Dressed to Kill

by Sara B Gauldin

  “Welcome back.” I tried smiling with sincerity as I shook the other man’s callused hand.

  “It’s good to be back. It looks like I missed quite a lot while I was gone.”

  “Things have been exciting. When did you go out on leave?” Genevieve asked.

  “I tripped and hurt my ankle the morning of the carbon monoxide mess. I was coming off the night patrol.”

  “Well, maybe it was lucky that you did,” I said. I thought back to how close Genevieve and I had come to being a statistic.

  “It sure didn’t seem that way. I was leaving the station when it happened. I had a box of things I'd ordered for the grandkids in my arms that I was trying to sneak home for their mother. I was headed for the parking lot, and somebody had left a box on the ground. I tripped over it and down I went.”

  “That’s awful. Did you find out what the box was for?” Genevieve asked.

  “Yeah. The guy driving the city truck had it lying on the ground. I don’t know what was in it, but it didn’t budge when I ran into it. It had to have been something heavy.” I thought of the weight of the tarp I'd found on the roof.

  “Interesting. Did you see who was on the roof?”

  “Oh, yeah. When I tripped, I yelled. The guy came down and helped me to my car when he realized what had happened.”

  “That was nice,” Genevieve said.

  “Did he say what he was doing up there?” I asked.

  “No, and I didn’t ask. I didn’t think much about it until I went inside to ask the chief a question and saw the same guy in the interview room.”

  “I appreciate you telling us right away,” I said. “Chief, is there any word on the motorcycle purchase?”

  “Yes. John paid for the Harley in cash. He said he'd come into some good fortune.”

  “So, who’s paying for his services?” the chief asked. I couldn’t help but cringe at the connotation.

  “My bet is Candy, or whoever she is. He sure seemed concerned about keeping her number.”

  “Yeah, and he said she was high-class.”

  “We’ll see if we can get an ID on that number. If we can rule John out, I’d like to do it,” Morris said.

  “In the meantime, there's one thing we can do.” I went into the room between the interview rooms, picked up the phone, and dialed the number. It rang four times before going to voice mail.

  “You’ve reached Ivadale. Leave a message.”

  “Crap.” I felt the hair on my neck stand up. The number belonged to Ivadale George, I was sure of it, but how stupid could she be to leave herself so open to being found out?

  ***

  After taking over the chief’s office, Genevieve and I could finally talk about what needed to be said.

  “The George family's trying to kill me at all costs. They aren't even trying to stay untraceable.”

  “That’s the strange part.” Genevieve plopped down at the chief’s computer and began to type. "Why would they want to be found out?”

  I shrugged. “I wish I knew. Something's making them reckless. They’ve always been dangerous, but now it seems like they don’t care who knows.”

  “Things are very dangerous for you, Avery. I think we have to take all of this seriously.”

  “I do, believe me.”

  “Is there a reason they'd put so much effort into having you killed?”

  “Just the witness against them angle, but the court cases are all closed now. I don’t know why they'd want to reopen any of that.”

  “And you haven’t spoken to or interacted with them or anyone tied to them recently?”

  “Well, I spoke to Dr. Stevens and this John guy today, but beyond that, no, and I’m not seeking them out. That’s the reason I took an entire year to let things settle.”

  “Something's changed. I think you need to get out of town. I’ll make sure the investigations here are settled. Right now, you being here is putting your dad and anyone else around you at risk. I’ll make some calls—maybe we can get you into protective custody.”

  I pictured my dad tied up on the floor and Jesse bleeding and disoriented. Genevieve was right: they never were the targets; I'd led the George family to them. The knot that had formed in my throat threatened to choke me. I could never be a part of anybody’s life as long as those creeps were hunting me. “No witness protection for me—they will just go after my dad or Jesse if they can’t find me.”

  “Do you have a death wish?” Genevieve asked.

  “No, but if I’m hiding out, they'll just use them to get to me. They've already tried.”

  “So, then what? You can’t just wait around here for them to try to kill you again.”

  “No, I’ll go back to my cabin. It’s safer for everyone that way.”

  “Avery, none of this is a good idea. I don’t want to attend your funeral any time soon.”

  “And I don’t want to cause anyone else to get hurt. I thought I could wait this thing out, but it looks like the George family has other ideas. I have to face this thing, away from here and on my own.”

  “You can’t take a family like that down on your own.”

  “Maybe not, but I can lead them away.”

  A knock on the door interrupted Genevieve before she could respond. The chief stuck his head into the room without waiting for an invitation. “Sorry to interrupt, ladies. I thought you should know that John just confessed to blocking up the chimney to cause the carbon monoxide leak. He says his lady friend, Candy, paid him to do it."

  I sighed. “Well, at least we know what happened.”

  Chapter 30

  “I already told Dad. I’m leaving tomorrow.” I watched Jesse for a reaction.

  The warmth in his eyes cooled a bit before he responded, “This is sudden. I knew you'd go home sometime, but I hoped it would be later rather than sooner.”

  “I have a home back in Colorado. I can’t just leave it empty.”

  “I guess I understand. I feel bad—you never even got to meet Amelia.” Jesse took a sip of his beer. The steak on his plate sat untouched.

  “Maybe we can do that next time I’m in town.” I was never very good at breaking things off with people. The fact was, I didn’t want to break up with Jesse. I just wanted to keep him and his family safe.

  He nodded. “Sure, we can make that happen.”

  Break up averted. I tried to smile at Jesse as I pushed the image of him in danger from my mind.

  “Is something bothering you? You seem a little off tonight.”

  I took a sip of wine. “To be honest, yes. I keep thinking about Dad tied up on the floor, and you getting hurt trying to protect me.” I had to be at least partially honest.

  Jesse nodded. “I can see why that'd scare you, but I’m as good as new now.”

  “I’m not. Someone wanted me dead. So much so that they paid two people off to kill me.”

  Jesse’s eyes widened. “I guess I wasn’t thinking about it that way.”

  “I was a patient of Dr. Stevens’s back in Colorado. I think I have to go back there to find out how they got to him, and how they used him to get to me.”

  “It sounds like you're going to rush in with no backup again.”

  “No. Genevieve's making some arrangements,” I lied. She was trying to put me into witness protection. I couldn’t do that to Jesse and my dad.

  “Well, I’m glad you have a plan,” Jesse said. “I just wish you'd let me in on it.”

  “I promise: as soon as it’s safe, I’ll be right back here to visit. Maybe even to stay, if Chief Morris is still open to my joining the department.”

  Jesse smiled. “That would be great.”

  I let myself imagine what that kind of normal could be, but there was too much in the way to let myself have too much hope. I snapped out of my daydream when I realized Jesse was leaning in for a kiss. I let my lips move against his, the warm tingle spreading inside me. I wanted all of him, as I blocked out the nagging voice at the back of my mind, whispering, “You can ne
ver be truly safe.”

  ***

  Milly’s ears perked up in anticipation as we pulled up to the cabin. “That’s right, girl, we're finally home!” I was glad to see her mood improved since she'd been moping ever since we'd left my dad’s house. I suspected it would take her a while to get over his spoiling her.

  I opened the car door, and she ran toward the cabin door with obvious enthusiasm. She stopped and sniffed the threshold, finding something of interest, wagging her tail in anticipation.

  It took me quite a few more steps to make it to the front door. I unlocked it and headed in. Milly rushed past me and down the hallway.

  Right away, I noticed that the security system didn't beep its warning sound. Normally, it gave a loud chirp or two to let me know that the time I had to enter the code was limited. It meant someone had been to the cabin; there was no way I'd left the place unarmed.

  I reached for my gun and flipped on the light, but found that the power was out. I wanted to call Milly back to keep her safe but calling her would only alert the intruder. I carefully cleared the mud room and headed into the kitchen. It was dark there, as well. I went from room to room, checking to see what was going on, but I didn’t find anything until I opened the guest room door. Inside, sitting with a lamp plugged into a battery unit, was a man, reading a book.

  I aimed my gun. “Who’s there?” I yelled. “This is private property, and you’re trespassing.”

  The man looked over the book he was reading with a grin. “I thought you’d never get here.” Ryan Kain looked at me, his eyes twinkling. “I hope you don’t mind my crashing here for a while. I had to lie low after that close call.”

  I shook my head and considered the situation before slowly lowering my weapon. “Lie low? Close call?”

  “Well, sure, but I figured you'd understand. It couldn’t be avoided—some of those high-rollers have a hard time understanding that they can’t just destroy people who get in their way.”

  My mind raced. Candy was Ivadale George. She'd hired John to poison me with carbon monoxide. Did Kain know Dr. Stevens was also one of the Georges' hired hands?

  “Does Tori know you’re here?” I asked. Something about the whole situation felt wrong.

  “Oh, no. I wouldn’t tell her either, if I was you. She might have you put away, as she did me. Then again, she might just try to take you out. She'd feel guilty if she had me killed since I'm her only relative.”

  “How long do you plan to stay?” I asked.

  “Not long, but I’m afraid I’m going to need to borrow back a bit of the money I gave you. It will need to to be converted, so no one will track it, but it's time for me to do some traveling.”

  There was always a hidden layer with Kain, and my overwhelmed mind spun to see it. “You’re on the run?”

  “I prefer to think of it as taking a badly needed getaway.”

  “You can have the money. Take all of it.”

  “I don’t think I need to do that. You still have to support yourself; although I have a feeling you've found other options to do that.”

  I shook my head. “It was your money, to begin with.”

  “It was, but I only ask for it because I’m in a bit of a situation, and I think you'd want to help me again, just like I helped you.”

  “Of course, I’ll help,” and I meant it. Not many people would snipe the guy who was trying to kill you, and I was certain that Kain had been the one who had taken the shot.

  My phone buzzed in my pocket. I looked at Ryan Kain for a long second before turning and heading out of the room, closing the door behind me. I wondered if he'd ever stop popping up at the strangest moments.

  I clicked to accept the call. “Hi, Jesse.”

  “Hey, I was just wondering if you'd made it home all right.”

  “Oh, yeah. Milly and I just got here. I haven’t even taken the suitcase out of the car yet.”

  “Oh, wow. I’m sure glad you made it safely.” I could hear his daughter, Amelia, giggling in the background. It made me smile despite myself.

  “Yeah, I think Milly’s going to miss Dad.” I glanced over at my dog who was curled up in her dog bed, her tail over her nose. “I’ll miss him, too, and I’ll miss you.” I knew it was true as soon as I'd said it. Jesse wasn't the rollercoaster ride that Ryan Kain had always been, but I liked knowing what to expect. Sometimes, that was a nice change.

  “I’ll miss you too, Avery. I have some more vacation time coming up in a month or so. Maybe Amelia and I can come to visit.”

  I looked down the hallway at the closed guestroom door and wondered what to say. “I hope you can come to visit soon.” It was the most honest answer I could give. I had some serious investigating to do if I was going to stop being hunted, once and for all.

  Thank you for reading Dressed to Kill! If you enjoyed this book, please take a moment to write a short review and post it on Amazon. It helps other readers find books they enjoy, and it helps authors like me!

  I hope we can catch up soon!

  Sincerely,

  Sara B. Gauldin

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  Turn the page for a preview of No Stone Unturned, available now.

  No Stone Unturned

  Chapter 1

  The sound of my vibrating phone startled me out of a dead sleep. I reached for it without opening my eyes to shut it off. There was no way I was about to get out of my warm bed. I peeked through half-open eyes to see the name “Jesse” on the call display. I grumbled, tossed the phone on the bed, and let it ring through to voice mail. What could I say to him? There was no way to explain that my ex had taken over my house, and I had no choice but to let him stay since he was a fugitive. Somehow, I knew the police officer I was dating would have a hard time with the idea. At least he lived a thousand miles away.

  A knock at my bedroom door brought any hope I had of sleeping to an end.

  “Breakfast is ready. You can’t sleep all day,” Ryan Kain yelled through my door. I wanted to tell him to go away. I wasn’t ready to figure any of it out yet.

  My stomach growled. “Traitor,” I grumbled. I sat up, put on my robe, staggered to the door, unlocked it, and headed to the restroom to freshen up.

  The mirror couldn’t hide the dark circles under my eyes. My long, dark hair hung in a tangled mess. I forced a brush through it and twisted it into a sloppy bun on the top of my head, brushed my teeth, and washed my face before heading for the kitchen.

  If I had to harbor a fugitive, at least this one was a gourmet chef. Breakfast smelled like something not of this world. For a moment, I wondered where all the food had come from. I was sure Kain hadn’t been out shopping at the local market after he’d sniped my psychiatrist in the middle of my dad’s living room. He was too careful for that. That he was under my roof in the nowhere town of Allenspark was a little strange.

  “Good morning. Did you sleep well?” Kain grinned at me as he flipped a blueberry pancake. Nothing in his demeanor seemed like his normal, conspiracy-riddled self. That change alone was enough to make me concerned.

  “I did.” Because he’d killed the hitman that was stalking me. My dog, Milly, parked herself at Kain’s feet, hoping he’d drop a crumb of sausage or soufflé.

  “You did, but something is bothering you, I can tell.” He slid the pancake from the spatula and heaped it onto the plate.

  “It sure isn’t the breakfast menu,” I said. And it wasn’t. I grabbed a fork as Kain slid the plate across the counter.

  “Well, that much is comforting,” he said.

  I took a bite of the soufflé. The flavor was rich and delicate, a drastic change from the bagel I would have eaten. “Mmm,” I groaned.

  “I am sorry to intrude on you like this. Cooking is the least I can do.”

  “We already talked about this. You’re not intruding. You
paid for this house with the money you gave me to start over after the George family caused so many problems for me.”

  Kain scowled. “I knew if we opened that door, it would be impossible to close. They’re too entrenched in things. You cost them too much when you exposed their crimes.”

  I swallowed a bite of pancake that had turned stiff and flavorless in my mouth. “Impossible to close? You took out their hitman. After everything we’ve been through, don’t you think they’ll get the message? I’m not even that big of a liability.”

  “If they intended to leave you alone, they would have done it after you shut them down in Smithville.” Kain took a bite from his plate as he cleaned up the kitchen.

  “You think their hiring my psychiatrist to hunt me down means there’s no chance they’ll leave good enough alone,” I said.

  “There’s more going on here. You cost Frederick George his senate race, but he got off with a slap on the wrist. He’s making money with his books and speaking about how the system tried to ruin him.”

  I rolled my eyes. “It sounds like they should send me a Christmas card instead of making another attempt on my life.”

  Kain nodded and affected a far off look that made me nervous. “You’re right. They’ve kept the reason from the public view.”

  “You think I drew them out?”

  “You didn’t, but there’s a reason. That’s how I knew you were in trouble.”

  “You were off the grid. You still haven’t told me where the heck you were for over a year. And when you realized I was in danger you popped back up to…well, take care of things?”

  “Dr. Stevens intended to kill you, Avery. A bullet to the brain was the only thing that would have stopped him.”

  “It seemed to change his mind.” I choked down a few more bites of food. “So, somehow you found something out that made you think they’d come after me again.”

  “Tori did.” Ryan Kain’s expression hardened when he mentioned his sister’s name. “She tried to contact you.”