Cora makes another wail, and I can just make out the words. “I want my mom.”
The solid sound of a slap against tender skin echoes across the park.
Indecision gone, I open the door of the Charger as quietly as possible. Alexis’s gun is still in my glove box. I return the bullets to the gun and double check the safety is on, then slip it into the big front pocket of the Santa hoodie. I pray I won’t need it, but a woman who would slap a scared child like that is unstable. It’s better if I’m prepared.
I stay close to the lakeshore, hoping to blend in and approach unseen. The very first rays of daybreak touch the clouds with pink. It’s Christmas morning and I’m stalking a kidnapper with a gun. Quite a bit different than last Christmas when I woke up with Chester and made him fish shaped pancakes before going to Grandma Dot’s.
The snack shack is only a few yards away when the door opens and Paula steps out.
I crouch low near a pier of the marina, hoping against hope, she won’t see me.
“If you think I’m dumb enough to not see you, then think again, Gabby.”
Her use of my name shakes me. Spotted, I stand tall. “How do you know my name?”
“It took a few minutes after you left for me to put it together. You’re that psychic woman who was all over the news about that cult that was selling babies. I remember you.”
My “fame” has preceded me.
And has taken away my advantage.
“I know the children are in there. Why?” I ask, actually perplexed.
“The reasons are mine, but let’s just say that little tramp was going to keep them from Jared and leave it at that.”
“My mom is not a tramp!” The older boy yells from inside the shack. He beats on the door and pulls on the handle, but it’s obviously locked.
“You’re scaring the kids,” I point out. “Why don’t you just unlock that door and let them go? I’m sure we can work this all out.”
Paula’s laugh cracks across the marina and beach. “I already worked it out. In the morning, the kids and I are headed on a long vacation. Later, I’ll tell Jared where we are and we can all start over.” She inches closer as she speaks.
I don’t want to back away, but I find myself stepping onto the pier behind me, the metal planks creaking. “The police are on their way,” I tell her. “There isn’t going to be a happy vacation or a chance to start over.”
Oliver and Cora are now both beating on the door of the snack shack, yelling at their grandma, screaming for help. They are making such a racket, I don’t notice the approaching sirens until they are only a few blocks away.
Paula darts her eyes towards the road leading to us, then looks at the shack that is shaking from the children’s pounding.
“We want our mom!” The kids shout.
Desperation contorts her face, easily seen in the growing morning sun. She turns her venom on me. “Why did you have to come? The kids were perfectly content until you started beating on my door with that lie about a missing dog.”
The wild look in her eyes forces me to take another step back. I slide my hand into the front pocket of my hoodie, wrap my fingers around the gun. I don’t want to use it, but the weight of it in my palm is comforting.
“You turned them against you when you forced the car off the road killing Lauren and Eric.”
Her face clears into an eerie calm. A ray of sunshine breaks through the clouds and lights up her face with diffuse orange color. She strides confidently towards me, and I back down the pier, knowing full well the metal planks will soon end and I’ll have nowhere to go.
From the corner of my eye, I see a River Bend cruiser pull into the parking lot. The siren is off, but the light bar throws blue and red lights all over the expanse of flat snow, marred only by the children’s and Paula’s footprints.
Paula looks at the car, at the shack full of screaming children, then at me.
I don’t like the look on her face, and I turn off the safety on the gun hidden in my hoodie pocket.
After a split second of indecision, she rushes towards me.
I don’t want to shoot, but I don’t want her to reach me either.
Not knowing what else to do, I pull the trigger.
Chapter 15
GABBY
“Crap on a cracker, that gun is loud,” is the thought I have in the split second I have between Paula pushing me off the pier and me crashing through the ice.
My only thoughts after that are for air.
The icy water constricts my chest and cramps every muscle in my body. I’m a good swimmer and kick for the surface. I hit my head on the hard ice, the air I desperately need a scant inch or two away, but unavailable.
I open my eyes underwater, hoping to find the hole I fell through, hoping to find any way to reach the surface that is so close. The water is dark, the early rays of morning sun doing nothing to help me.
I push my hands against the bottom of the ice, pound on it, needing it to crack.
My lungs scream and my mouth desperately wants to open.
I bite my lips closed.
I can not open them, can not open them.
My head swims with lack of oxygen, adrenaline and shock from the cold. I kick and pound and search for the hole.
I listen for direction from my tattoo, but my mind is a jumble.
Under the ice, far in the deep, I see shimmering lights. Globes of glimmer that call to me.
Join us, save us, find us.
The pull towards the lights is strong.
The arm wrapped around my waist is stronger.
It drags me to the surface and my face reaches air.
The glimmering globes are gone, replaced by Dustin’s terrified commands.
“Breathe, damn it!”
Chapter 16
DUSTIN
As we race north to Vinton and the Barr Harbor Beach Club, my head feels fuzzy from the pill I just swallowed and the exhaustion dragging at me.
My main concern is for Gabby. Well, not so much concern for Gabby. To tell the truth, I’m a bit irritated that again she’s gone off on her own and put herself in harm’s way, but that’s still concern I suppose.
When she finally texts back to us and lets us know where she is and that she’s found the kids, concern turns to relief, until the “not waiting” text.
I slam my good hand on the dashboard. “That girl is a menace,” I shout. “Good Lord, we’re only a few minutes away.”
Lucas wisely says nothing, but I can tell he agrees. He jams the gas pedal harder and the cruiser shoots faster, through the lovely town square of Vinton, IN.
Once we reach the beach and marina area where Gabby said she was, it only takes a moment to realize she’s gotten herself backed into a dangerous situation. Paula wears the body language of a woman with nothing left to lose. Gabby is being forced down the pier with nowhere to go.
Lucas and I run towards the women, shouting, “Stop, police.”
Lucas draws his gun. Since I only have one arm, I don’t draw mine.
Paula advances on Gabby, and a shot echoes across the beach.
I can tell by the sound, that it’s not from Lucas’s gun.
Gabby falls off the end of the pier and breaks through the ice. For a horrendous moment, I think Paula has shot her.
But Paula is the one bleeding. She holds her upper arm, blood seeping through her fingers.
“The little wench shot me,” she says as she runs away across the beach.
Screaming children beat on the shack near the pier.
In the chaos, I shout orders, “Get her, I’ve got Gabby.”
With two good arms, running after and subduing the woman is better left to Lucas. Lucas seems torn, but follows my orders and goes after Paula.
I slam down the pier to the hole where my sister went under, fully expecting her to be there looking up at me.
The hole is empty.
Panicked and terrified, I jump onto the ice, breaking through, smashing the ho
le to make it larger. My chest hurts from the cold, but I suck down a huge breath of air and go under. With my eyes open, I look for my sister.
I see glowing globes of light that make no sense. Amidst the globes, a dark form that can only be Gabby floats motionless.
I wrap my good arm around her waist and pull her to the surface.
“Breathe, damn it!” I shout. She moans a little. A flood of relief warms my frozen body. I look towards the beach and see Lucas has Paula cuffed and is leading her back to us as quickly as he can. He pushes her down on the ground near the shack.
“Kids, sit tight. You’re safe. Just give us a minute to get you out,” he says over his shoulder as he hurries down the pier to help me with Gabby. “Is she alright?”
“She’s breathing.” I’m struggling to keep afloat with soaked clothes and my one good arm wrapped around my sister. Noticing my distress, she grasps a pole of the pier, allowing me to let her go and hold onto the pier myself.
“Hey, Love,” Gabby mutters, looking up at Lucas. “Wanna join us for a swim?”
“I’d say she’s fine,” I say. “Can you get us out of here? It’s freezing.”
Vinton is not in our jurisdiction, so a local deputy, Cassie Cartwright and her partner Parker Cho soon arrive to take over the scene. Once the children were released from the shack then checked out by the EMTs, we were assured they were at least physically okay. We all breathed a sigh of relief.
Gabby was checked out and also released. Besides freezing our butts off, we were both okay.
By the time the scene was turned over to the capable hands of Cartwright and Cho, I was in desperate need of another pill, a bed and some time with Alexis and Walker.
Social services came for the kids. Lucas and I pushed for them to be returned to their Grandma Teresa, and we were assured they probably would be later today, but for now there were procedures to follow.
Once Jared Whitlow’s involvement was confirmed or ruled out, the custody of his children would be determined.
As for Lucas and I, all we wanted was time with our own children.
“Merry Christmas, Detectives,” Deputy Cartwright says as we climb into our cruiser. She and Cho wave us good-bye, then approach Gabby at the door of her Charger. They’d already grilled her on her involvement and she’d answered as best she could without giving too much away about how she works. Judging by the pinched look on her face now, they are asking her again.
I actually feel sorry for her. I ask Lucas to stop the car and then roll my window down.
“Gabby, you coming? We can follow each other back to River Bend.”
Cartwright and Cho step away and Gabby is soon following us back home.
Chapter 17
GABBY
Staying up all night, nearly drowning and the shock from Dustin saving me has really rattled my nerves. Several minutes wrapped in Lucas’s arms settled me down some, but I’m still shaking on the drive home. The heater is running at full blast, but I pulled over and stripped off my wet clothes after we left the Barr Harbor Beach Club. Sitting in my panties and bra on the cold leather seats is a bit chilly.
I’d called Lucas when I pulled over and told him what I was doing. I could tell by his tone that he’d rather be driving with me half naked than with Dustin, but even I could tell Dustin was in no shape to drive right now.
The sun is fully up and it’s officially Christmas morning. I’d called Grandma Dot and Mom to assure them we were all okay and would be at Dustin’s soon. They agreed to meet us there.
Olivia and Walker are either already up or soon would be. They would be clamoring to open presents. After everything I went through to get Olivia’s presents under Dustin’s tree, I want to be there to watch her open them.
Plus, I need to check on Alexis. She was a mess last night and I’m hoping she’s better today. I also need to explain to her how I lost her gun at the bottom of Harper Lake. Dustin had asked about the gun, but I lied and said it was the one I took from Grandma Dot a while back. The gun and how I came to have it is Alexis’s story, she can tell it when she’s ready.
All traces of last night’s storm are gone from the sky this morning. The bright blue seems improbable after the snow and ice of a few hours ago. The sun shines warm through the back patio door, bathing Dustin’s living room in light. The massive L-shaped couch is full of family, me snuggled up against Lucas’s shoulder, wearing some dry pajamas Grandma Dot thoughtfully brought me. Dustin and Alexis are similarly snuggled together on the other end of the couch. Mom sits between us, glowing with happiness.
Grandma Dot, in her usual involved way, is on the floor with Olivia and Walker handing out presents.
Exhaustion pulls at me and I lean heavily against Lucas.
Grandma Dot’s excited voice shakes me alert. “Here’s one for Gabby, from Lucas.”
The small box scares me. Rings come in small boxes.
I love this man, but I’m not ready for a ring yet.
I look at him as I take the box from Grandma’s hand. He isn’t moving from my side, not heading to the floor to drop to one knee.
I shake the box and hear the unmistakable sound of a chain inside. I give him a huge smile that I hope conveys happiness, not relief.
“Don’t look so terrified,” he teases. “Just open it.”
Ripping off the lovely, carefully taped paper, I open the gift. I lift the lid of the box and inside is a necklace. The dainty silver chain has two stylized hearts linked together. It’s romantic, but not cheesy.
“It’s perfect,” I breathe. “Just perfect.”
Lucas helps me put the necklace on and it nestles against my collarbone. I finger the metal, beaming with excitement.
He leans near my ear and whispers so only I can hear, “Not a ring, but maybe next year.”
I wrap my arms around him and kiss his stubbly cheek. “As long as I have you, I don’t need a ring.”
Grandma Dot clears her throat, tactfully reminding me that Olivia is watching.
I remove my arms from him and snuggle against his shoulder again. I take off my gloves and touch the linked heart charm with my bare fingers. A shiver of excitement fills me, caused by love, not my powers.
More gifts are opened and more happiness fills the room. I drift in and out of sleep. Behind me, on the table near the hall, the elf climbs the ladder, slides down, and then climbs again. The rhythmic sound of the elf combined with the even breathing of a dozing Lucas finally does me in and I fall asleep surrounded by those I love.
The End
Want more exciting books by Dawn Merriman, check out all her books on Amazon at Dawn Merriman.
The other books in this series, in case you missed them, are:
Book 1, “Message in the Bones”
Book 2, "Message in the Fire"
Book 3, "Message in the Grave"
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Other books you will love:
Marked by Darkness.
An intense psychological thriller.
Consumed with grief from losing her husband and children, Maribeth lives alone in a cabin in the woods. Haunted by her dead family and the choices that destroyed them, she just wants to heal. When a woman is murdered and left in her woods, Maribeth can no longer hide. The serial killer who destroyed her life has a copy cat determined to finish her off. Book #1 of the Maddison, IN Supernatural Thriller series.
Field of Flies
A Gripping Psychological Mystery Thriller
Two people want Zoey, dead. One is in her own mind. A
quiet, emotionally distressed, pig farmer is sucked into a murder investigation. But closing in on a killer is dangerous. Which is worse - a killer desperate to keep her from finding the truth - or the killer in her mind. Maybe she can stop them both….
A note from Dawn Merriman:
I hope you enjoyed this bonus book about Gabby and the gang. It was a fun book to write. Trying to mix a mystery in with Christmas was a light hearted challenge. Maybe there will be more Gabby books in the future, but I’m making no promises. I have other characters I want to introduce you to that I think you will love just as much.
If you are enjoying my books and would like to stay in touch, I am active on Facebook on an almost daily basis. I post excerpts from my books, funny crime or reading memes and other things related to my author career. Join my Official Fan Club on Facebook. Tell your friends, too. We have a lot of fun on the page. You can also sign up for my email newsletter at DawnMerriman.com and instantly get a Free short story.
If you have enjoyed this book or any of my other books, please take a moment to leave an honest review. Reviews really help.
Thanks for being such a good fan and reading my books.
God Bless,
Dawn Merriman
Here is the first chapter of “Marked by Darkness” Book #1 in the new Maddison, IN Supernatural Thriller series for your enjoyment.
Chapter 1
Maribeth
Living can be worse than death. Death requires no struggle. Death only requires giving in.
Life requires battle, a never-ending succession of skirmishes. Each day an agony of combat, each step a hard-won victory.
Today, my steps of victory crunch through melting snow and piles of fallen leaves. My legs burn, regardless of the cold. This daily run grounds me. I've kept the habit from before the police academy, through my detective career, and now here, one of the few things I kept from my previous life.
Message of Murder 04-Message in the Snow Page 11