But if Mark Wiseman begins to lose control of the curse, he will lose everything he has: his life and freedom, and the woman he loves.
They
They walk among us unnoticed, unassuming.
A year after the auto accident that killed his wife, Vince Walters is finally beginning to move forward with his life. With the support of friends, he’s digging back into his career and even beginning to date again.
When his estranged mother, Maggie Walters, is murdered, Vince is stunned by the hideous nature of the crime. Maggie lived a quiet life in a small, rural Pennsylvania town, attending church, reading the Bible, and subscribing to an increasingly paranoid view of the End Times as prophesied in The Book of Revelations. Her brutal killing, which bears all the signs of being related to a sinister satanic cult, is inexplicable given her life of faith.
However, a visit from a childhood playmate confirms what Vince is beginning to uncover about his mother’s past: that she was involved with a cult during his early childhood, but later defected and went into hiding with him. As hard as Maggie worked to bury her dark past, it seems that they finally found her.
Now they’ve found Vince. And this time, they are not going to give him up.
They have plans for him.
Praise for THEY:
“J. F. Gonzalez spins a great yarn, and this one is a classic example. Creepy, interesting and devious. I loved it.” Jonathan Maberry, NY Times Bestselling author of Rot and Ruin.
Acknowledgements
Once again, my thanks go to Gilbert Schloss for sowing such unwavering faith in my work, to my wife, Cathy J. Gonzalez, who has been my rock, and, my daughter, Hannah, whom I live for.
To Brian Keene for his unwavering support, friendship, and the pep talks when I needed it most; to Dave Nordhaus for all the moral support he relayed online; to Geoff Cooper for the friendship and the trips to the shooting range; to Glen and Emily Vasey for being the wonderful people and friends they are; to Chris Lacher, Rick Hautala, and Del Howison for providing distraction and a shoulder to lean on when we lost Bill; to Garret Peck and Bob Strauss for once again making sure my tie was knotted correctly and I looked presentable; and to my parents, Jesus and Glenda Gonzalez, and my in-laws, Joe and Lucy Becker, for being there.
Special acknowledgements must be made to Don D’Auria for bringing me into the fold and to my agent, Steve Calcutt, for his guidance and wisdom. I’d also like to thank David J. Schow, Dallas Mayr, Tim Lebbon, and Gerard Houarner for their much-needed and appreciated advice, and I must acknowledge the efforts of Michael Laimo, James A. Moore, Elizabeth Massie, Brian Keene, Brian Hodge, and Tom Picirilli for the online comraderie and, in some cases, helping me get the ball rolling.
To the reader: I’ve taken certain liberties with the setting of this story, especially the city government and police force of Gardena, California, which is located south of downtown Los Angeles and is part of Los Angeles County. The men and women who make up the Gardena Police Department are honest, hard-working people and they have my respect. St. Mark’s Catholic Church is not a real church (at least as it pertains to the setting of this story). The officers, government officials, and clergy members depicted in this story are fictitious and the events that take place in this novel are completely made up. Remember...that’s why it’s called fiction. None of this stuff really happened.
A Note on the 2013 Midnight Library edition
The Beloved was originally published in 2006 as a trade paperback from Midnight Library. This revised and preferred edition makes a number of corrections to that edition. This edition should constitute the definitive and final text. A special thanks to Lesley Conner for her generous assistance in helping me proof this edition.
This book is for my sister
Trish
No part of this book may be used or reproduced, stored into or introduced into a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or any other means now known or yet to be invented) without the prior written permission of the copyright holder, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews. For information, contact the author: www.jfgonzalez.com.
Translation: no part of this book may be reprinted without prior written permission from the author; that includes uploading digital editions onto file-sharing or bit-torrent networks and/or scanning pages of the paperback edition, creating a digital file, and uploading them to file-sharing/bit-torrent networks. Yes, this does constitute “reprinting”. It’s not the same as checking a copy out at the library or borrowing a copy from a friend. A copy of the book was made; hence, the “copy” in copyright. Committing any of these acts should result in your sudden death if done for financial gain on your part, or on that of the aforementioned file-sharing networks. If done out of ignorance of copyright law, I can cut some slack, and encourage you to either a) purchase a legal copy or, b) donate what I normally would have made had you bought your own copy ($2.99, pay-pal to [email protected]). Bottom line: if you do not have it in writing from the author, it isn’t authorized.
This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed are either fictitious or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events and individuals is coincidental. This book is sold as is and neither the publisher, nor the author, will be responsible for any direct or consequential damages that may arise from the misuse of the information within.
Bully © 2006 by J. F. Gonzalez
Cover Art © 2013by Kealan Patrick Burke for Elder Lemon Design
First Midnight Library eBook edition © 2012
All rights reserved
Midnight Library
Lititz, PA
Bully Page 37