept with, including Molly Decker. He met a lot of people coming and going from the club. And since he once owned the house they were in, it was the most logical connection.
“No,” he said. “That wasn’t who it was.”
“Who?” asked Thomas. “Tell me.”
Jude grabbed the young man’s hair and pulled him closer. “He asked you a question. And I’m tired of being polite. So, you had better start talking, or your pretty little girlfriend is going to watch you die.”
“It was Gavin Gaines,” he said. “Molly knew him before he got famous. He was our inside man. He was supposed to help her, but he double-crossed her, and she didn’t get the product. So she threatened him, and he offered to try to pull in some of his wealthy friends, but it didn’t’ work.”
“So, Molly was in it with Gavin Gaines?” Jude couldn’t believe that. The guy didn’t seem the type to sleep around with young, nerdy girls like Molly. She was pretty, sure, but Gavin’s women were on a whole other level.
“Do you know why they targeted the other clients?” he asked.
“I don’t know what you mean,” he said. “I’m not sure how many they’ve killed. I just try not to get in their way. I work in the lab, and I’ve been trying to break the drug down, but some of the things are not exactly accessible. So, we’re trying to find alternatives, at least until we hear about the new drug. Molly was working on a way to get it.”
“They killed Ramsey Radford and Nick Bonin trying to get it. Was that part of her plan?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “Please, I’m sorry. I didn’t know they were doing that.”
“That’s the biggest lie you’ve told me so far,” said Jude. “And I don’t like liars. You should really open up and tell me the truth before things get ugly for you and your girl.”
“Look, all I know is that they were hoping to make a distraction to get in the Morrisons’ private homes. That’s the last I heard. They wouldn’t let me in on it. They did hire some guys to watch the Infinity building and see what they could find out. But they ended up getting caught. I overheard Jason and Dax laughing about it. And about how they had shot someone several days back.”
“Right,” said Jude, thinking a pain pill would do him some good at that moment. His shoulder had been screaming the entire time, but he had to get through it. He didn’t have time for pain. He ignored it and focused his attention.
“What else have you got?”
“Nothing. That’s all. I swear. We thought we were doing something that would ultimately be good for the world.”
“While you got filthy rich, right? Something like that would pull in a fortune.” And Jude would know. He had been doing well from it himself.
“I don’t know what else to tell you,” he said.
“I’d think of something,” said Thomas.
“I’m serious. I don’t. They didn’t tell me anything important. If you wanted better information, you should have kept someone else alive to talk to.”
“Well, then, I can’t see any reason to keep you around,” said Jude as the young woman trembled and whimpered with fear.
“Please, let my girlfriend go,” begged the young man. “She really doesn’t have any part in this.”
“It’s a shame that you had to go and get her involved. I tell you what. I’ll kill her first, and then she won’t have to watch when I kill you.”
The girl’s cries sounded like wails as her boyfriend kissed her head. “It’s okay,” he whispered. “They’re just scaring us.”
Jude put the gun to the girl’s head and pulled the trigger.
The young man didn’t have time to scream. As soon as his eyes filled with horror over what he heard, Thomas did the right thing and put him out of his misery.
“What are you doing?” asked Jude. “You didn’t even have to get your hands dirty. I was going to handle it.”
“Yeah, well, my hands are already dirty. And you were torturing him. It’s not necessary. They’re just stupid kids. Besides, consider it warm-up for when I take out Molly.”
“I can do that too if you want. I know it’s not you.”
“No. She’s mine. I’m going to find her, and I’m going to make her pay for what she did.” He looked around the house. “Now, let’s finish up here.”
“I’m going to make sure we get all of their stashes. They had that bad batch of PX, and we don’t want it getting into the hands of anyone else. Or for the police to find it and try and trace it back to the Morrisons.” He still had a job to do, and that was protecting the Morrisons at all costs in every way possible. And he wasn’t going to fail in his duties just because of one little hiccup.
August 30, 2023
THE EVIDENCE CHAPTER ONE
As soon as he saw the blood beneath Monica’s feet, Thomas knew the worst had happened. Not only had she probably lost the baby, but her condition was fragile as well.
He had just gone in to check on Jude and to tell him what happened with his interrogation. The man had ended up being a red herring unfortunately. They were figuring out their next steps when Monica came in and passed out with blood running down her legs.
Things moved quickly after, and he stood in the hallway staring at the puddle of blood on the floor as paramedics tended to her. Her father and Jude crowded around her, too, looking on desperately as the men did their job and prepared to get her to the ambulance.
“I’m going with her,” said Jude, who was still trying to convince everyone that, despite being shot in the arm, he was fine.
Thomas disagreed, but he knew there was no use in arguing with him. Jude would do what Jude wanted, and no one would change his mind.
“You can ride now, but I’ll stay with her overnight,” said her father. “You should get your rest. And I won’t take no for an answer.”
They were finally going to take Monica to the hospital for care, and even Dr. Morrison didn’t dispute that was the right call this time as they strapped her to a board.
Meredith had watched everything, too, with a look of concern set deep in her brow. And while there was no emotion or tears, she had comforted her father and Jude all the same. “It’s going to be okay. I’ll hold everything down while you’re gone.”
Jude looked at Thomas. “Edmond will be around if you need anything. I’ll deal with the rest when I get back.”
Thomas knew that was his discreet way of saying not to turn the other man loose. He still wanted a crack at him, and Thomas hoped if he left the man alone to think a while, he might remember more about the details of who hired him.
“No problem, man. Don’t worry about that.” He had enough to deal with already.
As soon as they were gone in the elevator, Meredith let out a heavy sigh and walked into the room, stepping over the small puddle. She found a bottle of cleaner under the sink and grabbed a roll of paper towels to clean it up.
“Do you need any help?” he asked.
“No,” she said. “I can manage just fine, thank you.”
“It’s not a problem,” he said, thinking she probably didn’t want him to have to clean up her sister’s blood.
“You should go,” she said in a firm tone as she knelt to clean the floor. “I’m sure Jude will call and fill you in when he gets a chance.”
He could tell that she wanted to be alone and decided to give her what she wanted. It had to be traumatic seeing someone you cared about fall out like that.
“Let me know if you need anything,” he told her, trying his best to be helpful.
She didn’t say anything as he walked away, and he didn’t let the cold shoulder get to him too much, although he did feel it was quite noticeable and unwarranted.
He waited for the elevator, and when he went down to his floor, he realized that Rosalynn had no idea what was going on. She had been in her room through everything.
She would have wanted to know that her best friend had been taken to the hospital, so Thomas decided to pay her a visit and tell her about it.
He walked to her door and knocked. When she answered, she seemed surprised to see him standing there.
“Is there something wrong with our connecting doors?” she asked, stepping aside to let him in. “I was sure it wasn’t you at this door. But I have to say, I’m glad it is.”
He walked inside and let out a heavy breath. He hated to be the bearer of bad news, but he was the only one who could tell her. “I wasn’t in my room. I just came from upstairs. I wanted to tell you that they’ve taken Monica to the hospital. They’re pretty sure she’s lost the baby.”
A look of horror twisted Rosalynn’s expression as she put her hand to her mouth. “Oh heavens,” she said. “That’s horrible.” Tears slid down her cheeks immediately, and she walked away to get a tissue.
“I figured you would want to know. They just left with her a few minutes ago.” Thomas wished he could offer her some more comfort, but the situation was terrible all the way around.
“Thank you for letting me know,” she said, going to sit on the sofa as she wiped her eyes. “What about Monica? How is she doing? Is she in any danger too?”
“I don’t know,” he said, giving a shrug. “She just passed out. I wish I could say, but at least she’s going to a hospital this time. They can check her out and make sure things are done properly. I don’t know why she wasn’t brought there to begin with.” That had never made any sense to him. Her father seemed more of a chemist than a physician.
Rosalynn nodded. “I know why. Her father is so worried that she’ll be found with unusual drugs in her system, and that might lead to investigations about him and more questions than he wants to answer. So, he set up this facility here so that he could help his clients privately. He has one on his private island, too. Or at least that’s what I’ve heard.”
“I guess that’s part of being wealthy.”
“Well, I had to sign a waiver saying I’d only use his special list of physicians from now on. I can’t even use my family physician, and I’ve been seeing him since I was a kid.”
“It just seems like a lot of trouble.” Thomas couldn’t believe there had been so much put in place just for one drug. “Are you sure you’ve done the right thing by taking it?” Surely one day, she would want to start a family with the right man. It seemed like a terrible risk to take.
“I feel fine,” she said. “But I will say, I do not feel like I thought I would. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I can tell it’s working, but it’s not what I expected. I feel like myself for the most part.”
“Well, I think that’s a good thing. It’s better than feeling unlike yourself. I worry about the long term, is all. What happens when it’s time for you to take a second dose?”
“I’d rather not think about it now, honestly. What’s done is done, and I’ll figure it out when the time comes, which hopefully isn’t for a while now.” She gave him an uneasy look. “Besides, Monica was fine for months, apparently. So, I should be fine too.”
She let out a heavy sigh and looked at Thomas. “Let’s change the subject. How did the mission go? Did you find out anything?”
Thomas realized there was much more to tell her. “Oh, I didn’t realize you didn’t know.”
“Know what?” she asked. “Don’t tell me you lost them. Did the whole thing fall apart?”
He hadn’t realized she was so invested. It was nice to have someone who cared. “No, the plan worked, but Jude was shot.”
“Shot!” she said as her eyes widened. “Is he going to be okay?”
“Yeah, he’s going to be fine. The bullet went in and out fairly cleanly. Dr. Morrison patched him up.”
“Oh, that’s good,” she said, letting go of a sigh of relief. “Does Monica know about it?”
“Yeah, she knows, but I’m not sure if she really grasped it. It upset her, yes, but she didn’t seem herself.”
“She hasn’t been herself lately,” said Rosalynn. “So he was shot. What else happened? Did you get the men? Did they get away?”
“No, they didn’t. We brought one of them back here to question him. I’m hoping he’ll give us some information.”
“Wait, just one of them?”
“Don’t ask,” he said, making a face. He hadn’t meant to shoot anyone, but it was self-defense and in defense of Jude. Besides, he owed him one. “Trust me. You’d rather not know.”
“So what happened? Did he tell you anything? Does he know who killed my brother?”
Thomas wished things had gone down that way. “No. It turns out we were duped.”
“I don’t understand,” she said, putting her tissue to her eye.
“The real culprits must have caught wind that we were onto them after Jude’s run-in, and they hired other people knowing that we’d go after them instead. And I hate to say it worked, but they fooled us. They followed me to the university in the same car the others had used, and from there, we were onto them.”
“So, was it all for nothing?” Rosalynn said, shaking her head. “That’s crazy.”
“Well, not exactly. Thankfully, they got paid for their services. So, I got the man to tell me where he picked up his paycheck. He gave me the address of the house and even described a woman who met him there. He said it was a nice place. I need to see what I can find out about it.”
“Are you going there?” she asked.
“Well, eventually, we will. But I’ll have to scope it out first. With Jude’s injury and what happened to Monica and the baby, I’m sure I’m going to have to go at it alone.”
“I’d like to help if I can,” she said. “Though I’m not sure what I could do. But if you can think of anything, I’m here.”
Her offer surprised him. “How good are you at research?” he asked, glad to have her pitch in if she was serious about helping.
Rosalynn gave him an unsure look. “I’m good at hiring someone to do it for me.”
“I’m afraid that won’t help me.” He gave a half-hearted chuckle. “But thanks anyway.”
“Hey, it can’t be that hard,” she said with a shrug. “And I don’t know if it counts, but I’m willing to try. And I’m sure I can figure anything out. It can’t be harder than the work I do for my family business.”
“That’s good enough for me. I’ll take all the help I can get.” He was sure she could at least help him look for information.
“It’s not like I’m doing anything else. I’ve already made all of my calls, and I don’t have any meetings scheduled for the rest of the day. Besides, it will make the time pass much faster. I definitely could use a distraction. I can’t help but worry about Monica.”
“I’m sure she’s going to be fine.” He hated to mislead her, but he didn’t like seeing her worry. And with him not knowing the truth, it wasn’t strictly untrue. Monica could be fine for all he knew.
“I hope so. She’s going to be devastated she lost the baby, but she’s strong. She’ll get through it. They both will.”
“Yeah, I know how tough it is for Jude. I really hoped they’d both be fine, but at least they’ll have each other to get through this.”
“Yeah,” she said. “It’s good to have someone to go through the tough times with.” She gave him a longing look, and Thomas couldn’t help but feel a tug at his heartstrings. Part of him wanted to scoop her up and hold her, but the other part knew that he had to keep it together.
Rosalynn let out a sigh. “Does Meredith know?”
“Yeah, she was there when it happened. She had just come to tell us we were too loud and disturbing Monica, and Monica got up and walked into the exam room, where she passed out.”
“Just when I think it’s time to go home,” she said. “Something tells me I should stay. She might need me when she gets home.”
“Agreed. At least until we figure out who is at this house. I want to start with who owns it and its history. I’ll probably do a few stakeouts too. That will give me an idea of who lives there.” He couldn’t wait to see Alice, knowing that she was probably the brown-haired girl Blue had witnessed. “I hear it’s in a really fancy neighborhood and quite nice. So, I am assuming whoever lives there is wealthy.”
“It sounds like it could be one of Dr. Morrison’s clients after all.”
“It’s a possibility.” Even though Jude had hoped they weren’t, Thomas knew it was someone who had a lot of knowledge about Clarity.
“If the home has been there for some time now, perhaps I’ll know who might have lived there. I’ve been in Caldwell for years, and I know just about everyone.”
“I hadn’t thought of that, but you just might.” If she had a lot of knowledge of the city, there was a good chance she did know who owned the home or something about the people living there. It was possible that Ramsey knew them, too, as well as Gavin.
“See, I can be helpful,” she said. “And who knows? Maybe I’ll find my new calling. Detective Radford has a nice ring to it.”
“Let’s not get too carried away,” said Thomas, glad that she was excited to help. “I told Jude we need to make sure we do this right. They can’t know we’re coming. And I want to go in with more manpower and take them completely off guard.”
“I’ll definitely leave that part to you and Jude,” she said, giving him a nod of assurance.
Thomas tried to chuckle, but knowing Monica’s situation could take Jude down for the count left everything up in the air.
August 8, 2023
READ CHAPTER ONE OF THE INSPECTION…
After the cops arrived at Dr. Morrison’s building after the gala shooting, the in-house security took some of the officers around the building to make sure it was clear. Jude waited patiently as paramedics checked Monica over, and her father insisted that he had things well in hand.
“I’m well aware of her condition,” he said. “And I’ve got my own personal doctor on the way to help.”
“I still think it would be best to move her to the hospital,” said the paramedic.
“And I think it’s best to keep her here. As you can see, I have my own private facility,” said Dr. Morrison. “I am a medical doctor myself, among other things.” He was more than qualified to diagnose her, medicate her, and create the medicine needed to heal her.
“Yes, sir. I know who you are. I just think your daughter might benefit from other medical testing, which I’m sure is not accessible here.”
“I have everything we need here,” he said. And that was true, but it was all the paramedic needed to know about the facility.
As he was trying to explain that he wasn’t letting Monica out of his sight, Jude was approached by a policeman. The man was short and stocky with a naturally mean mug and a less than friendly demeanor.
His name tag read Hinson. “Where did you say this shooting took place?”
“In the ballroom,” Jude said. “I can take you there if you want me to and show you what happened.”
Most of the police activity surrounded poor Mr. Collins, who lay dead in a pool of blood just outside of his room on the guest floor. Because of that, Thomas and Rosalynn were sitting across the room, speechless about the entire situation.
Jude glanced at Monica again, who had finally become stable after Jude brought her to her father for care. He wasn’t going to leave her downstairs, not knowing if the building was secure. And he hated to leave her at all.
“Thomas, can you come with us?” asked Jude. They had already given their statements about the incident and how it led to them finding Mr. Collins, so they wouldn’t be needed upstairs.
“Yeah, sure.” He got up and walked away without so much as saying a word to Rosalynn, who watched him go with a longing in her eyes as if she didn’t want to be left alone. Jude wondered how Thomas felt about the slide show and noticed a distinct difference in the way he was acting toward her since seeing it.
He led the men down the hall and to the elevator, where they went to the ballroom floor on the second level.
“And what kind of event did you say this was?” the cop asked as they stepped off the elevator.
The place was a mess, with most of the decorations having been knocked over and shredded during people’s panicked attempts to leave.
“It was a charity gala. Things were going great until the gunshots, and that’s when the crowd cleared toward the stairs. There didn’t seem to be any injuries there, and from what I could tell, the shooter left with the crowd.” Jude knew it was best to leave out the whole slide-show ordeal. The last thing he needed was for the images of Monica and Rosalynn with Nick Bonin to end up in police custody.
“Do you have any reason to think the shooter had a target? We already know that Mr. Collins was stabbed to death. I’m just trying to figure out how a gun plays a part in all of this.”
Jude shrugged. “I’m not sure if there was an intended target or if it was just supposed to disrupt or be a distraction so someone could get to the upper floors to get to Mr. Collins. Monica did notice he hadn’t come up.”
“Did anyone go and check on him?” the officer asked.
“No,” said Thomas. “Because Rosalynn and I saw him on our way to the gala. He had just picked up his suit. It had been left in the wrong room. Or at least that’s what he told us. We told Monica, and I guess she forgot all about it.”
“She was really busy,” said Jude. “And once the shots happened, I went to get Monica and Mr. Morrison to safety first, and I tried to find the gunman, but I never saw anyone.”
Officer Hinson looked at the computer set up across the room. “What was that for?” he asked.
“That was a slide show,” said Jude, giving Thomas a glance. “One of the guests had a presentation about their company and the charity.”
The officer nodded and glanced around at the ceiling. “Do you know if there are any cameras around? We’ll want your security footage.”
“That could take a while,” Jude said. “I’ll have to get it for you tomorrow if that’s okay?” Jude could see the card sticking out of the computer slot and wanted to get the officer as far away from it as possible so he could retrieve the photos of Monica and Rosalynn. “There are so many.” He glanced at Thomas and gave him a knowing look.
“That should be fine,” said the officer.
“I think there could be a bullet hole over this way,” said Thomas. “I’m not sure, though.”
As the officer followed him, Jude reached to take the card out of the computer and put it into his pocket.
“I guess I was wrong,” Thomas said. “I could have sworn it hit somewhere over here.”
“Over here,” said Jude, walking over to where he knew a bullet had struck the wooden table. “I think there’s a bullet still in it.” He looked to see a bit of it showing.
“We’re lucky no one was hit,” said Thomas. “That was close to where people had gathered.”
“Yeah, well, they all moved in when the speeches were about to be announced,” said Jude. “Maybe that’s why.”
The officer nodded. “We’ll have to get a team down here. I’m sure they’ll want to pick this place apart with a fine-toothed comb.”
“Well, we’re not planning to come back down here,” said Jude. “So, you can have at it.” It would take them a while to get things in order. By that time, he would have their security video copied so he and Thomas could do their own investigation.
“Well, I guess that’s it for now,” said Officer Hinson. “They should be here any minute to take your associate to the morgue.”
“Yeah, I already told them the next of kin.” Mr. Collins didn’t have much family, but Jude told them what he could.
The officer went on his way. Thomas and Jude headed upstairs, and Thomas went to stand near the window. Jude walked over to join him. “They want the security tapes, so we’ll have to get copies of everything.”
“That could take all night,” said Thomas.
“I know. And I’m sorry, but I think that’s going to be our next job. We have to see who this was before they do. And with any luck, we’ll catch them first.”
“I know. I’m on it.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” said Thomas. “I think tonight was just a big wake-up call, is all.”
“Well, I know it was for me. I don’t know what I’m going to do if Monica doesn’t get better. I should go back up and check on her. But I’ll call Edmond and make sure they get us what we need as soon as they are done with the sweep.”
“Sounds good.”
Jude walked to the elevator and went to check on Monica, but from what he could tell by looking at her, nothing had changed. She was unconscious, and her father had finally gotten the paramedics to leave her alone.
“When will she wake up?” he asked.
“I’m going to keep her sedated for the time being. I want to find out what caused this problem.”
“She wasn’t herself. She’s been really irrational lately, and it got really bad after those photos were shown. She’s been hateful. And that’s just not her.”
“The hormone fluctuations were bad, and I had told you I would do the tests again, but I haven’t had a chance to see the results. So at least I have something to compare them to.”
All of a sudden, there was a knock on the door, and Jude turned around to see Thomas and Rosalynn standing there.
“Is she okay?” asked Rosalynn.
Dr. Morrison let out a heavy sigh. “She’s going to be fine. I’ve got her stable, but I will have to run some tests.”
“I still need to have a look around,” said Jude. “We’re going to get to the surveillance before the cops do.”
“Good call,” said her father. “I want to get to these sons of bitches before they do.”
“Sir,” said Thomas, getting the old man’s attention. “Is it possible that someone slipped Monica Precision-X at the party?”
“I guess that could be. Why?” He narrowed his eyes at Thomas, but Jude already had a feeling he knew why he had brought it up.
“It’s just that my wife, Ella, had a bad seizure like that, and so did a few other students at the university. All of them had been given or had taken Precision-X. If they are trying to use Precision-X against you, it’s possible that they did that to her at the party.”
“She did drink some wine,” said Rosalynn. “It could have been spiked. And she wasn’t herself just before she had the spell.”
“I’ll know with the blood tests,” said Dr. Morrison. “At least then, I’ll know what I’m dealing with and just how much trouble she’s in.”
“Will it be worse with Clarity already in her system?” asked Jude. “Is there a way to dilute it in her system if it is?”
“I don’t know, but I’ll see what I can do. Precision-X was never designed or approved for female use. I couldn’t even get the dosage right to be safe. Even Clarity has taken some time to get right. And I’m always improving it.”
“Well, she wanted another blood test. I guess she’s going to get it after all.” Jude shook his head. “I better get going. She’s in good hands.”
“The best,” said Dr. Morrison.
“I’ll come with you,” said Thomas.
“I’d like to stay here with her,” said Rosalynn. “I don’t know if she’ll want me here when she wakes up.”
Dr. Morrison nodded. “I think that would be just fine. I could use a hand in keeping an eye on her.” He turned his attention to Jude. “Any word from Meredith?”
“No, sir. She hasn’t turned up. I saw her at the party, and she was supposed to be finding her boyfriend, but I lost track of her after that. I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault. But I would like you to try and call her again.”
“I have, but she’s not answering.”
“I’ll try her too,” said Rosalynn. “She might just answer for me.”
“Surely she knows what happened,” said Thomas. “You don’t think something happened to her? What if they got her? Whoever came here may not have stuck around if they got what they wanted. Maybe they saw an opportunity and took it.”
“I don’t like that,” said Jude. He hadn’t even considered Meredith could be in trouble. “But dammit, you could be right. I’ll check everywhere,” he said to Dr. Morrison.
“I’ll try again, too,” he said. “Let’s hope that she got out in time.”
“I saw her head to the doors,” said Rosalynn. “After she talked to you. I’m pretty sure she was gone before the big presentation.” The tone in her voice showed her embarrassment.
“I took the copy they used, by the way. I’ll see if I can’t get a fingerprint or figure out where it came from.”
“I’ll help,” said Thomas. “I have a kit we can use. I keep it in my car.”
“Perfect. We should get that footage first. As long as there are cops crawling around here, we’ve got to watch our backs and protect our interests first and foremost.”
“Yeah, and as long as they are around, I have a really good chance that I’m going to be recognized. I already saw one cop that looked familiar.”
“You’ll be fine,” said Jude. “Just lay low when you have to.”
“No worries,” said Thomas.
Jude nodded. “Let’s go. The sooner we get on it, the better.”
July 17, 2023
THE OBSERVATION CHAPTER ONE
Thomas sat with his gun aimed at Jude. Neither man had spoken for the last minute, and instead, Jude just stared at the weapon as if he were in complete shock.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Jude stayed very still and knew better than to make any sudden movements, even though Thomas was waiting for him to do just that.
“Don’t act so surprised. You had to know I’d figure it out sooner or later. Or do you really think I’m that stupid?” The man had always underestimated him.
“I’m not sure what you’re talking about,” said Jude, giving a subtle shrug. His eyes looked around the room as if he was looking for a way out of the situation.
Thomas shook his head to discourage Jude from lying. “You know. You’ve been lying to me, so don’t even deny it.” He would only put up with so much.
“Okay, so I’ve been staying in this shitty motel, and I don’t really have my own place. So what?” Jude seemed to search his eyes as if he was trying to see what Thomas knew. But Thomas wanted him to come clean about everything.
“Try again,” said Thomas. “And this time, try not to insult my intelligence. You know damned well why you’re here. And it isn’t for me.”
“I don’t know what you want me to say. But you need to trust me and just put the gun away. This is fucking crazy, man. You know me.”
“What I know is that my wife ends up dead, and you show up out of the blue to help after years as if nothing has changed. And now I find out you’ve been lying to me the whole time. And you want me to trust you? I don’t think so.”
Jude’s chest rose as he took a deep breath. “I want you to put the gun away and stop acting like you don’t know me, for God’s sake.”
“That’s the problem. So much time has passed. Do I still know you? What do you do? Who do you work for?” He was practically a stranger.
“I’ve already told you.” Which meant he wasn’t going to offer up more.
“You told me lies. I saw you. I saw you here, with Monica Morrison of all people.”
Jude let out a sigh, and Thomas thought he seemed as if the air had been let out of him. “So, you’re spying on me now?”
“I saw your car here. I wondered if it was you and why you’d be at a dump like this, so I pulled in to see if it was your car. You came out with her. So don’t bother denying it. And when I called, you lied to me about it. So, what am I supposed to think?”
“I don’t know.” Jude shrugged again, and Thomas could almost hear the wheels turning in his brain as he looked for an excuse.
“Don’t,” he said. “Don’t even play dumb. It was never your thing. You know I know who she is. A woman like her is pretty fucking hard to miss in a place like this. And it is not a coincidence that her father invented the very drug that was found in Ella’s system.”
“I didn’t have anything to do with that.”
“Of course, you would say that. But how do I know? Maybe this is your way of getting even. You know, since she chose me over you.”
“I would never hurt her.”
“Oh, right. Because you loved her. Isn’t that what you told her, that you loved her and you wanted her to ditch me and go away to be with you?”
“It was a long time ago. And I never told her to choose me. I only wanted her to know my feelings in case she was having doubts. I wanted her to be happy.”
“Oh, so that makes it better? Right? As if she couldn’t be happy with me? As if you were a better option? What a dick.”
“Yeah, I’m a dick.” He rolled his eyes. “Put the gun away. If you were going to use it, you would have by now.”
“No, I have things to say to you. And I want to know what you’re doing here. I want to know what you did to my wife. So you need to start providing some answers.”
“I said I didn’t have anything to do with Ella’s death. I promise you.”
“Did your girlfriend? Because her father sure as hell did. And if you’re with them, then you’re just as guilty.”
“Think what you want. He didn’t have anything to do with it either. Look, put the gun away, and we’ll talk rationally about this.”
“Oh, I’m rational. In fact, I’m seeing things clearer than I have in days. And that’s all thanks to you. So I want you to tell me everything, or I’m calling my boss, and I’ll put my own fucking job on the line just to turn your ass in. Or I’ll shoot you in the fucking face. Either way, it’s fine. I’m done with the lies. I want to know why my wife and my child had to die. I want to know why everything was taken from me!”
“I don’t know,” he said, giving Thomas a sympathetic look that only made him more aggravated. “Thomas, look at me. You’re overreacting. It’s me. It’s Jude. I’m your best friend. I care about you.”
“As much as you care about Monica Morrison, I’m sure. Let me guess. You’re going to tell me that you picked her up and seduced her to get answers for us?”
“No,” he said. “She’s my girl. I’m not going to deny that.”
“You already have. What happened to you telling me about you not wanting to settle down and how you didn’t have a girlfriend?”
“I couldn’t tell you without you wanting to know who she is or wondering why I didn’t bring her around. That’s all. And I told you the truth. My work is private.”
“And because I would make the connection between her and Precision-X.”
“Yeah, but I knew you’d get the wrong idea. Which I was obviously right about. It’s like I said, I can only tell you so much, Thomas. It’s for our safety.”
Thomas wanted him to just admit what he had going on and that he had his own agenda by coming back around. “Well, let’s see what you have to say and if I like it. Because it looks like you and your girl are responsible for what happened to Ella. You’re also responsible for all the deaths on campus.”
Jude gave him a sincere look. “No, we’re not. I promise. The military has already called Dr. Morrison. That’s how I knew about Ella. The news devastated me, Thomas. I knew I had to come and see you and make sure you were okay. I wanted to say my goodbyes and try to make things right again. But more than that, I had to find out how it leaked. It wasn’t from us.”
“Then how? Because the military is denying that the leak came from their end. In fact, they were eager to cover it up and forget all about it. I’m pretty sure there aren’t that many ways it could happen.”
“You should know how it is. They don’t want to have to explain themselves,” Jude said. “It’s easier to make it go away. And it would cost them a hell of a lot less that way. That shouldn’t surprise you.”
“Or, you and your boss are working to cover it up.” Thomas wouldn’t put anything past him at that point.
“No. If I wanted to do that, I wouldn’t have bothered with you. You’d already be dead.”
Thomas wasn’t surprised to hear that, and it was why he kept his gun aimed at his old friend.
“The truth is, we have our own business these days. And frankly, the deaths at the university could actually hurt us. It’s bad for business, which is why I have to find the person responsible.”
“So, you came here to protect yourself and your boss’s company.”
“That’s part of it. I’m not going to lie to you.”
“Why not? You have already. Just add it to the list.”
Jude pegged him with a hard look. “Stop being a bitch and listen to me. I didn’t and wouldn’t have ever hurt Ella. I loved her. I know you hate me for that. But I can’t change the past.”
“What do you expect me to do?”
“Fine. I am here to protect my interests. But I’m also here to help you. But you’ll either have to take my word for it or not. Shoot me or put the fucking gun away.”
“So you can kill me? No chance.” Thomas wasn’t stupid enough to believe that he wouldn’t kill him at the first opportunity.
Jude gave him a hard look. “I didn’t save your life all those years ago to kill you now.”
Thomas felt the sting of those words. He had been saved, but what good was it for him now? “Well, part of me is dead anyway. I’ve got to hold on just long enough to catch who did this to Ella.”
“Stop it. You may not believe me, but you can still trust me. And to prove it, I’ll tell you what I can.”
“Lucky me.”
Jude sighed. “I’ll start with the most important thing. We’re looking for the same person.”
Thomas’s eyes narrowed. Did Jude have information he had not shared with him? “What do you mean? Alice?”
“Yeah, or whoever. You and I both know this is much deeper than some girl from a study group. There has got to be someone else behind it. And they have been causing some issues for my boss.”
“And you know it’s the same person?” He wanted to know how when they didn’t even know who it was.
“Yes.” Jude nodded.
Thomas wanted to believe him. If he had the same agenda, it could help Thomas’s chances of catching the person. But he still wasn’t sure he could trust Jude enough to put his gun down. “How?”
“The phone number. It matches one that has been associated with the deaths of a few of our clients.”
“Your clients?” Thomas wondered just how many there were. And what they were clients of.
“Yes. But that’s all I can tell you.” Jude wasn’t going to budge.
But Thomas could guess. A man like Dr. Morrison, who had been so well known for his breakthroughs in medicine, wouldn’t go changing his stripes. “So, the good doctor is still selling drugs?”
“I didn’t say that,” said Jude, pulling his lips in tight.
“Well, you leave me to guess. So, I’m guessing.” And he had a feeling he was right on track.
“Knock yourself out. I can’t tell you if you’re right or not. All I can say is that we need to find them and stop them. So that puts us on the same path, and you know we’re a hell of a lot stronger together than apart.”
Thomas couldn’t deny that. But there were going to have to be conditions. “If I’m helping you, I’m going to need to know the whole story.”
“It’s not mine to tell.” Jude shook his head and gave Thomas an apologetic look.
“Great. Your boss can tell me. I’d like to speak to him.”
“That’s not possible.”
“I’ll go to him alone if you won’t bring me. You can tell him whatever you want. But I want to know what’s going on.”
“Look, my boss knows that you’re with the FBI. And, no offense, but he doesn’t trust you, so you’re not going to be able to get close to him.”
“I’ve already gone rogue. And no one needs to know what I’m doing. I’ll take an extended leave. My boss offered me all the time I need.”
Jude’s jaw tensed. “Dr. Morrison would never go for it.”
Thomas shrugged. “Well, I’m sorry, friend. Dr. Morrison doesn’t have a fucking choice.”
June 28, 2023
Chapter One The Scrutiny
Thomas
Thomas sat at the foot of his bed, trading his shoes for more comfortable sneakers. With everything that had happened at Crestman University that day, he was worried that someone had seen him and Jude in Nina Perdy’s dorm room at the time of her death.
The campus had been busy at that time of day, but he hadn’t noticed anyone around the dorm when they confronted her about running away from them. Still, the chances that someone was passing by or looking out their window while they had arrived and left couldn’t be denied. All he could do now was hope for the best and that no one would come knocking on his door.
As he came downstairs, footsteps outside his door caught his attention, and a familiar knock followed. Caroline and Ella had their own special knock to announce their arrival, so he already had a good idea who was standing on the other side when he looked out.
Caroline was there looking impatient and glanced over her shoulder as he answered the door.
“Hey,” he said, surprised to see her. “I figured you would still be at the lab at this hour.”
She walked inside, rushing past him, and he could tell by her energy that she was anxious about something. “I cut out early. I had to tell you.”
The excitement and worry in her eyes made him wonder if there was something going on with Alex. Had they heard about him being on campus at the time of the death? Had she come to warn him?
“Tell me what?” he asked, feeling a lump form in his throat.
“You’ll never believe this,” she said, pacing the room. “There was another death today at Crestman. Well, it was at the dorms, but still. It was one of the students, a young girl. So, we’ll need to intercept as quickly as possible and see if we can’t get a blood sample from the medical examiner. I can call Wesley and see if they brought her there.”
“That won’t be necessary,” he said, trying to get her to calm down. He turned away from her, still seeing Nina Perdy’s final moments replaying in his mind.
“What do you mean?” she asked, tossing her bag in the usual chair by the door. “It has to be connected, right? They said it was a young girl, she was found in her dorm, and apparently, it was unexpected, just like the others.”
“How did you hear about it?” he asked.
“I saw the news report. Isn’t it crazy? How many times is this going to happen?”
And more important than that, how many more times would it happen without anyone doing anything about it? He hoped that maybe this time would be different.
It didn’t matter. They had to stay far from it from now on. “I don’t know. But look. We’re not going to have to get involved this time. So, don’t worry anymore about it.” He hoped that she would take his word for it, but he should have known better.
Caroline gave him a confused look. “Thomas, are you feeling well? You’re the one who was telling me that we had to do everything to figure out what’s going on, and now it happens again, and suddenly, you are not interested?”
“Can’t you just trust me this once?” He turned and walked into the kitchen.
Caroline followed him, throwing her hands in the air as if she was growing angry. “No, I’m sorry. I’m too nosy to just let this go. I want answers. What is going on?”
He took a beer from the fridge and offered her one, which she quickly waved away.
“Tell me!” she shouted.
“Okay, fine, I’ll tell you. But you’re not going to like it, and I’m not proud of it, so reserve your judgment until I’m finished.” He didn’t know how much to tell her but decided the truth was always better.
“Okay.” The look of fear and worry in her eyes was starting to grow.
“I was there when Nina Perdy took the drug this morning.”
Confusion clouded her expression. “What? How in the world did that happen? Why did you let her take it?”
He held out his hands in a halting gesture. “Hold on and let me explain.”
He waited for her to nod in agreement before he continued. “We went to the university to try and talk to her.”
“We? You and Jude?” Her eyes widened. “Oh, I should have known. Jude is back in town for five minutes, and he’s already got you doing stupid things.”
“It’s not his fault.” He wasn’t going to let her put all the blame on Jude. He was responsible, too, and felt terrible because of it.
“Don’t take up for him,” she said, pointing her finger at him accusingly. “You always did that. You were always so protective.”
He couldn’t even argue that. He had been protective of him back in the day. That was what brothers did for each other. They had each other’s back, and since Jude saved his life, the least he could do was keep people from judging him too harshly. “This time, I’m not protecting him. I was just as much to blame. In fact, more, because it was my idea to go down there.” He had thought about that all morning since it happened. If he hadn’t been so eager to go down and confront the girl, maybe she would still be alive. The only thing that saved his conscience was knowing that she would have taken it eventually anyway.
“Your mistake was bringing him along.” Caroline pegged him with a hard look. “He ruins everything.”
She really hated him. And there wasn’t going to be any changing that. “That’s not true. Just listen.” She was growing more and more unreasonable about the subject, and he could see her attitude in her expression. “Do you want to know or not?” he finally asked.
“Whatever,” she said, looking like she had just lost faith in him.
“I found Nina Perdy’s name in Jonathan’s contacts. I was hoping she could tell me something about the study group. So when we got down there, I asked Molly to help me find her. When she did, the girl ran.”
“She ran from you?”
“Like a shot,” he said.
“Can you blame her? Two grown apes come in to ask her questions.” She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Jesus, Thomas.”
He could see how that might have scared the girl, but he had tried to avoid it. “That’s why I had Molly help me find her. Anyway, we didn’t have time to ask her anything before she bolted. She ducked out of the library, and Molly told us that she was probably in her dorm. So, Jude and I went to find her.”
“Completely inappropriate,” she mumbled under her breath. “You should have taken the hint.”
“You’re right, but we needed answers.” He had been operating with blinders on. The only thing he could think about was finding Ella’s killer. “By the time we got there, she had already taken the drug. She didn’t want us to find it. She thought she would be in trouble.”
Caroline covered her mouth. “She had the pill at her dorm?”
“Yes. It took effect while we were talking to her, and she started to convulse. I’m not sure she realized that’s what would happen. But it did, and it didn’t take long.”
“That sounds like what happened to Ella,” she said, letting out a heavy breath.
“Yeah, I think that’s what happened to Jenna Brighton and Sam Howard as well.
“Oh no.” Caroline was taking it about as well as he’d expected.
He nodded. “Yeah, and she died right there in front of us.” He could still see the poor girl gasping for air. “I tried to help her. I wanted to, but we had to get out of there.”
“You left her?” She closed her eyes and shook her head as if she couldn’t stand to look at him anymore. And he didn’t blame her.
“There wasn’t anything we could do, Caroline. Not to mention how it would look. Do you think I should have stuck around and prompted an investigation into what I’ve been doing, including giving you things to analyze for me?”
“Okay, so maybe you did the right thing.”
“No, I didn’t.” He wasn’t going to try and tell himself that. There was no use lying to himself when he knew damned well what he did. “But I did the right thing for us. I know that, and I feel terrible about it. But it is what it is. I can’t change that now.”
“All of that, and you didn’t even get to talk to her.”
“We did, though. She mentioned the Alice girl as well, and so that’s who I have to find. She seems to be the one person everyone has in common.”
“Thomas, this is serious. What if someone saw you and Jude at the dorm? You could lose your job. There could be an investigation. They might blame you.”
“I didn’t see anyone around,” he said. “So, I can’t dwell on that. What I do have to do is find Alice and see why someone is giving the students these drugs.”
“Well, we have to talk to Alex and tell him what’s going on, at least what he needs to know. I’m sure he’ll understand, and we can take our lumps, but at the very least, it will spin something off, and they will have to investigate it.”
He realized he hadn’t told her that there was no investigation, and according to Alex, her sister had committed suicide.
“About that, there’s something else I have to tell you.”
“Why do I have the feeling this is going to be worse?”
“Because it is. I already spoke to Alex about what they were going to do, and he told me there was no case. The local DA feels that what they have where Ella is concerned was evidence of a suicide.”
“But she was drugged,” she said and her whole demeanor changed to one of defeat.
“Yeah, I know that, and so do you, but they say there is no proof of anyone else tampering with her drink, so they believe that she made the deadly cocktail herself.”
Caroline sat down at the table. “How could this be? I don’t understand.”
“I know. It’s disheartening. And I’m sick of it. But if no one else is going to look into these cases and prove there is something bigger and more menacing at hand, we have to.”
“You know the risks. You could lose everything. I could lose everything.” He had never seen her look so defeated.
“I know. But it’s worth it to me. I don’t care what they to do me.”
“You had better care. Ella wouldn’t want this. She wouldn’t want you to risk everything.”
“I’m hoping that this latest death will wake them up. But I’m not holding my breath. They’re not going to do anything, so I have to. You can either stay out of my way or help me. Either way, it’s up to you, and I won’t blame you if you want to stay away from this. Whatever you choose, you’re still family to me.”
As much as he wanted and needed her help, Ella would have wanted him to take care of her sister first and foremost. So, he knew the ultimate decision had to be hers.
Caroline took a deep breath. “I want to help,” she said. “But I’m scared.”
“I’d be lying if I tried to tell you otherwise. I don’t know what’s going to happen. It’s your final chance to back out. And just so you know, Jude is going to help. I know you hate him, but I hope you can understand and at least get along as best as you can.”
She nodded. “Count me in.”
“Good,” he said, letting go of a heavy sigh. “Stay for dinner. I need your help.”
June 7, 2023
READ THE PROLOGUE FOR THE EXPERIMENT…
As Jonathan Dylan paced the front sidewalk in front of Crestman University, he stared at his phone and hoped for a response to the text he had sent minutes earlier.
“Come on, where are you?” He raked his hand through his hair and knew that before too long, the place would be filled with students headed to their afternoon class. “Dammit, Alice!”
He was starting to regret ever getting mixed up with the girl and had surely never expected the turn his life had taken since they got together. He was miserable and didn’t think it would get any better as long as he was mixed up with her. He needed to get out, but he felt he owed her one last chance to change his mind. She was, after all, the only girl he had ever loved.
Finally, the phone rang in his hand, and he answered after seeing her name on the screen. “There you are. I’ve been waiting to hear from you. Did you get the message I sent you?”
“Yes, Mr. Impatient. I got your message. That’s why I’m calling. Now calm down and tell me what’s wrong. I thought we had everything settled.”
“I feel like everything is falling apart! And nothing has gone as planned lately.”
“Whoa, slow down. Do you mean what we talked about? We have a whole future ahead of us, Jonathan. Don’t tell me you’re having second thoughts now. It’s a bit too late for that, don’t you think?”
“I know. And I know that this is what you want, but I just can’t. I’m done, Alice.”
“Done? Excuse me? You can’t just quit on me. We’re stronger than that. Your strength is what attracted me to you in the first place.”
“I didn’t sign up for this, Alice. I thought it would be different.” He had thought that once they got serious, things would be better for them and for their world, but nothing had changed. It had only gotten worse. “If you want me to be honest, I will.”
“Of course, I want that. I thought that we agreed our relationship would be built on trust.”
“We did. But I just can’t help but think that you’re hiding something from me, and it’s driving me crazy.”
“Ah, so you don’t trust me?” The hurt in her voice cut him deep.
He let those words rattle around in his head a bit before responding. Did he trust her? He wanted to. There was no doubt about it. But the past few weeks had shown him a different side of her, a different side of himself, and that was something he couldn’t ignore. No one made him feel like she did, and no one had ever given themselves to him the way she had. But it wasn’t enough. Nothing was ever going to be enough.
He felt like he was about to lose everything anyway, including her. He better get out while he could. “I just don’t think it’s going to work. Not like we dreamed anyway.”
“Nonsense. It’s all in your head. I wanted you and loved you because I thought you were stronger than most men. And that you wanted the same things as me. We can’t end it now. You believe in our future, don’t you?”
Their future included things that he could only dream of. Together they were going to be wealthy and powerful, at least according to Alice. But at what cost? He was starting to doubt everything she had ever said to him. “Our future is all I think about. It’s all I want. But I need to see you again to know it’s real.” It had been weeks, and he was starting to need her reassurance in person.
“I told you. I can’t get away right now, babe. Besides, you said you could handle things without me for a while. You sound like a child who needs his mommy. You’re not yourself right now.” She was growing impatient, and her tone always changed to one that gave him chills when that happened.
“Don’t talk down to me. I just feel like everything is imploding. I don’t know why you can’t understand that. I just don’t want everything to spin out of control.” She wasn’t there to keep him grounded.
“We’ve been careful. I told you how things would be so you knew what to expect.”
“Yeah. But people are going to start to wonder about us, don’t you think?”
“I told you that you’re overthinking this. Why complicate things?” Now the anger was undeniable.
He had trusted her always but was starting to second-guess everything she had said to him. “I just feel like we’re fucked. I mean, how long can we do this?”
“Trust me. You don’t have to worry, Jonathan. Just trust me for once. We’ll be fine.”
He wanted to believe her, but he was starting to think that she was only using him. She talked of big plans, but now it all just sounded like she was stringing him along for her own needs. Nothing he wanted mattered anymore—if it ever did. And it was time to put his foot down. “I need to see you tonight. I can come wherever you are, so you don’t have to come here. Just tell me where to go.”
“You can’t come here. I’ve already told you that. Besides, I am with my parents tonight.”
He didn’t believe that at all but was going to push the topic to see how she acted. “That’s fine. I want to meet them anyway. Now’s a great time, right?”
“It’s too soon for that. And, anyway, judging by the way you sound, I don’t think you’re up for it.”
“It’s been months. I need to know this is real, Alice. We’ve only met once in person, and you said four months ago that I’d meet them soon anyway. If you want this to work and for us to be together, I need us to actually be together, Alice.”
“I just think it’s a bad time, Jonathan. I’m not ready, and you know I don’t like to be rushed into anything.”
He could tell by her tone that she was growing impatient with him. “Okay, tomorrow then?” There had to be something that worked for her. But she had always given him some excuse. And he was sick of hearing them.
“No. I can’t get out tomorrow,” she said. “Look. Just calm down and give it a few days. I’m going to make it right. You’ll see. Just give me time.”
To him, it was just more of the same runaround with her. Maybe everyone had been right. She was nothing more than a catfish, and he was her fool she could play with and use for her whims but never his own. “Yeah, I’m sure you will. You know, this isn’t me, Alice. It’s not the way I do things. I need more security and reassurance that I’m not about to make a big mistake that can ruin my life.”
“Of course, you’re not. I promise you. It’s all going to be worth it in the end. I’m worth the wait, aren’t I? I’m worth all of this?”
“Yeah, you’re worth it,” he lied. He shook his head, knowing he didn’t believe those words anymore.
“I’ll call you later when I have time. But you can message me online if you want to. Always, Jonathan.”
“Always,” he said, knowing it would be the last time he ever said it.
As she ended the call, he knew that telling him to message her online was her way of telling him not to call her on the phone again. Everything they had arranged had been online, and it wasn’t exactly the type of situation he wanted with the girl of his dreams. The one night they had spent together had been insane. And it sealed the bond they had together. That one night had made it seem real. But now he wasn’t so sure.
Meeting someone you were crazy about online made things tough, especially when they were miles apart.
As he headed into the building, a voice called out to him.
“What’s up, Jonathan?” He turned and spotted his estranged friend, Chris, who was his roommate before he decided to leave the dorm life and move home the year before.
“What’s up?” he responded. “How are things going?”
“They’re okay, man. Hey, did you hear about that chick who died the other day? That was fucked up, man. It’s like there’s something in the water around here. That’s the third one, dude. They always say it happens in threes. Maybe that means we’re safe.”
“Yeah,” he said, feeling a hollow feeling in his chest. The sadness had been overwhelming him since he had heard about it. “I knew her from class,” he admitted. “It’s crazy. It really makes you reevaluate things, you know?”
“Yeah, man.” Chris looked over his shoulder. “Well, I have to get to class, but I’ll see you around. Hey, take care, man.”
“Yeah, I’ll see you around.” He gave Chris a wave and walked in the opposite direction, feeling like shit. He hadn’t spoken with the guy in months and only waved a few times across the yard.
He wasn’t worth more than a few minutes to anyone these days, not even his own family. He had, for some time, felt like a temporary person in everyone’s life. Alice was all he had, and now that was growing shaky with the way she played with his emotions and the things she asked of him.
He didn’t even feel human anymore.
Something had to change, and if there was no hope, so be it. There was only one way to find out if there was something better.
He walked around the corner and took a pill from his pocket. If he was going to change his world, changing himself was a good place to start. What if it was all he had heard? What if Alice was right, and they could have more? There was only one way to find out.
He popped the pill into his mouth and decided to let the cards fall where they may. Maybe he would be one of the lucky ones. And if not, what did he really have to lose?
Jonathan took to the stairs, and by the time he got to the top, he could feel the drug taking effect. He started to sweat on the third-floor landing, and by the time he walked down to the music hall, he was overwhelmed with doubt.
What had he done?
The overwhelming sadness began to weigh on him as he sat down at the piano in the conservatory. He touched the keys and closed his eyes to play.
He let his fingers glide across them, making sounds that drowned out all of the worries that were taunting him. It was too late now. It was time to give in to the will of the pill and hope for the best.
He listened to the music he played. It was the only thing that had made things better for him when he was down.
Music had been his first love ever since he could remember. His relationship with it had never changed and had only grown better. There was no ugliness or manipulation from the instrument. It spoke to him in its own sweet language and never expected more from him than he was willing to give.
With music, he knew who he was. Who he wanted to be. Who he had been before.
But when the song was over, there was no joy left, and the overwhelming sadness was unbearable. It was painful, eating away at his soul until he knew there’d be nothing left.
He began to play again, wanting the pain to stop. But he couldn’t play forever. As much as he wanted to, that was simply not possible. There was no fooling himself otherwise.
And he was left with a million thoughts in his head. Questions about life, about himself. But instead of being muddled as they came so fast, he understood each one.
The song would always end, and with it would come the void of his existence. There was no right path in sight. His life would always be this way. He began to cry uncontrollably and lay across the keys, washing them with his tears.
When he opened them again, the sun was shining through the window, and a large beam landed on the keys before him. He got up and walked over to stand in the warmth and wished that life would always be that peaceful.
And then he thought about who he was and what he had become. And all of the shame and sadness crashed back with such force that there was only one way to make it stop. There was only one way to make it right. He turned to the piano, but only to say goodbye.
He opened the tall window and stepped up to feel the wind on his face.
It kept blowing as he fell. It was only when he hit the ground that he realized, once again, he had let himself down.
May 17, 2023
READ CHAPTER ONE OF BARE INTEGRITY
Silas had spent the night with Hannah, going over the possibility that Baby Olivia was still alive, and he awoke the next morning wondering how they were going to prove it.
“What’s wrong?” asked Hannah as she pulled her shirt over her head to get ready to leave. “You look like you’re lost in your thoughts.”
Silas gave a heavy sigh as he sat up on the edge of the bed. “I am. I can’t help but wonder how we’re going to go about this. I mean, we know Lonnie was there, and it’s more likely now that it wasn’t a coincidence with the whole stunt thing. But how are we going to prove it? He’ll never admit it. And we can’t just go around saying something like that.”
Hannah sighed. “Don’t second-guess yourself. We both agree that his being there is too much of a coincidence. I mean, the stunt matching the car going off the bridge and the fact that he just happened to be at the scene are proof enough to convince me. His personal connection to Claire alone gives us a fair reason to think that he’s involved more than he’s letting on. Not to mention the fact that he’s been dodging you from the beginning.”
He nodded to agree with her. “Right, but we can’t just throw this out there without proof. We have to figure out where she is. Who could have her? And why did Claire lie? Because if we’re wrong?” He shook his head. “I don’t even want to think about that.”
He hated to be a doubter, but there was a lot for both of them to lose. And once he realized that not only could he be hurt by this but Hannah too, that changed everything.
Hannah reached down and picked up one of her shoes. “If it helps, I think we’re on the right track. We both agree the most likely scenario is that Olivia’s still alive. I can start with her mother and then talk to Lonnie Smith again. Maybe going at them with what we know will help to see something we couldn’t see before.”
Silas shook his head. He didn’t want her going anywhere near that man. “No. I don’t want you to talk to him again. I think it’s time the two of us have a man-to-man talk instead. I have to question him on the fact that he did a stunt like that and see what his reaction is to me knowing it.”
Hannah cocked a brow. “You’re going to talk to him alone? Are you sure that’s a good idea? He won’t like that, for sure.”
“I don’t really care what the man thinks or what he likes, for that matter. If what we think is true, Claire is innocent. And since she’s about to go away for a very long time, I’d like to make sure that she’s earned the sentence.”
“Lonnie wasn’t happy when you showed up with me. He’s surely not going to want to welcome you. Be ready for anything.”
Silas shrugged. “He’ll have to talk to me. I’m not taking no for an answer.”
“Silas, I’m not sure that’s the way to go about it. Unless you want to fight him.”
She seemed to think that was a real possibility.
“What’s he going to do?” Silas didn’t think the man was as violent as he wanted people to think he was.
“You may not want to know,” she said with a chuckle. “Lonnie seems a bit unpredictable to me.”
Silas couldn’t believe she was worried about that at all. “I’m not afraid of him. Besides, if he’s going to lose his temper, I’d rather he’d do it with me and not you. And this is more about seeing his reactions than anything else. I don’t expect him to tell me anything. If this is their plan, they’ll stick to it.”
“Unless they panic,” she says. “There is still the chance we tip them off. We have to think about everyone involved. Including that child.”
Silas had already thought of that. “If Lonnie’s involved, so is Aria. And if Aria is, Bell might be also. Then there’s Claire and her mother. She has to know something.”
Hannah walked over and sat on the bed next to him to put on the other shoe. “So, we’re taking care of Lonnie and the mother. What about Aria? I know we said it’s not practical with her being so far away, but maybe that’s the point. Who is to say she isn’t the most likely candidate?”
“That could be true. But we don’t even know where she is. I think we can find her, but it’s going to take time. I’ll get Zoe on it. Maybe we can at least find a forwarding address that could give us her city.” He gave a heavy sigh. “Claire shouldn’t go to prison just because she doesn’t want her daughter to be around her father. There are other ways to do this.”
“No, you’re right. But I can’t help but think that she must have tried everything else. Or maybe normal options weren’t possible for her. Not with a man like Owen Bishop in her life.” Hannah’s demeanor suddenly changed, and her face clouded with emotion. “I need to talk to Traeger and find out just how close we are to getting his arrest. I’m hoping they’ll get the job done, and maybe they’ll find something linking Owen to it.”
Silas wasn’t sure Hannah would hear from him. He still had his doubts about the detective, and while he was glad he had continued to support Miley, he just wasn’t sure of his motives when it came to Hannah. He was an officer of the law and had no reason to share with Hannah other than he had given her his word, which was worthless coming from a cop. But he didn’t want to upset her again. Some things were best left alone.
They had worked through everything, and the whole thing about Traeger using her was in the past. All he wanted now was to move forward and prove his client innocent.
Once he got the proof he needed about the child, he could save his client from a lifetime in prison. And while that all seemed great, there was a side to it that had been gnawing at him for hours. “You know, if we uncover this grand scheme and I prove my boss is involved and that he used me like a pawn, it’s going to greatly impact my career. I can’t go on as if nothing happened. And I’m pretty sure if Bell is involved, I’m out of a job.”
Hannah gave him a sympathetic look. “I guess I can understand why that would make you second-guess.”
“It’s a lot to process. It’s not just Claire’s life that could be affected. And I don’t want to sound selfish, but if Bell is in this, if he used me to carry this through, it means my career was over before it really got going, not to mention the fact that you and your show could be affected. We have to be ready for anything.”
“I’m not worried about my career,” she said. “I guess that comes with having it fail over and over again. I’ll be fine, Silas. And you are capable of doing more than working for Bell. I know that. You could do a lot of good things in this world, Silas. Go into practice for yourself. You don’t need him. And besides, if you expose him in this, there are going to be a lot of people who won’t trust him. They’ll need a good lawyer.”
She was trying to stay positive, but Silas knew what a shit show this would be. A lot of good people would be affected. And yet, he knew it was what he had to do. “It’s going to blow everything wide open,” he said. “I guess that’s why I’m struggling.”
“I can understand that,” she said, reaching for his hand. “You’ve got a lot at stake.”
“We both do. I don’t want bad things for you.”
“As I said, I’m going to be okay. I just worry about that child. What happens when the truth comes out, and Owen finds out that his daughter is alive? He’s going to lose it. He’ll be a danger to everyone involved if he isn’t put away, and what’s worse is he will look like the victim yet again. Claire won’t admit whatever this dark secret is about him that had her going over the edge in the first place.”
He was sure the pun was unintentional. “Yeah, if you thought he was bad before, I think you’ll see an even worse side to him. No one likes to be duped, especially about something this serious.”
“Not to mention that his mother is going to want her rights to her grandchild, even if he doesn’t. And if he thinks that anyone wants to keep him from her, he’d do anything to get her. It’s all about power for him. Now that I think about it, it’s a lot to think about. We’re blowing the lid off of something that other people think is best. I’d hate for them to be right.”
She had a look of doubt in her eyes, and it made him worry that he had just talked her into having second thoughts.
“We have to uncover this,” he said. “You know that we can’t just let it go.”
“I know, but at the same time, if we can’t do something to ensure that Owen can’t get to her, she’ll never be safe. She is better off where she is.” She seemed to truly believe that. Silas believed it too, but it didn’t make it okay to ignore it.
“Do we look at the safety of the child or the innocence of the mother? I can’t ignore that my client might not have committed a crime, Hannah. Not to say that what she’s doing isn’t a serious crime as well. But I can’t let that go before a judge when I know better.”
“What happens to her when this is uncovered? Won’t she just be in more trouble?”
“I think that depends on how it is brought to light. She has potentially faked a death, and she is keeping a child from its father. Not to mention all of the lies she’s told to get to this point. It won’t sit well with the courts. In fact, it could make her lose Olivia anyway.”
“That’s why we have to show them why she did it. We have to expose Owen for the monster he is. Anyone would do the same thing. No one would blame her if they only knew the truth about him. Suppose they knew that all of the rape accusations were true, at least? That alone should be enough.”
“He’s beaten those accusations before,” said Silas.
“Maybe it will be different now that his father isn’t around to bail him out of trouble.”
“He’ll just bail himself out now.”
“He doesn’t have his father’s good name. That man knew how to protect himself. Owen is sloppy.”
“I don’t know,” said Silas. “He doesn’t do too bad. Anyway, that’s up to Traeger, right? We have to get him on board?”
“Right.” She gave a sigh. “I just don’t know what to say to him. He’ll think I’m nuts. He’s still on the fence about believing Claire. I’m not sure he’ll ever get there.”
“We have to focus on proving that the child is alive and Claire is innocent. When we find out if we’re on the right track, we’ll figure out the rest from there.”
Hannah nodded in agreement. “I’m prepared to speak to her mother again,” she said. “It’s possible that she has the child with her. I told you how I never went into the house. And the more I think about it, the more she was eager for me to leave.”
“Lonnie needs to answer for the whole stunt thing. Maybe he’ll slip. That’s the best I can hope for, but I’m not sure if I shouldn’t just lay it on the line with him and tell him what I think.”
“I don’t know. I’d feel him out first. It’s a lot to think about. This is Claire’s freedom and a child’s life at risk. We can’t get caught up in everything else and forget that.”
“We won’t,” he said, pulling her closer in a warm embrace. “I’m still torn on one thing.”
“What’s that?” she asked, turning her head from his shoulder to look up at him.
“Dragging you into it. If anything happens to you, I don’t know what I’d do.”
“We’ll both be fine. We’ve got each other. Besides, I think we make a great team.”
Silas smiled. “You’re right about that.”
She leaned up and kissed him, and while he wanted it to last much longer, she pulled away. “I have to get home. But thank you for a wonderful night. I’ll call Traeger to see where he’s at with his investigation.”
“Don’t tell him anything just yet. We will do it together, but only after we’re certain we’re right about this.”
“Oh, don’t worry. If I went to him with that right now, he’d think I’m nuts. Well, he might think that already, but you know what I mean.”
“Yeah, I do,” he said. “It does sound crazy.”
“Anyway, I’ll make plans to go and see Claire’s mother too.”
“Perfect. I’ll get in touch with Lonnie, and we’ll compare notes.”
She kissed him again and finished getting dressed. As he walked her out, he gave her a look of reassurance. “You know we’re doing the right thing.”
Hannah smiled. “I’m not sure if you’re trying to convince yourself or me, but yes, I think we are.” She gave him another hug and a quick kiss on the lips before leaving.
Silas let go of a deep breath and with it went his doubt. He had to do this for his client. He had to save Claire Ford from herself.
