He was delusional. There was no way around it. He honestly believed she was going to fall in love with him after he admitted he was a murderer. “I’m never going to be with you, Max.”
“Never say never. There’s nothing standing in our way now, Maddie. We can have everything.”
“There’s one thing standing in your way.”
Maddie had no idea how long Nick had been standing there, but the look on his face told her he’d heard at least a portion of Max’s story. Max jumped when he saw him, fear flitting across his features as he realized his happily ever after was about to take a turn. “How did you find us?”
“I had a little help,” Nick said, his gaze touching on Maddie before returning to the threat in the room. “How do you think you’re going to get away with this, Max?”
“I’ve got it all planned out,” Max said. “I’m going to kill you and Cassidy and bury your bodies in the woods. I had to keep Cassidy alive long enough to kill you together, just in case your bodies were discovered. Once that’s taken care of, I’m going to tell Aaron the truth and if he refuses to give me what’s mine then I’m going to sue him and take it.”
“You can’t sue Aaron because your grandfather refused to acknowledge you,” Nick said, forcing himself to remain calm. “Big Jim had an ironclad will. A judge isn’t going to overturn that.”
“I have biology on my side.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Nick said. “People leave blood relatives out of their wills all the time. It doesn’t mean a thing. You’re not going to get a piece of the Denton pie. You’re not a Denton. You never were.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Max said, his mind clearly working overtime. “I … no … I have this all planned out.”
“Well, you’re done,” Nick said. “You’re not going to hurt Cassidy, and I can guarantee you’re never going to lay a hand on Maddie. I’ll kill you first.”
“You’re going to have to,” Max said. “This is the life I’ve been dreaming of for as long as I can remember. No one is keeping me from it.” Max moved quickly, launching himself at Nick. Nick must have been expecting it, though, because he caught him in midair and slammed him into the wall behind him.
Maddie glanced over at Cassidy, finding the woman much more alert than she had been a few minutes before. “Get up,” she instructed. “Move over by that wall.”
Cassidy didn’t argue. Maddie followed her away from the fight, knowing she couldn’t help Nick. She was a distraction, and she wasn’t going to put him at risk. Rose was still hovering in the corner, her face a mask of horror and sadness as she watched the two men grapple with each other. She seemed lost in thought until a high-pitched keening shattered the tableau.
“He’s coming,” Rose said, turning to Maddie with a fearful expression on her face. “It’s Jim. He’s here.”
“He’s coming for Max,” Maddie said. “Max killed him and then left. When that happened, all the rage Big Jim was feeling at the moment of his death had nowhere to go. Once Max returned, Big Jim had an outlet.”
“Are you sure?” Rose asked.
“I’m sure,” Maddie said, turning her attention back to the fight and moving toward Nick with a purpose. She had to separate the two men, and she had to do it now.
Nick slammed Max’s head into the hard floor, jolting him twice and knocking him senseless. He was about to do it a third time when Maddie stilled him with a hand on his shoulder. “That’s enough,” she said.
“Do you have any idea what he was going to do to you, Maddie?”
“I do,” Maddie said. “Come with me.”
“What?” Nick was incredulous.
The wailing increased to a point where Maddie wasn’t the only one who could hear it.
“What is that?” Cassidy asked, clamping her hands over her ears.
“Retribution,” Maddie said, tugging on Nick’s arm and pulling him away from Max.
“Maddie, what are you doing?”
At that moment, a bright light exploded in the center of the room. Big Jim’s poltergeist was screaming as his ethereal hands reached for Max. In his final moments, recognition washed over Max’s face. He saw his own killer, just like Big Jim did the night he died. Nick instinctively sheltered Maddie with his body, covering her head as Max began to scream.
Max didn’t stop screaming until the final breath left his body.
Twenty-Six
“Does someone want to tell me what happened here?”
Dawn climbed the horizon a few hours after emergency personnel arrived. Dale Kreskin wasn’t far behind, and after collecting evidence and checking the body, he was now delving into the big questions. The inhabitants of the Denton mansion were exhausted, but they had answers to give – even if some people were reticent to supply them.
Aaron was in shock as Max’s body was hauled out of the basement. Nick pulled him aside long enough to explain everything. Disbelief and grief crippled Aaron quickly, and now he was sitting on the ground and staring at the rising sun. There was nothing anyone could do for him – not now, at least – so they left him with his thoughts and regret. He’d lost his best friend and cousin in one fell swoop. This wasn’t something he was ever going to be able to wrap his mind around without time to digest it.
Nick rocked Maddie in his arms as Kreskin questioned them. He needed her close. He had no idea how he was going to explain the poltergeist, especially since it dissipated in the immediate aftermath of Max’s death. Surprisingly, Cassidy handled it for him.
“He was crazy,” she said. “Nick saved us. I think he must have hit his head when he fell.”
“Is that what happened?” Kreskin asked, clearly suspicious.
“Yes,” Nick said, shooting Cassidy a grateful look.
“Well, I guess that’s as good of an explanation as any,” Kreskin said. “Cassidy, you should probably go to the hospital. We have no idea what Max shot you up with.”
“Sure,” Cassidy said, pulling the blanket the paramedics supplied her with tighter around her neck. “I just want to talk to Nick and Maddie for a minute first.”
Kreskin merely nodded and moved down the lawn in Aaron’s direction. Nick knew he didn’t believe their story. Most of it was true, but Max’s death was hard to explain. Kreskin couldn’t argue with three witnesses, though, and it didn’t appear that he wanted to.
“Thank you for finding me, Maddie,” Cassidy said sincerely. “I would’ve died down there if it wasn’t for you.”
“I didn’t do anything that anyone else wouldn’t have done,” Maddie said.
“Yes, you did,” Cassidy said. “I … I’m not sure that we can ever be friends. There’s always going to be a part of me that believes you took something from me.”
Ironically, Maddie knew exactly how she felt.
“I am sorry for spying on you, though, and I promise I won’t make more problems for the two of you,” Cassidy said. “I know now that you two love each other. I know you were destined to be together. It still hurts, but it’s time I get over it. You’re happy, and I need to find a way to be happy myself.
“I don’t know how I’m going to do it,” she continued. “I do know that I’m going to do it, though. I want what you have. I just need to find someone who wants it with me.”
“You’ll find it,” Nick said, rubbing soothing circles on Maddie’s back as he kept her tight against his chest. “You’re a good person. I have faith you’ll find everything you want in life.”
“I hope so,” Cassidy said. “The good news for me is that the paramedic is kind of hot.”
Maddie smiled. She couldn’t help herself. “Good luck.”
“You, too.”
Once it was just the two of them, Nick turned his somber brown eyes to Maddie. “You’re in trouble, love.”
“What?”
“You promised me you were going to stay in the dining room,” Nick said. “You broke that promise.”
“Rose showed up. I had to follow her.�
�
“Speaking of Rose, where is she?”
“Big Jim’s poltergeist was the one keeping her here,” Maddie said. “At first it was her anger. She let that go a long time ago, though. She should’ve been able to cross over then. He trapped her here. He needed someone to control, and she was his only option. As soon as he left, she was able to go.”
“Are you sure he left?”
“I felt him leave,” Maddie said. “He was trapped here until he could express his rage. The only one he could do that with was Max. Ironically, if Max had stayed away longer, Big Jim would still be haunting his precious house.”
“So both Big Jim and Rose are gone?”
“Yes.”
“You’re still in trouble,” Nick said.
“Nicky, I didn’t mean to break my promise,” Maddie said, earnestness washing over her face. “I had to follow Rose. I had to find Cassidy. If I hadn’t done it … .”
“Cassidy would probably be dead,” Nick finished.
“And you, too.”
“I was already suspicious of Max,” Nick said. “There’s no way he could’ve gotten the drop on me.”
“We’ll just have to agree to disagree,” Maddie said. “I really am sorry. I would never purposely lie to you.”
Nick sighed, weariness getting the better of him. He lowered his mouth and kissed her softly. “I’m going to let it go, love. I’m too tired to fight.”
“What happens now?”
“Now Kreskin has his suspicions, but he won’t be able to prove anything,” Nick said. “We’re going to go upstairs and spend exactly five minutes packing up our stuff. Then we’re going to drive to our home and go to bed for the rest of the day.”
“Our home?”
“Our home,” Nick confirmed. “We’re never going to be apart again, Mad. That’s a promise I’m going to make to you, and I’ll never break it.”
“I promise that I’ll always love you,” Maddie said.
“Good,” Nick said. “I can’t imagine living the rest of this life – or the next – without you.”
“You’ll never have to.”
Nick kissed Maddie one more time and then started pulling her toward the house. He was eager to collect their belongings and leave the Denton mansion. What started as a reunion had ended in tragedy. They still had a happy home of their own to enjoy, though.
“Nicky?”
“Hmm.”
“I don’t suppose you’d be willing to stop at the diner for breakfast on our way home, would you? I’m starving.”
Nick considered the suggestion. “We’ll get it to go,” he said. “I wasn’t joking when I said we were spending the day in bed.”
“I promise to enjoy every second of it,” Maddie teased.
That was a promise they were both eager to keep.
Up Next
Maddie Graves and Nick Winters are officially living together. Life couldn’t look much brighter. They have a week off to spend together, and Nick’s idea of a relaxing vacation involves staying home and doing absolutely nothing.
That all changes when Nick’s mother reminds him of a longstanding family camping trip, and before Maddie and Nick can comprehend what a change in their plans really means, they find themselves mired in a Winters family reunion that goes wonky.
It was supposed to be campfires, ghost stories and kayaking. Instead trouble is stalking the family, and it’s coming from multiple directions.
Between Nick’s sister Kelly, who doesn’t believe Maddie is back to stay and holds a bitter grudge, and the cries Maddie keeps hearing in her dreams, the couple’s vacation is starting to feel a lot like work.
Maddie is determined to win Kelly over, but when a shadowy figure sets his sights on Nick’s niece Hayley, all bets are off.
Maddie, Nick, and Kelly are going to have to work together to save Hayley, and when the truth is finally revealed, everyone will see a side of evil they never knew existed.
Grave Concerns is available here.
Author’s Note
I’m a romantic at heart. A true romantic. I love the idea of a happy ending, so much so I have trouble writing a sad one. The world is sad enough. I like escaping in fiction. That’s just me. I like sarcasm and snark – but I’m not sure a sad ending is in me. If you’re looking for an edge like that, you’re probably looking in the wrong place. Just FYI.
If you’re interested in upcoming releases, follow me on Facebook and Twitter. I do not spam. I don’t believe it and, as a reader, I find it annoying. Only new release information and special sales promotions will be posted.
This book is available for lending. Please do so.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.
Books by Lily Harper Hart
Hardy Brothers Security
Deadly Intentions
Deadly Intuition
Deadly Illusions
Deadly Proposal
Deadly Prospects
Deadly Ever After
Deadly Honeymoon
Deadly Questions
Deadly Addition
Deadly Vacation
Deadly Secrets
Deadly Storm
Deadly Dealings
Deadly Christmas
Deadly Desperados
Deadly Arrival (February 2016)
Deadly Rivalry (April 2016)
Deadly Memories (Coming Soon)
Deadly Adventure (Coming Soon)
Deadly Reunion (Coming Soon)
Deadly Conflict (Coming Soon)
Deadly Payback (Coming Soon)
Deadly Waters (Coming Soon)
Deadly Forever (Coming Soon)
A Maddie Graves Mystery
Grave Homecoming
Grave Insight
Grave Delight
Grave Misgivings
Grave Concerns
Grave Discovery (February 2016)
Grave Decisions (Coming Soon)
Grave Seasons (Coming Soon)
Grave Holiday (Coming Soon)
An Ivy Morgan Mystery
Wicked Days
Wicked Dreams
Wicked Times (December 2015)
Wicked Places (March 2016)
Wicked Warning (Coming Soon)
Wicked Fog (Coming Soon)
Wicked Seasons (Coming Soon)
Wicked Winter (Coming Soon)
A Harper Harlow Mystery
Ghostly Interests
Ghostly Issues (January 2016)
Ghostly Deceits (Coming Soon)
Ghostly Worries (Coming Soon)
Ghostly Images (Coming Soon)
Ghostly Wrecks (Coming Soon)
Ghostly Asylum (Coming Soon)
Grave Misgivings Page 20