Dead Too Soon: A Thriller (Val Ryker series Book 3)
Page 28
“Up two steps.”
Her leg was still weak, her arm bandaged and numb and propped in a sling. But while, a few days ago, she would have had trouble climbing the stairs, today it was beginning to seem less impossible. She marched through an open door and the smell of fresh paint and carpet tickled her nose.
“Ready?”
“Yes.”
He took off the blindfold.
Val blinked against the sunlight streaming through the window and focused on the living room of her house. Clean paint covered the ceiling and walls. Fresh carpet stretched over the floor. The clock and mother’s curio cabinet looked good as new. The living room sported a new couch, chair, coffee table, and television. Val walked to the staircase, marveling at the new railing, the pristine walls.
Grace’s healing face smiled at her from the kitchen. “What do you think? I picked out the furniture. Well, except for the swatches and stuff you chose. And I didn’t pick out the TV. I was going to get a small one, but David said this one was better for watching movies.”
Val tore her eyes from the new décor and focused on the two most important people in her life. “It looks fantastic. You guys did a great job.”
Grace beamed. “I love it, too. It’s almost like he was never even here.”
Of course, all of them knew that would never be the case. Some things could never be fixed. From the little things, like Val’s mother’s Hummel figurines, to the big things, the life-altering things.
The world without Oneida was a darker and less efficient place.
Grace had changed. She’d grown up. Mostly in a good way, but there was something else, too. Something harder. Tougher. Like scar tissue.
And although Val hadn’t directly taken Hess’s life, she was far from innocent. She would carry that burden until the day she died.
Until the day she died…
“Mail’s here,” Grace said and slammed out the kitchen door. A few seconds later, she was back, a box in her hand along with the usual bills.
Bills Val had no idea how she was going to pay.
The sound of a truck’s engine and horse’s whinny came through the still-open door.
“They’re back!” Grace half threw the box and envelopes at Val and bounded back outside to welcome the horses back from their Illinois vacation.
Val shuffled through the bills. Heat and electricity. A credit card she was careful to pay off every month. Then she picked up the box. A little larger than a tissue box, the package bore no return address.
Lund peered over her shoulder. “She said she was sending you something.”
“She?”
“Chandler.”
Val set the box on the table along with the bills. “I don’t want anything from that woman.”
“She said you might say that. She also said you would want this.”
Val eyed the box. “What is it, a bomb?” she said sarcastically.
“Open it.”
“You know what it is? Are you in on this?”
Lund shook his head. He filled her in on their brief meeting at the hospital. “Open it.”
Val carried the package into the kitchen and slit it open with a utility knife. Packing paper filled most of the space. She pulled it out, leaving an envelope and a brown paper bag.
She opened the bag first, almost dropping it when she saw what was inside. Chills raced up her arms and settled at the back of her neck. She offered Lund a peek.
“A Buck knife,” he said. “Hess’s QuickFire.”
Val would remember it forever, the shape of the blade, the blue handle. Blood still dulled the stainless steel edge. Val’s blood. Probably other people’s blood, too.
She searched Lund’s eyes. “How did she get this?”
“I knew it. It makes sense.” He looked touched, emotional, maybe a little relieved.
“What makes sense?”
“What Chandler said at the hospital… she made it sound as if she was there that night. As if she’d escaped the floodwater and was there.”
Val’s fingers trembled as she opened the envelope. She pulled out a plain sheet of paper, the handwriting simple and blocked.
Val—
You might have thought you were like me the last seven days, but you’re not. Hess’s death was never your burden. It’s mine.
—C
Val handed the note to Lund and peered back at the blood-dulled blade.
Lund lowered the note and stared at her. “The blood. It’s Hess’s?”
Val stared into the bag. Hess’s blood and hers. Mingled. “There’s a DNA analyst at the state crime lab, Allison Fitzroy, she would test if for me if I asked. She owes me a favor.”
“And then what? You go after Chandler? For murder? The only fingerprints on that besides Hess’s are mine.”
If Val was still a police officer, she supposed she would have to turn it over to someone to investigate. It would be her duty. As it was… “There isn’t enough evidence. We don’t even have a body.”
“Chandler is a professional. We probably never will.”
Val searched Lund’s eyes. “He’s dead, though, isn’t he?”
“Yeah. He’s dead.”
Val closed the bag and let the situation sink in. She hadn’t killed Hess. And Hess hadn’t killed himself. A crazy, rogue government assassin had finished the job.
Chandler had done what she’d promised. She’d shouldered the responsibility. The guilt. And Dixon Hess would never be coming back.
It was over.
Val felt light, lighter than she’d felt in a long time. She looked up at Lund, his face wavy through her tears. He gathered her into his arms. For several minutes, she just stood there, her head on his shoulder, soaking in his warmth like a flower soaks up sun. Then, gathering her courage, she looked up at him. “I will.”
“Will what?”
“Marry you. I will marry you.”
He kissed her, long and deep, and when the kiss ended, he looked at her, staring intently as if memorizing her face, memorizing the moment. “I love you, Val.”
“I love you, too.”
“I still think I’m pushing you.”
“You’re not.”
“I am.”
“Maybe.”
“I’m pushing.”
“A little.”
“Too fast.”
“I guess.”
“But you want to get married, right?” Lund asked. “You really do?”
“I just said so.”
“And you’re sure?”
“You’re my oxygen, Lund. Without you, I can’t breathe.”
His face opened up in a grin. “Then what do you say we try a long engagement. No date. No plans. Just patch our world back together and enjoy being alive.”
“I’d like that.”
Enjoy being alive.
Val wasn’t sure life could actually be that simple, but it was certainly worth a try.
About the Author
Ann Voss Peterson is the author of over thirty novels and has millions of books in print all over the globe. Winner of the prestigious Daphne du Maurier Award and a Rita finalist, Ann is known for her adrenaline-fueled thrillers, including the Codename: Chandler spy thrillers she writes with J.A. Konrath and her own thriller series featuring small-town Wisconsin police chief Val Ryker. She lives near Madison, Wisconsin, with her family and their border collie.
Visit Ann at www.AnnVossPeterson.com, and check out the behind-the-scenes research that goes into her books. To hear about new releases and win the occasional prize, sign up to receive Ann’s newsletter. And leave a review to let others know how you liked the book.
Ann’s Thrillers
Val Ryker Series
PUSHED TOO FAR
BURNED TOO HOT
DEAD TOO SOON
WATCHED TOO LONG (with J.A. Konrath)
The Codename: Chandler Thrillers
(written with J.A. Konrath)
HIT
EXPOSED
&
nbsp; NAUGHTY
FIX (with F. Paul Wilson)
RESCUE
FLEE
SPREE
THREE
Short Stories
BABE ON BOARD (with J.A. Konrath)
WILD NIGHT IS CALLING (with J.A. Konrath)
THE SCHOOL (A Supernatural Thriller)
Keep a lookout for Ann’s upcoming Small Town Secrets series.
Acknowledgments
As always, I owe many thanks to my team.
To my research team, who, through citizen academies, allowing me to participate in training exercises, and personally answering my questions, gave me the background to spin these tales (all inaccuracies and poetic license belong to me): Officer Greg Dixon, Officer David Kasdorf, Detective David Haselow, former Middleton Police Chief Brad Keil, current Middleton Police Chief Chuck Foulke, Middleton Fire District Chief Aaron Harris, Battalion Chief/Community Education Specialist Brad Subera, and the Dane County Sheriff’s department. Also to the Writer’s Police Academy and all the instructors who take part.
To my editing team: J.A. Konrath, F. Paul Wilson, Carol Voss, Maria Konrath, and Amy Knupp at Blue Otter Editing.
To my production team: Carl Graves at Extended Imagery, and Rob and Amy Siders at 52 Novels.
And most of all, endless thanks to my readers. I hope you enjoyed the story!
—AVP
Cast of Characters
Police Chief Valerie Ryker – Val has had her hands full since becoming the first female police chief of Lake Loyal, Wisconsin. But now her nemesis, Dixon Hess, has escaped from the county jail, and Val and everything she loves is in his crosshairs.
Assistant Fire Chief David Lund – Lund will do anything to keep Val and Grace safe, even sacrifice what he believes in most.
Grace Ryker – Val’s niece is a brilliant girl with a bright future. Past trauma at the hands of Dixon Hess has left her shaken. But Grace Ryker hasn’t even begun to fight.
Dixon Hess – The killer is free and bent on revenge.
Sergeant Pete Olson – Val’s right-hand man used to dream of being chief.
Oneida Perkins – The hyper-efficient dispatcher and all-around mother grizzly runs the Lake Loyal Police Department.
Carla Tiedemann – The disturbed woman thinks she has finally found her perfect family, her perfect love, and she’ll do anything to keep it.
Ethan Tiedemann – The innocent toddler is the son of Dixon Hess.
Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels – Retired from the Chicago PD and now working as a private investigator, Jack is always there for Val. Look for more stories featuring Jack Daniels in J.A. Konrath’s Jack Daniels Thrillers.
Harry McGlade – The private investigator might be more of a public dick, but when Val needs someone to rely on, he always comes through. Look for more stories including Harry McGlade in J.A. Konrath’s Jack Daniels Thrillers.
Chandler – She’s an elite spy who used to work for a secret government agency. Trained by the best of the best, she has honed her body, her instincts, and her intellect to become the perfect weapon. Look for more stories featuring Chandler in the Codename: Chandler thriller series, written by Ann Voss Peterson and J.A. Konrath.
Public Servant Cheat Sheet
The Lake Loyal Police Department:
Police Chief Valerie Ryker
Sergeant Pete Olson
Officer Christopher Edgar
Officer Ginny Jones
Dispatcher Oneida Perkins
The Lake Loyal District Fire Department:
Chief David Lund
Captain Tom Dempsey
Firefighter Jorge Sandoval
Firefighter Kyle Blaski
Firefighters Hoffstetter, Vaughan
Lake Loyal EMS:
Jim Baker
Oscar Carruthers
Lake Loyal Village Government:
Village President Haselow
Village Administrator Cheyenne Perkins
County Officials:
Coroner Harlan Runk
Emergency Response Commander Bobby Vaughan
District Attorney Investigator Al Mylinski
DEAD TOO SOON
Copyright © 2016 by Ann Voss Peterson
Cover and art copyright © 2016 by Carl Graves
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the author.
May 2016