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“I’m here.” A glimpse of the back of a girl with pigtails tied in pink ribbons rounded the top of the stairs. “I’ll be down in a moment.”
Desperate to have her, he headed for the steps. “I’ll come to you.”
“No, I want my outfit to be a surprise. Go into the kitchen, I’ve made you a drink – cola and ice. You did bring the liquor, I hope?”
He nodded and smiled at her. “Yeah, I have everything you asked me to bring.”
“Great. Have a drink. I’ll be right down.”
Amos strolled reluctantly into the huge kitchen and dropped his bag onto the counter. Nervous and excited at the same time, he took out the bottle of bourbon, added a splash to the drink, and gulped down half the glass.
The sound of footsteps came on the stairs and she walked into the kitchen carrying a cellphone and wearing sunglasses. She paused in the doorway, and with the afternoon sun streaming through the window behind her he could not make out her face. “Come closer so I can see you properly.”
“I want a photo of you first. You’re not eighteen. Why did you lie to me?” She held up her cellphone and took a shot but remained in the doorway, hesitant.
“You wouldn’t have come if I’d told you my real age but I wanted to meet you so bad. You’re special and we get along so well.” Amos needed another sip of his drink but smiled. “Look at me, I’m harmless. I’ve had tons of girlfriends your age.”
“I guess.”
His hands trembled and his chest felt tight. They often tried to back out but he had ways to subdue them. He could slip some pills into her glass. “Come here and have a drink so we can get to know each other.”
“Finish your drink first.” She moved closer and with the sunlight streaming behind her, it was as if she wore a halo. “Is it good?”
His heart pounded and he pushed on the counter to stand but his twitching legs failed to respond and he sat back down. “What’s your name?”
“Oh, I’m no one.” She moved closer and allowed the light to stream onto her face.
She was no more than five two and had the slim body of a girl but close up he could see she was at least twenty. He pushed into his foggy mind to find a memory. “Do I know you?”
“I’m the Grim Reaper and it’s your time to die. The drink was poisoned. It will be a slow and painful death.”
Fear clutched his pounding heart. He tried to speak but his tongue had swollen, filling his mouth. His throat constricted and he struggled to breathe.
“Having trouble breathing? Is every inch of you screaming in pain? Good. I wish I could make it last for weeks but you’re not worth any more of my time.” She scooped up the glass then headed for the front door. “Goodbye. I’ll see you in hell.”
Agony spread through his shaking limbs and he slid from the chair, falling hard on the floor. An ant scurried across the polished wood toward him, leading a few of its friends. He tried to move, to brush them aside, but a dark fog was surrounding him. Oh, shit.
2
Wednesday
It was late afternoon and Sheriff Jenna Alton stepped from her vehicle and took in the intense colors of fall. Shades of green through to golden brown bathed the entire landscape and the air carried the sweet smell of wildflowers. She loved this time of year, but plans to take a few days of her long overdue vac
ation to spend away from town had been shattered. It’s like I’m cursed. She stared into the blue sky and sighed. The moment life returned to normal in Black Rock Falls, something else happened to spoil her plans. Although, in truth, nothing in her life would ever be normal again. Under threat of death, she had left her life as DEA Agent Avril Parker and assumed a new identity as the sheriff of Black Rock Falls. Her experience in the Drug Enforcement Administration was of little use in the spate of murders she had encountered in her time here, and at first, she had coped with two inexperienced rookies and her old deputy Duke Walters. She had to admit after losing Daniels, Deputy Rowley had become an asset but the sun had certainly been shining the day two ex-marines joined the team.
After a harrowing start, she discovered her second in command, Dave Kane, was a slightly damaged, off the grid DC’s Special Forces Investigation Command agent with incredible profiling skills, and a sharpshooter. The next bonus came in the guise of Shane Wolfe, a widower with three daughters and not only the town’s ME but a man with incredible computer skills. Wolfe had settled well into life in Black Rock Falls and become a crucial part of her team. These new deputies had her back and sure made life easier.
Jenna entered the ranch-style house set amidst the shade of maple and pine trees. She covered her nose and peered through the kitchen door at the bloated body of a middle-aged man sprawled on the polished wooden floor. His eyes bulged from a blue-tinged face. She turned to Deputy Kane and raised one eyebrow. “He’s been here for a while.”
“By the smell, I would say so.” Kane’s eyes narrowed. “The real estate agent says he isn’t the owner and the house is listed for sale.”
“Why is it so hot in here?” She turned to Deputy Wolfe, her in-house medical examiner. “What do you think happened to him? There’s no sign of a struggle as far as I can see. If the house wasn’t unoccupied, I would have figured he was unpacking his groceries and dropped dead. I’ll leave this one to you, Wolfe. We’ll check the rest of the house.”
“The thermostat has been set to eighty-five degrees.” Wolfe tapped one gloved finger on the wall control. “Do you want me to turn it down, ma’am?”
“Yeah, and get the windows open.” She turned to Kane. “We’ll do a sweep of the house.”
She picked up her bag of equipment and followed Kane through the meticulously furnished ground floor. They checked the cellar and finding nothing of interest headed upstairs. Three bedrooms, all seemingly undisturbed. The faucet dripped in the main bathroom, leaving small splashes of water inside the basin.
