The Gallows at Midnight

by Courtney Lynn Rose

  the Gallows at Midnight

  Agents of Interpol, Book 2

  Courtney Lynn Rose

  Contents

  Acknowledgments

  Warning

  1. ~Lily~

  2. ~Lily~

  3. ~Blake~

  4. ~Lily~

  5. ~Lily~

  6. ~Lily~

  7. ~Blake~

  8. ~Lily~

  9. ~Lily~

  10. ~Lily~

  11. ~Lily~

  12. ~Blake~

  13. ~Lily~

  14. ~Lily~

  15. ~Lily~

  16. ~Lily~

  17. ~Lily~

  18. ~Lily~

  19. ~Lily~

  20. ~Lily~

  21. ~Lily~

  22. ~Lily~

  23. ~Lily~

  24. ~Lily~

  25. ~Lily~

  26. ~Sammi~

  27. ~Lily~

  28. ~Lily~

  29. ~Lily~

  30. ~Lily~

  31. ~Blake~

  32. ~Lily~

  33. ~Blake~

  Epilogue

  Other Books

  Coming Soon…

  Social Media Links

  The Gallows at Midnight; Book 2, Agents of INTERPOL series

  Written by: Courtney Lynn Rose

  Copyright 2019 ©Courtney Lynn Rose

  This book is a work of fiction. All characters, places, names, and events are either a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any likeness to any events, locations, or persons, alive or otherwise, is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form.

  This ebook and the print copy are licensed for your personal enjoyment only and remain the copyrighted property of the author. Please do not redistribute this book for either commercial or non-commercial use. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Publisher: Knox Publishing, LLC

  Publishing Link: www.knoxpub.com

  Editor: Kim Lubbers, Knox Publishing

  Formatter: E.C. Land, Knox Publishing

  Copyeditor: Rebecca Vasquez

  Proofreader: Donetta Marie

  Photographer: Melissa Deanching, R+Mphoto

  Cover Model: Holly Wysong

  Cover Design: Laura Medeiros

  Created with Vellum

  Acknowledgments

  First and foremost, as always, I thank God for giving me the ability to write these stories for my readers

  To my kids, thank you for being my strength and my motivation to keep following my dream each and every day. One day, when I’m gone, these stories will be the legacy you have of me.

  My brother, Dale, for always being the one to support me and help me figure things out. For always pushing me to keep writing and reminding me that this is what I was meant to do.

  To the rest of my family— my parents, my cousins, and everyone else who has supported me, I can’t thank you enough.

  My Knox Publishing Family— my editor, Kim, you’re the best and thank you for making these stories shine! My authors, E.C., Kay, Cedar, Raven, and Z.Z., you girls are inspirations and I’m so happy that I get to work with you in this industry each and every day.

  Elizabeth Knox, thank you for not only being an amazing boss, but for turning out to be one of the best friends I could ask for. You’ve been nothing but sweet and supportive, and that means more to me than you could ever know.

  To my Beta Concubines— Kat, Laura, Suzanne, Lisa, Jackie, Dani, Pam, Donetta, Erin, Stacey, Kim, and Rebecca— you all are the best betas any author could ask for. I don’t know what I’d do without you!

  Matthew Hosea— I couldn’t imagine not having you as my best friend. Honestly, you’re the most amazing human being I’ve ever met, and I love you to death! You inspire me and keep me smiling no matter how bad things get. You celebrate all my achievements with me, and you make sure to keep me grounded when I get too in my feelings. Thank you.

  Al Spinelli— I’m so thankful you walked into my life and became the best friend I didn’t even realize I needed. You make me smile when all I want to do is cry and I love you so much. I wouldn’t trade our friendship for anything in the world and I’m so blessed just having you as a part of my life.

  Robert Kelly— you are not only an amazing human, but a wonderful friend, and I’m grateful to call you one of my people. Thank you for making me laugh, and getting me back on track whenever I get distracted by shit that doesn’t matter. You’re just wonderful and I appreciate you more than I can ever say.

  Erin Osborne— Girl, I love you to death and thank you for sticking by me no matter what is going on. Meeting you was one of the best things to happen to me in a long time, and I can’t wait to be there as we take over the world together!

  Kara Leigh Miller— you’re the best critique partner and friend in the world. Can you believe that we’ve been working through this industry together for almost a decade! I never would have made it this far without you. Thank you for everything!

  Vanetta— My wifey, I love you. You’re the best woman and friend, and you are so amazing. Don’t ever let anyone tell you different.

  Reggie and Melissa Deanching— thank you so much for helping the cover of this book match my vision for Lily’s continuation. It means so much to me and I can’t say thank you enough.

  Holly Wysong— Book 2! We did it! You’re my real life Lily, always and forever. Thank you for all your enthusiasm and support. It means the world to me.

  Laura Medieros— The magic you make happen on these covers blows my mind. Thank you for all the hard work and late nights making my vision into reality.

  To my readers— THANK YOU! I wouldn’t have made it to a book 2 without you. I hope you all enjoyed the continuation as much as I enjoyed writing it.

  To anyone else I might have forgotten, thank you for the love and support you’ve shown me! You’re all amazing!

  This book is dedicated to my children, as always: Genesis, Phoenix, and JJ.

  You will always and forever be my source of motivation to follow my dreams because in doing so, I pray that you will always follow yours.

  To my Tribe, my book family, thank you for believing in me and in my work. You’re the reason this series made it to a second book.

  To all the victims of human trafficking, those lost, rescued, and those still out there— you’re not forgotten.

  Warning

  Trigger Warning:

  This book contains adult themes and situations that are intended for readers 18 and older. These themes and situations include, but are not limited to, extreme violence, sexual abuse/assault, vulgar language, and explicit sexual encounters

  1

  ~Lily~

  Today is the one-year anniversary of our deaths. Dresden and I take the day off to wallow in self-pity and get drunk. My thoughts are only of Blake— a constant, miserable need to know what he’s doing, how he’s held up without me. For the first few months of this assignment, Hyde gave us weekly updates. But that quickly dwindled to monthly. It’s been five months since the last one.

  My nightmares are filled with his face and the horror of him forgetting about me.

  Dresden has dreams about Shannon, too. He broke down this morning and punched a hole in the wall. We’ve physically transformed ourselves over the last year, but nothing has lessened the pain we both carry.

  “How much longer are we going to do this shit,” he grumbles, taking a swig from a Tequila bottle.

  “Who knows?” I sigh. “Hyde told us this could take a while.”

  “Fuck Hyde. Fuck Interpol. It’s been a year, Lily. I want my life back.” He gives me a steel
y glare.

  “Me too, man,” I say in a low voice, taking a swig from my bottle, reaching over to lay my hand on his.

  “I doubt they’ll even recognize us by the time we get there.” He sighs, meeting my gaze.

  I stare at him a moment, still thrown by how he looks these days. We both wear wigs every day, but only because he shaved his head before we left. I refused to cut my hair or dye it. The fake hair transforms us both into blondes, but we’ve done our own permanent markings, too.

  Eight months ago, I covered my Taurus brand with an elaborate tattoo of Sorina’s name. It runs from my collarbone to the top of my shoulder. Most of the scars across my shoulders are covered by a tattoo of the Romanian flag, and my left side, just below my armpit to my hip, is covered by a vertical tattoo of Blake’s name.

  Dresden’s chest is covered, shoulder-to-shoulder, with Shannon’s name and roses in a variety of colors. I glance over, smiling at the memory of our night at the tattoo parlor.

  “What’re you smiling at?” he says, raising his eyebrows.

  “You think they’ll dig the tattoos?”

  He chuckles. “Who knows? No taking ‘em off now.”

  I laugh, sitting back in my chair. With my eyes closed, I try to remember the way Blake smells, the way his hands feel against my skin. My cell phone rings and vibrates against my hip.

  “Hello,” I say, balancing the phone between my ear and shoulder.

  “Viper, it’s Monroe,” says a strained voice.

  “Hey, boss. What’s up?”

  “Where’s Python?”

  “Uh, sitting next to me, why?”

  “Put me on speaker,” he says, sighing into the phone.

  I hold the phone between us, pressing the speaker button.

  “Sup, asshole,” Dresden says. “When the fuck can we come home?”

  “Today. Your plane leaves in an hour.”

  “What?” I sit up straight.

  “Agent Johanson fucked up,” he says, huffing.

  “What do you mean ‘fucked up’?” Dresden says, sitting up as well.

  “She went over my head and got the okay to bring Mason back to visit your graves. They were ambushed. Shannon is okay, but . . .”

  My blood runs cold. “But what, Monroe?”

  “Blake was shot.”

  “What,” I yell into the phone, shooting out of my chair.

  “Calm down, Lily. I’ll text you the hospital information. We’ll talk when you get here.”

  I end the call and dart into the closet, grabbing my duffel bag. Dresden grabs my arm, pulling me into a hug. I push back and glare into his eyes, anger boiling in my veins making me see spots.

  “I swear to god, someone’s going to die today.”

  †††

  This driver is too fucking slow and if he doesn’t get us to the hospital soon, I’m going to put a bullet in his head. Dresden has been tapping his thumb against the door for the last forty-five minutes, and I’ve contemplated six different ways to kill Maria Johanson once we get to the hospital.

  What the fuck was that stupid bitch thinking?

  Hyde sent us the security videos from the cemetery on the plane trip here. Watching Blake get shot damn near sent me into a fit of rage, unlike anything I’ve ever felt. The deal was for them to stay the hell out of the United States. The Taurus has too many eyes on U.S. soil. Dresden and I have weakened their international hold, but we haven’t made any leeway at home.

  “We’re here,” the driver says, pulling up in front of the main entrance.

  Dresden and I jump from the car, sliding sunglasses on. The last thing we need is anyone recognizing us. My guns tap my ribs as I run to the counter, my anger flaring up again. I thought a year away would help me reign in and control my emotions. Right now, I’m already worrying that I’ve lost more control than I’ve gained.

  “Blake Mason, what room?” I snap at the receptionist.

  “I’m sorry, but only family is allowed to see Mr. Mason.”

  I growl, pulling my Interpol badge out and holding it up. “What fucking room is he in?”

  Her eyes widen. “570. Top floor.”

  “Thank you,” Dresden says gruffly as we turn and dart for the elevators.

  I stab at the buttons, tapping my foot impatiently. The tension radiating off us is palpable. These bitches will be lucky if they live to see the end of today. The elevator opens and we run, turning down a corridor lined with hospital rooms. Toward the end of the hall Hyde’s pacing, his brow furrowed.

  “Where the fuck is she?” I yell.

  “Calm down,” he hisses as we stop in front of him.

  I clench and unclench my fists as Dresden growls beside me. Hyde tries to look into my eyes, though he can’t see them through the sunglasses.

  “Where the fuck is she?”

  “In the room, getting her ass handed to her by Edmond Bates . . . my boss,” he says, running his hand down his face.

  “Good.”

  Turning, I throw the door to Blake’s hospital room open. I glance around the room, meeting the stunned faces of my team, Shannon, Sorina, Blake’s parents, and Teresa. Dresden stays close behind me.

  I stalk forward, glancing toward the bed as I pass the privacy curtain. Blake is propped up in bed, naked from the waist up, his shoulder wrapped. My breathing escalates, passing in heaves through my lungs. Fire burns in my eyes as I turn my gaze on Agent Johanson, who stands, eyes wide, in the corner to my left with Edmond Bates off to the side, his face red but not at all surprised. He’s the one who set us up for our fake death and killing missions, so if Hyde is bringing us back, it’s at Bates’ order.

  “You stupid bitch,” I say with a growl, darting toward her. In a fluid movement, I pull my hunting knife from my hip, slam her into the wall, and put the knife to her throat.

  “Don’t even think about it,” Dresden hisses behind me. I turn my head, smiling as he holds Vlad in place, a gun under his chin. I turn back to this stupid bitch, my anger growing.

  “You had one fucking job. One job. Keep him out of the U.S. How fucking hard is it for you to follow orders?”

  “Who the hell are you?” Johanson simpers, my knife pressing into her throat almost enough to draw blood.

  “I’m the woman who’s going to slit your throat.” I move the knife and slam my fist into the side of her face. She falls to the ground, moaning. “He needed to stay out of the U.S. We haven’t cleared it here. Do you not understand that? A year’s worth of work, down the fucking drain because you got stupid!” I plant my boot into her ribs.

  “Calm down!” Hyde pushes past Dresden.

  I grab her neck and pull her close to my face. “Everything we’ve done was to save Blake’s life, and you almost got him killed.”

  “Oh, God,” Blake stutters.

  I close my eyes and sigh. The anger running through me evaporates and I release Agent Johanson, my arms dropping to my sides.

  “Turn around,” Blake says in a hushed tone.

  Slowly, I spin, bringing my gaze up to Dresden’s. He shakes his head, defeated.

  “Who are you two,” Shannon asks with venom in her voice.

  “Show them,” Hyde says, dropping his gaze to the floor.

  Dresden slides his gun into his hip holster. With shaking hands, he pulls his wig off, revealing his shaved head. Looking at the floor, he pulls off his sunglasses, sighs, and lifts his gaze, meeting Shannon’s eyes.

  She gasps— her hand flying to her mouth. “It can’t be . . .”

  “Yeah, baby, it’s me,” he whispers.

  She stares at him with stunned eyes. Slowly, every eye turns on me. My hands shake and I turn my gaze to Blake, Sorina nuzzled tightly against his good side.

  “Everything we did was to protect you.” I pull the wig from my head, my long hair spilling down my back. Sorina gasps, tears spilling down her cheeks. I take a deep breath, removing the sunglasses from my face.

  My eyes lock with Blake’s and his dilate. “You can�
�t be . . .” His voice is barely a whisper.

  I take a step toward the bed and hold my left hand up. The engagement ring and bracelet both sparkle as the light catches them. Blake’s chest rises and falls rapidly. The monitor next to him beeps loudly as his heart rate spikes.

  “Mom?” Sorina whispers, standing unsteadily.

  She’s grown at least a foot in the last year. Her hair’s longer, her skin tan and flawless. Tears sting my eyes, but I can’t think of anything to say.

  I nod. She lunges across the room, flying into my arms. I barely catch her and we both fall into the wall as her sobs overtake the room. I press her head to my chest, tears soaking my face. She’s warm and fragile, and I’ve missed her more than I realized.

  “Mom, why? Why? We thought . . . you . . . Why?” she cries, pressing herself into me.

  “I’m so sorry, Sorina. There wasn’t any other way.” I push her back and place my hands on either side of her face. “I’ve thought about you and Blake every day. Sorry doesn’t begin to tell you how bad I feel. I love you, both of you. I’ve always loved you and hell itself couldn’t keep me away from you forever.”

  “Mom.” She pushes into my arms again, wrapping herself around me like a vine.

  Sorina finally calms and pushes away from me, standing straight. She turns, meeting Dresden’s gaze and runs to hug him. “Welcome home, Uncle Dresden.”