Virtually Timeless

by Casi McLean

  “Gun.” Jill lunged forward and gave a hard kick straight into his groin. “That’s for assaulting me by the river in Connecticut.”

  His stare shot daggers, but rendered helpless, he groaned and coiled into a fetal position.

  “Damn.” The messenger stared at her. “And I thought I was coming here to rescue you.” He chuckled. “Wes Watley, ma’am. Glad you had my back.” He pushed the perp onto his belly and cuffed him.

  “Happy to be of service, Mr. Watley.” Jillian laughed.

  ❋

  “Thanks, Noah, for bringing me back to Atlanta and for letting me stay here for a while to recuperate.” Sydney smiled and sat on the white leather sofa.

  “And for saving your life.” He chimed in.

  She chuckled. “Yes, that, too.”

  “I swear, I lost all concept of time during the last few months. I had no idea Thanksgiving was only four days away.” Jillian stood at the kitchen counter, unpacking a bag of groceries.

  Sydney fluffed the pillow then turned slightly onto her side and gazed at the Atlanta cityscape. “I never get tired of your view, Noah.”

  “I love watching the sunset over Atlanta.” He leaned back into his favorite white leather overstuffed chair and took a sip of wine.

  “Me, too. Watching the sunset was the first thing I did the when I got here––before all hell broke loose.”

  “One more thing we have in common.” He turned to Syd and hitched his head toward Jillian. “And who knew this one was a gourmet chef?”

  “No kidding.” Syd widened her eyes toward Jill. “An ex-marine, a border control agent, and a gourmet chef?”

  “I’m hardly a gourmet chef,” Jillian refilled her wine glass. “Cooking is more like a hobby. I’ve always loved to create new flavor sensations and healthy dishes that actually taste good.” She strolled into the living room and gazed at the skyscape.

  Noah lifted a foot and rested his ankle on the opposite knee. “You can cook for me any time you want––except Thanksgiving. Tomorrow is my day to shine.”

  “Not a problem. I’m actually looking forward to your meal. But remember, if you need an assistant in the kitchen, I’ve got your back.”

  “Thanks. My sister usually gives me a hand, but this year she stays off her feet. Doctor’s orders.” He lifted a brow and stared at Sydney.

  “I promised Noah. I’ve got my Kindle and an Amazon Prime membership. I plan to sit back, read, and relax.” Her gaze drifted toward Jillian.

  A strong knock rapped on the door.

  Syd turned toward Noah. “Are you expecting anyone?”

  He stood and set his wine on the glass coffee table. “As a matter of fact, I am.” He paced toward the foyer.

  Syd slid a confused gaze toward Jillian. “Did I miss something, or are you in on this too?”

  Jillian smiled. “We thought you could use a good surprise for a change. I’ll be right back” She strolled into the kitchen.

  Syd wrinkled her forehead. What the heck were the two of them up to?

  “Right on time. Come on in, fellas.” Noah pranced into the great room with Wes, Clay, and Jack in tow. “Grab a chair, gentlemen. It’s high time we all relaxed.”

  “Sydney, you sure look a lot better than the last time we saw you.” Clay slid a dining room chair into the great room. “Here, Jack. Take a load off.” He reached for another chair and angled it where he could see both the cityscape and the group.

  Jack positioned his chair closer to the sofa then sat and leaned forward. “You are one amazing woman, Sydney Monaco. What you went through…and you still had the where-with-all to think of a plan to snag a bad guy. Remarkable.”

  Syd widened her eyes. “Oh, please, tell me what happened. I know Jillian kicked that thug where he deserved to be shot and brought him to his knees. And––”

  “Then Wes cuffed and hauled him away.” Jillian set another bottle of wine on the coffee table then offered Wes a glass. “So, what happened, Wes? Who was he and did he give up his partners?”

  Wes took a sip of wine before he replied. “He sang like a little bird, once I told him the FBI already found his diamonds. The guy’s name is Todd Guthrie. He and Fagan Maddox, a buddy from prison, apparently helped with or heard about a big diamond heist. When they were released, they tried to find the stash. You three just happen along at the wrong time. The FBI is working the case now.”

  Jillian shook her head. “Wow. So, they randomly targeted us because we were near the diamonds.” She handed a goblet to Clay and Jack. “Wine, gentlemen?”

  They nodded in tandem.

  Noah set his glass on the side table and rested his wrists on his knees. “What about Aunt Becky, Wes? Did you follow up on what Todd said?”

  “Sorry, man.” Wes paused and turned toward Syd.

  Noah dropped his gaze to the floor.

  “We don’t have proof, yet. But Todd confessed to save his own skin, insisting Fagan actually killed her,” Wes added.

  Sydney gasped. “Aunt Becky? Oh, no.” She closed her eyes and shook her head. “Noah, why didn’t you tell me?”

  He raised his gaze to meet Syd’s. “I wasn’t sure the guy was telling the truth. Wes said he’d follow up. No sense in mentioning the snide remark until we knew the facts.” He turned toward Jillian. “Sorry, everyone. This get-together is supposed to be a celebration. So, Jill, what’s for dinner tonight?”

  “Coquille St. Jacques with a Caprese Salad… basically scallops in a white wine sauce with tomatoes. I think it pairs beautifully with this Ferrari-Carano Fumé Blanc.”

  “Sounds delicious. The wine is quite good, too.” Syd peered at the tiny swallow in the glass. “Not that I was allowed much to taste.” She sent a snide look to her brother.

  “What? You just got out of the hospital, kiddo.” Noah winked.

  “I’m glad you like Ferrari-Carano. It’s one of my favorites.” Jillian gazed around the group of friends. “I’m deeply sorry about your aunt, Syd and Noah. But I’m so glad you were walking her property and found me. I don’t think I’d be alive today if you hadn’t made that trip to Sharon, Connecticut. You both saved my life, and I’m eternally grateful.”

  Syd nodded in agreement. “Jill’s right. I’m glad at least something good came out of Aunt Becky’s death. We’ve all had a challenging few months, but a lot to be thankful for, too.”

  “Finding your amulet has opened a new world of questions, Syd.” Jack leaned back in his chair. “I’m certainly thankful for your find…and meeting you as well.”

  “Reconnecting with both you and Noah has given me a sense of family I lost years ago,” Clay added.

  “All things work together for the greater good.” Noah gazed at Syd. “I’m so thankful my sister survived a fatal disease.”

  “And I’m thankful for my amazing brother.” A slight smile tugged at the corners of her lips at seeing the expression on Noah’s face when his gaze met Jillian’s. “We all make a pretty bad-ass team… with Micah and Jules, too. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.” Syd raised her glass. “To us.”

  Noah clinked the top of his glass on Syd’s. “To all of us.”

  Epilogue

  Sydney stood on the front porch of Aunt Becky’s home and gazed at an azure blue sky. The May sunshine warming her face, she breathed in deeply, filling her lungs with fresh mountain air and relishing the soft scent of spring flowers and new foliage. When visiting the mountain home she now adored, Syd hiked every day, usually on her favorite trail, a now well-traversed path to the old stone chamber. Today was such a day. The trek cleared her thoughts and invigorated her, knowing how much stronger she was now than six months ago… not only physically but mentally, too. She took a swig from her water bottle then tightened the cap and started her jog.

  The chaotic occurrences of last November now settled into the dusty corners of her memories. As traumatic as their ordeal was, once the events played out, the consequences opened a whole new world of paths and possibilities. As she hiked the tra
il, her thoughts reeled over the positive impact the nightmare sparked.

  For the first time in his life, Noah found someone he loved more than his career. His sense of challenge still thrived discovering rare diseases, but Jillian awakened a different passion and life he never dreamed possible.

  At his request, she moved into his condo, not because she had trouble creating a whole new life, but because she found one. Together, they opened a gourmet restaurant in the posh Brookhaven area of Atlanta, which Jill now runs. She employed a fabulous chef, so she could cook at her leisure and enjoy a less stressful life.

  Though no one could lure her away from Atlanta and the work she adored, Sydney spent more time in Connecticut, aware her business thrived in the capable hands of Luke, her new partner. Too many unanswered questions remained in Sharon, and her innate curiosity begged to be satisfied.

  Syd dug deeper into her aunt’s death. She learned the aunt she never knew she had was very much like her. Saddened she never had a chance to meet Aunt Becky face-to-face, Syd vowed to unravel the truth, and, in the process, she exposed Becky’s soul.

  After her husband’s death, Becky stayed in the home he built and wrote wonderful mystery stories. Her beloved tales thrust her into a career as a New York Times bestselling author. So, when a mystery presented in her own back yard, she fell into her element.

  Out on one of her daily walks, she saw two men burying a small tin box. Her curiosity got the best of her, so when they left, she dug down and discovered a bag of uncut diamonds and replaced them with pebbles. Though she tried, she never discovered the original owners, so she kept the gems behind a loose stone on her hearth.

  Ten years later, when Becky saw men lurking around the same area of her property, she took the diamonds on her daily walk and buried them in her favorite glen beneath the corner of a flat stone she used as a bench. Realizing her decision might place her life in danger, she drew a map and tucked it between the pages of one of her bestselling mystery books––a novel about stolen diamonds, a secret cellar, and a young female private eye. She left the book to Sydney in her will.

  When Syd finally read the will, she returned to Sharon. Not only did she follow the money to a decade-old, unsolved mystery, she solved the biggest diamond heist case in United States history. As much as she would have loved to keep the sparkling stone she found near the secret stone structure, she possessed a far greater prize––the sapphire amulet, a virtually timeless treasure, that was hers alone.

  Seeing the chamber ahead, she slowed her pace, edging downward on the narrow path to the glen. She sat on the rock slab where she first saw the uncut stones then dug into her pocket for her beautiful amulet. The piece still mesmerized Syd and she wished with all her heart her aunt could have seen the artifact.

  The sun, now high overhead, shone down in streams of gold, illuminating the tiny hollow with a mystical glow. The sapphire amulet in her palm utterly sparkled, reflecting the sunbeams with glistening radiance. With a finger, Sydney followed the intricate detailing around the gem, lightly brushing over each of the six diamond stones encircling the jewel. The sapphire glowed as if Syd’s touch activated an electric surge, then burst into a sparkling blaze of icy-blue swirling around her. As the mist cleared, Sydney vanished into the dusty haze.

  ~ The End ~

  Find Out What Happened To Sydney In Book One Of My New Timeless Series –– Coming Soon!

  If you’d like Jillian’s Coquille St. Jacques with a Caprese Salad recipe, be sure to check out my cookbook

  Virtually Yummy: Recipes that Inspire

  About This Book

  From USA Today Bestselling Author, Casi McLean, comes a gripping techno-thriller, part of a multi-author series tied together by an interlocking cast of characters, all centered around the fantastic new promise of high technology and the endless possibilities for crime that technology offers, in a world where getting away with murder can be not only plausible, but easy…if you just know how.

  This volume presents Sydney Monaco, an Atlanta-based private detective, and her twin Noah Monaco, a Rare Disease Specialist who stumble on a murder case. To solve the mystery, characters from the other volumes come in to lend them a hand before the murderer strikes again.

  Twins, Sydney Monaco—an Atlanta-based private detective, and Noah Monaco, a Rare Disease Specialist at Emory Hospital in Atlanta, inherit property in Connecticut. Noah goes to check out the estate. During their last phone call, he tells his sister he plans to walk the grounds, which includes acres and acres of property.

  While he hikes the woods, he witnesses what looks like a potential rape in progress and intervenes. Grabbing the culprits gun he holds him at bay while inspecting the girl’s wounds. The man runs off while Noah is distracted. Instead of chasing the man Noah chooses to attend to the girl. Something strange about her intrigues him. When she suddenly accuses him of shooting her and runs off. Noah chases her until he slips and rolls down the mountainside and is knocked unconscious.

  When his sister doesn’t hear from him, she follows him to Connecticut, then traces the GPS of his phone. While searching for the device, Sydney stumbles upon an old root cellar hidden beneath a mass of foliage. Was she enters, a bat flies straight at her. Off balance, she falls backward against the rock wall, jarring some rocks to the ground. She sees an amulet that fell from the wall, picks it up and stuffs it into her backpack.

  After hours of searching, Sydney finds the injured Noah lying by the creek, being attended by a young girl. Noah has finally gained her trust and convince her to go back to the house. Since the unknown woman refuses to get in a car or go with Noah anywhere, he is challenged to figure out her illness and who she is.

  While Noah tries to determine why the young girl acts so strangely, Sydney’s Private Eye curiosity gets the best of her and she takes the amulet to the University of Connecticut Technology department to learn more about the piece. They tell her it dates back 3000 years and is Celtic…which Sydney sees as impossible. They also note the alloys woven in with the gold are made from unknown elements, from a technology far beyond the scope of ours. Sydney has found an amulet that is not only unusual technologically, apparently the piece is wanted by someone who is willing to kill for it.

  In order to get answers before the villains catch up to them, the twins use cutting-edge technology to unravel the mystery of both cases and how they are connected.

  About High-Tech Crime Solvers

  High-Tech Crime Solvers includes:

  Virtually Lace by Uvi Poznansky:

  Michael Morse, an expert in VR simulation, stumbles on a dead body on the beach. A suspect himself, can Michael stay free for long enough to identify the real culprit?

  Virtually Undead by Robert I. Katz:

  Neurosurgeon Michael Foreman is drawn into a twisted conspiracy when his best friend is murdered playing a new video game, Virtually Undead.

  Virtually Harmless by P. D. Workman:

  Private consultant Micah Miller’s involvement in law enforcement is limited to the composite pictures that she produces with her computer and colored pencils. But everything is turned upside down when she involves herself in the case of an infant found abandoned in the Sweetgrass Hills.

  Virtually Dead by Edwin Dasso:

  When multiple executives in Vancouver begin disappearing and are then found dead with no signs of trauma, private investigator and former FBI agent Wes Watley is asked by a friend of a friend to investigate.

  Virtually Timeless by Casi McLean:

  Twins Sydney and Noah Monaco become involved in a conspiracy involving attempted rape, kidnapping, assault and an ancient artifact that isn’t supposed to exist.

  Virtually Gone by Jacquie Biggar:

  When Detective Matthew Roy and reporter Julie Crenshaw are called on to investigate a string of sexual abuse cases, they don’t expect Julie to land in the crosshairs of a serial killer.

  Virtually Undetectable by Libby Fischer Hellmann:

  Fired Bank Manager Rachel Fo
reman and her mother, renowned investigator Ellie Foreman, track through the lawless corners of the web to find out who is targeting the female CEO of a Fortune 500 company who is accused of murdering a disgruntled former employee.

  Virtually Impossible by Barbara Ebel:

  Dr. Hook Hookie extrapolates genetic information that informs patients of their hereditary health risks. But he isn't the only one with a use for the high-tech genetic machinery—a villainess with ill purposes stalks the Medical Center.

  In addition, the authors compiled a cookbook with recipes cooked by their characters:

  Virtually Yummy: Recipes that Inspire

  The recipes in this book come from different sources: some of them are family recipes, some were garnered from our travels around the world, and others—inspired by our research, which enables us to write about the adventures of our characters and their culinary feats. But no matter where these recipes come from, we find them not only delicious but also inspiring. We hope you will too.

  About the Author

  USA Today & Amazon Best Selling Author, Casi McLean, pens novels to stir the soul with romance, suspense, and a sprinkle of magic. Her writing crosses genres from ethereal, captivating shorts with eerie twist endings to believable time slips, mystical plots, and sensual romantic suspense.

  Known for enchanting stories with magical description, McLean entices readers with fascinating hooks to hold them captive in storylines they can't put down. Her romance entwines strong, believable heroines with delicious, hot heroes to tempt the deepest desires, then fans the flames, sweeping readers into their innermost romantic fantasies.

  With suspenseful settings and lovable characters you'll devour, you'll see, hear, and feel the magical eeriness of one fateful night. You'll swear time travel could happen, be mystified by other worldly images, and feel the heat of romantic suspense, but most of all you'll want more.