Harlequin Romantic Suspense April 2021 Karen Whiddon (best fiction books to read TXT) 📖

* * *

Julia stood on the sidewalk. The body of Sean Reynolds had been transported to the morgue, yet the scene was still being processed for clues. With a phone pressed to her ear, her chest was tight. “Travis? Travis! Can you hear me?”

She knew he couldn’t.

But she’d heard what he had to say. Christopher Booth had a gun. And, moreover, the bastard had shot her deputy. Yet, Travis had been cryptic in his location. He’s here.

Sure, Julia could try and pull up Travis’s location from his cell phone or use one the satellites RMJ could access to find his location. But that would waste time that she didn’t have.

Then again, there was one place that made sense.

She began to jog down the street, toward her office and her car. “Luis,” she called. “Come with me.”

He drew his eyebrows together but ran to her side. “What’s going on?”

“I just got a call from Travis. From the little I got, he encountered Christopher Booth and was shot. See if you can find a signal for Travis’s phone.”

They stood in the parking lot behind the county office building. Julia unlocked the driver’s side door of her truck and slid into the seat. “Sure thing,” said Luis. “But where are you going?”

“My hunch is that Travis is at the Taylor residence. Call me once you find out about the phone, especially if I’m wrong. Also, send an ambulance.”

“Call you? I’m coming along.”

Honestly, Julia was tempted to keep Luis at her side. They hadn’t talked about their love-making last night, but certainly there was something to be said. And more than the physical turn their relationship had taken, she’d come to rely on him. He was beyond being a friend or a colleague—he was actually her partner.

Then again, the reason they hadn’t talked about their relationship was fairly simple. This was beyond the two of them. A murderer was on the loose in Pleasant Pines and it was up to Julia and the rest of the team to stop the killings. Someone had to stay and head up the investigation.

She shook her head. “We can get more done apart than together.” Sliding the key into the ignition, Julia continued. “We’ll keep in touch by phone. Find out where Travis called from. And send an ambulance to the Taylor residence, just in case.” She turned the ignition and started the engine.

“Take care of yourself,” said Luis as he slammed the door closed.

Julia shifted the truck into Reverse and pulled out of the spot. As she drove away, Julia glanced in her rearview mirror. Luis held the phone to his ear and placed a call. It would be to Emergency Services for the ambulance, she knew.

Lights on and siren blaring, Julia dropped her foot on the accelerator. “Hang on, Travis,” she said to no one. “Help is on the way.”

All she could do was hope that the help arrived in time to make a difference.

CHAPTER 18

The Watcher was in the woods, huddling at the base of the tree. Using an app on a stolen phone, they read the newest article posted on the Pleasant Pines Gazette’s website. Stomach erupting, vomit splattered on the ground. Wiping a shaking hand across his mouth, Robert couldn’t help but wonder...what next?

The whole world knew their name and what they’d done.

There was no taking it back at all.

A soft touch tickled Robert’s neck, and he turned.

Darcy sat on the ground beside him. He expected a beatific smile, but her eyebrows were drawn together and her expression was as ominous as a thunderclap. “What have you done?” she asked.

“Everything you asked,” said Robert, his voice shaking. “I did everything.”

And he had—he’d tried to frame Darcy’s cousin, a woman she hated. He’d tried to destroy the sheriff’s reputation. He’d even tried to rid the world of those whom Darcy sought to smite.

“You tried,” said Darcy, reading his mind. “But you failed.”

“I did it all for you...”

“You know that you’ll have to go away, don’t you?”

He did. He nodded.

Darcy stroked the side of his face. “Kiss me, lover, before you’re gone.”

She placed her lips on his, just the lightest of touches. And then, the kiss became deeper, hungrier. His thoughts mingled with hers, until the lines between them disappeared and Darcy consumed Robert with her embrace.

And then, he was no more, and Darcy was reborn.

* * *

It was 10:32 a.m. Peter could have gone home. The good Lord knew he’d put in more than a month’s worth of work in just a few short days. The fact was he wasn’t tired—he was energized. And maybe he was holding out a little bit of hope that someone would call the office with a Robert Carpenter sighting.

That would make for a good headline.

And maybe a second Pulitzer Prize nomination...

The front door of the office opened and Peter leaned forward in his seat. “Hello?”

A woman, tall and blond with a scarf around her throat, appeared at the door to his office. “Good morning,” she said. “Sorry to bother you. I’m looking for Peter Knowles.”

“You are...?” asked Peter. The woman wore a lot of makeup.

“A concerned citizen,” she said, her voice raspy.

He’d learned over the years to be suspicious of everyone and everything. Just to be safe, Peter reached for the baseball bat under his desk. Damn. He’d left it by the front door last night. “What’s this regarding?”

“I saw your story this morning about Robert Carpenter. I think I know where he’s hiding.”

Placing his hands on his desk, Peter leaned forward. “You do? Where?”

“Are you him?” the woman asked. “Are you Peter Knowles?”

Like a fish on a line, Peter was hooked. “Yeah, that’s me.” He reached for a pad of paper and a pen so he could take notes. “Where is he?”

“Peter,” said the woman. “You seem like a really good reporter. I’m surprised you haven’t figured it out yet.”

There was something in the woman’s tone. A challenge. A taunt. A threat.

Peter looked closer at her.

The woman had a gun, with the