Cree blue psychic eye bo.., p.54
Cree Blue Psychic Eye Box Set, page 54
part #1 of Cree Blue Psychic Eye Series
There was a slight hesitation on the line before I heard Sophia’s voice for the first time. “Cree.”
She sounded broken. Dread filled my veins. “Sophia, hang tight. I’m coming for you.”
“How sweet,” the voice answered. “The warehouse at Fifth and Main. Come alone, or she winds up dead.”
I hung up on the voice for good measure. I had the location. I knew the wizard behind this curtain was going to die, and it was going to be by my hand.
I pulled up the address in my phone. God knows I wasn’t about to ask this madman for directions. I knew the place. It wasn’t far from our home. I slammed my car into gear and punched the gas.
My phone rang before I’d even made it two minutes down the road.
“Cree, what the hell did I tell you about leaving here?”
“He’s got Sophia, and I’m going to get her back. He said he’ll kill her if he sees I bring troops.”
“You can’t possibly think I’d let you go in alone.”
“I knew you wouldn’t.” I grinned before I could say another word. I felt the gun pressed into my side.
Brandon took the phone from my hands and hung up. “I can’t have you telling him where we’re going.”
“Brandon, what the hell are you doing?”
“You had to go get close, didn’t you?” he growled, cocking the trigger. “You almost ruined everything. I’d already picked out Sophia as my target, but you had to go and get in the way.”
“Blonde hair, blue eyes…shit. She looks like the ghost with the red ink.”
“That bitch left me on our wedding day. It was right in front of you this whole time, and Harrison thinks you’re smart. Well, I’m smarter.”
Chapter 18
I pulled up on the road with no other cars in sight. This warehouse was in an abandoned section of town where even the homeless didn’t venture. Brandon yanked the gun from beneath my shirt and kept the barrel trained on me as he climbed out.
I slid the knife from my boot and tucked it up my sleeve before I shoved out of the car with my hands in the air. The windows of the four-story warehouse were covered in grime, the bricks crumbling and faded. Goosebumps covered my arms.
Brandon gestured to the door handle, and I yanked it open and stepped inside, taking a minute to let my eyes adjust to the lack of light. Dust motes drifted from the breeze in the open door. I strained to hear, but it was eerily quiet inside as Brandon shoved me forward.
“Send it down,” Brandon called out. His voice echoed through the vast open space.
The sound of a loft-style elevator moving had me spinning toward the noise. The doors slid open to reveal the elevator empty.
He pressed the gun to my back until I stepped inside and the doors slid closed, and the third-floor number lit up. I inched the knife slowly down into my palm, getting ready to strike. Seconds seemed like minutes for the elevator to climb. The ding rattled my nerves as the doors slid open to reveal no one in view.
He guided me out with the gun and around the corner, and I found Sophia tied to a chair in the middle of the room. Danny, Nadia’s brother, was standing behind her with a surgical knife pressed to her neck. Blood oozed from a cut on Sophia’s neck.
“Took you two long enough to get here. Kyle is going to be delayed. He’s having to lose his tail, thanks to your tip, but he’ll be happy to see you brought him his new prize,” he said.
They weren’t making sense. “I understand Kyle, he’s psychotic, and the divorce probably pushed him over the top with Nadia, but you…you were her brother.”
“You talk too much.” The brunt of Brandon’s gun came down hard and fast against my cheek and lips, knocking me to the ground. “Now shut up.”
Brandon kept his gun trained on me as he approached Danny. He kissed him hard while keeping one eye on me. He broke the kiss.
“You called me dumb.” I shoved off the ground, spitting the blood from my busted lip. “I made the connection between Kyle and the killings. You two could have been free to continue. I guess that makes you two more stupid than words.”
“I told you she talks too much.” Brandon pointed his gun at my leg and pulled the trigger with delightful madness in his eyes. “I didn’t tell you to move.”
I fell instantly back to the floor with a scream lodged in my throat as I pressed at the wound. Sophia screamed beneath the duct tape and struggled to get free until Brandon held the gun to her head.
“Kyle’s going to be mad that you hurt her,” Danny said.
“He’s a surgeon. He can stitch her up and have years of fun with her in shackles,” Brandon said, turning his gaze from me to Sophia. “Sophia was easy to manipulate when I offered her a shoulder to cry on while she went through her divorce. I had to listen to her drivel for weeks. I’m going to enjoy killing her just as much as you enjoyed killing your bitchy sister after you and Kyle had a little fun with her first.”
“It’s time for the training wheels to come off.” Danny whispered into Brandon’s ear. “Are you ready to show them what real men can do?”
I struggled to stand with the gunshot wound in my leg. My last breath wouldn’t be on the ground. I rose and balanced my weight, trying to ignore the streams of blood going down my leg, the knife still firm hidden in my grasp.
“And you say I talk too much. You aren’t real men. You’re pathetic psychotic losers who can’t get a date without violence. Where did you three meet, 1-800 psychos?” I hobbled forward.
“Brandon was at the bar that night looking for a male prostitute. He got more than he bargained for. Kyle and I let him watch as we tortured our kill until he begged to join the fun. That’s why we let him pick this time. He earned our respect the way he made the final cut across her throat.”
“And I never looked back.” Brandon answered pointing the gun at me again. “Not another step.”
“And you called me stupid.” I nervously chuckled. “You two just confessed. No need to worry though, the only way you’re leaving this building is in a body bag. I’ll make sure to tell them you requested to be cremated.”
Brandon cocked the trigger.
“You aren’t going to kill me and risk Kyle getting angry. He wants me alive as his pet.”
“He hasn’t wanted anything more since the minute I sent him the picture in Nadia’s building. He’s become fascinated with you,” Brandon added.
“Sucks for him,” I said, throwing my knife with ease to embed right between Danny’s eyes. With the surprise on my side, I ignored the pain and rushed Brandon, knocking him to the ground, struggling for the gun.
The gun went off three times in our struggle before Brandon lay dead on his side. I fell over holding the new wound in my stomach, trying to stop the bleeding.
I met Sophia’s gaze. “Harrison is on his way. Just sit tight.”
Familiar ghostly faces surrounded me. My dad. A tear slipped free. My grandma. I smiled at her. My sweet, beautiful mother.
I closed my eyes, surrendering to the warmth of their memory.
West
Chapter 19
West paced Cree’s hospital room, threatening to kill anyone who entered that didn’t have answers. She’d been in surgery and had every test under the sun done on her. She’d survived a bullet wound before; she’d survive this one too. It was the blood loss he’d been worried about. Harrison had gotten to her first, with West close behind, as he and Freddie were watching her tracker. A quick call to Mason confirmed his worst nightmare.
Doctor Stein was quickly picked up with Sophia telling Harrison what had happened. It took three agents to stop West from going after him. He still planned to if the system failed them both.
West turned back to his wife’s peaceful sleeping body and watched the rise and fall of her chest. She’d been close to dying this time, and he’d been helpless to stop it. He swallowed around the lump in his throat and turned toward the creaking door behind him to find Harrison poking his head into the room.
West waved him in and turned back to the love of his life.
“We searched Danny’s house and found proof that he and Brandon were the ones killing. They kept all of the driver’s licenses of the women they’ve killed, including pictures of their dead bodies. Sophia was right. They found a trap door in Stein’s house, with two women being held and another cell that looked ready for a new tenant.”
“Cree knew he was dirty but didn’t even suspect the other two.” West’s voice came out a whisper.
“None of us did.” Harrison sighed. “If it wasn’t for Cree, we’d still be searching for one of their names. We interviewed Danny before. He had an alibi for the other murders, and now we know how he pulled that off. One would snatch, and the other would kill. It was a team effort, and the doctor was just psychotic.”
West turned to look Harrison in the eyes. “She’s done. I’m taking her back to Blue Plantation.”
“She’s making a difference here,” Harrison argued. “All of the other trainees are in the waiting room. She’s touched them in ways no textbook could ever do.”
“The hospital ran blood tests. She’s pregnant, and I almost lost them both today.”
“He’s right, Harry.” Cree’s voice had them both turning in her direction.
“You’re back.” West breathed a sigh of relief, and his heart started beating again in that moment as he crossed the room.
“Thanks to you and the tracker.” Cree smiled up at him. “I would have died in that room if you hadn’t known where to find me.”
West’s brows pulled together as he stroked her hair. “I wouldn’t have let that happen. I’ll never give up on you or us.” He kissed her with all of the tenderness and love flowing through him.
She cupped his cheek. “I’m not going anywhere. I promised you old and gray on the front porch of the Lady Blue watching our grandchildren.”
“A promise I’m holding you to.”
Chapter 20
In the weeks of recuperating that followed, the rest of the story came to light. The way Stein and Danny were working together to kill every year. They’d met Brandon a year and half ago in the bar, just like they’d confessed, and had been molding him ever since bringing him into their fold. Nothing could have been better than to be in bed with a future FBI agent to thwart any progress on the case.
Harrison believed that, with Danny’s fetish for blonds and a couple licenses they found, there were more victims to be found. Every year like clockwork, Stein got a new girl to torture, and Danny and his new lover got a new blonde to kill. Like a sick fraternity. I’d missed the signs on this one, and it had almost gotten me killed.
West and the ghostly mobster, Willard, hovered like mothering hens. I couldn’t decide which one of them was worse, but neither compared to Roni and Charlotte, demanding I pack up and get the hell out and return home.
Now I was the one laid up on the couch as the world continued around me, making plans and moving on. When the doorbell rang, I was helpless to answer. I shouldn’t have been surprised that Roni did with a gun pointed at the visitor.
“Who are you?” she demanded to Clint’s surprised face.
“He’s a friendly. Don’t shoot,” I said, unable to stop her if she did.
“You sure?” Roni asked, unmoving.
Clint held up his hands.
“Roni, put the damn gun down. It’s a crime to point a weapon at a federal agent,” Harrison said, stepping into view and shoving the gun out of Clint’s face.
They stepped in and closed the door behind them. Roni made the same gesture I’d made with Stein, pointing from her eyes to Clint’s and back before leaving the room.
“Well, this is a nice surprise. I would offer you some refreshments, but they won’t let me get up.”
“That’s not necessary,” Clint said. “I just wanted to thank you.”
“For what?”
“Showing me I’m not crazy,” Clint said with a hesitant look at Harrison. My gaze flew to Harrison and back to Clint. Compassion pulled at my heart.
“You finally admitted it?” I said, pushing myself to sit taller. “Well, this is a nice surprise. You know you shouldn’t feel ashamed that you can see ghosts too. It’s a gift, not a curse.”
“You’ve shown me that.” He gave me an appreciative smile.
Harrison cupped Clint’s shoulders. “We should be so lucky to have Clint on our team.”
Willard took the opportunity to float through the room, and it was fun to watch Clint tracking him. It was like watching a baby take their first steps.
“He’s going to do great things for you.”
Willard floated around Clint and grinned. “He can see us too?”
“Pardon?” Clint asked.
“Yes, Willard, and he’s a Fed in training so be nice. I’m trusting you to watch his back.”
“You’re talking to Willard Smith, the legendary mobster?” Harrison asked.
“Yep, and who knows, maybe they’ll make more discoveries and make you and the FBI look even better.”
“Um,” Clint said, gesturing with his hand, “can I call you if I have any questions?”
“Of course.” I grinned. “One can never have too much family.”
West walked by and clapped Clint’s back. “Welcome to the club, kid. She gets her hooks in you and reels you in. Just go with it.”
Four months later
West and I sat in the parking garage across from the post office. It was a familiar memory, the one that had started me down this particular path. My hands weren’t covered in gloves to hide my identity. I’d changed my old-fashioned Sunday dress and hat for maternity clothes. My life had changed in ways I could have never fathomed. I no longer thought of home as floors and walls. It resided in the love of West’s heart and surrounded by family, regardless of blood.
“You sure you want to do this?” West lolled his head to look at me and squeezed my hand.
“It’s the right thing to do,” I answered without thought.
West slid out of the SUV and rounded it to open my door. He held out his hand. He was such a good man. I couldn’t have ever asked for better.
I slid my fingers into his and eased out of the SUV, holding the letter in my hand.
He kissed my forehead before linking our hands and heading across the street.
“He’s going to be pissed.” West chuckled.
The thought that it made West giddy made me grin. Okay, so maybe I was a bit satisfied to know that the letter I was sending wouldn’t just change a life but save one too.
West pulled the handle on the mail drop box, and I glanced down at the letter once more and ran my fingers over the name.
FBI Special Agent Mason Spencer
A smile formed on my lips as I dropped the mail into the bin.
“Funny how life plays out.” I kissed West’s lips.
“Even with your warning letter, he’s not going to see this coming.”
“I was only meant to ease him into the possibility of things he can’t explain; she’s going to take him to all new heights.”
The End.
I hope you enjoyed this edition of Cree. Both she and West almost died in the first draft of the book, but a love like theirs is meant to stand the test of time. I hope you follow me on Mason’s journey where he realizes that dealing with Cree was a walk in the park compared to what’s coming next.
Other Books by Kate Allenton
Suggested Reading Order
BENNETT SISTERS BOX SET (Books 1-4 in one bundle, 1218 pages)
BENNETT SISTERS BOX SET VOLUME 2 (Books 5-7 in one bundle, 517 pages}
INTUITION (Book 1)
TOUCH OF FATE (Book 2)
MIND PLAY (Book 3)
THE RECKONING (Book 4)
REDEMPTION (Book 5)
CHANCE ENCOUNTERS (Book 6)
DESTINED HEARTS (Book 7)
PHANTOM PROTECTORS BOX SET (Books 1-4 in one bundle, 964 pages)
RECKLESS ABANDON (Book 1)
BETRAYAL (Book 2)
UNTAMED (Book 3)
GUIDED LOYALTY (Book 4)
CARRINGTON-HILL INVESTIGATIONS
DECEPTION (Book 1)
DEADLY DESIRE (Book 2)
SHIFTER PARADISE BOX SET
NOT MY SHIFTER/ SINFULLY CURSED
KARMA
SOPHIE MASTERSON SERIES/ DIXON SECURITY
LIFTING THE VEIL (Book 1)
BEYOND THE VEIL (Book 2)
VEILED INTENTIONS (Book 3)
VEILED THREATS (Book 4)
THE LOVE FAMILY SERIES
SKYLAR (BOOK1)
DECLAN (BOOK 2)
FLYNN (BOOK 3)
REED (BOOK 4)
LANDON (BOOK 5)
ALEXIS (BOOK 6)
GABE (BOOK 7)
JACKSON (BOOK 8)
LINKED INC.
DEADLY INTENT (BOOK 1)
PSYCHIC LINK (BOOK 2)
PSYCHIC CHARM (BOOK 3)
PSYCHIC GAMES (BOOK 4)
DEADLY DREAMS (BOOK 5)
CREE BLUE PSYCHIC EYE
DEAD WRONG (BOOK 1)
DEADLY VOWS (BOOK 2)
DEAD FAMOUS (BOOK 3)
DEADLY TIES (BOOK 4)
DEADLY BLISS (BOOK 5)
DEADLY FLIRTATIONS (BOOK 6)
HEX SISTERS
WITCH UNLEASHED (BOOK 1)
WITCHY TROUBLE (BOOK 2)
TIME SWEEPERS
TIME WATCH (BOOK 1)
HELL BOUND
MYSTIC TIDES BOX SET
MYSTIC LUCK BOX SET
MAID OF HONOR
HARD SHIFT
About the Author
Kate has lived in Florida for most of her entire life. She enjoys a quiet life with her husband, Michael and two kids.
Kate has pulled all-nighters finishing her favorite books and also writing them. She says she'll sleep when she's dead or when her muse stops singing off key.
