by Nadirah Foxx
Copyright 2020 by Avanturine Press, LLC
All rights reserved worldwide
Published March 31, 2020
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the express written permission of the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of this author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Cover Design by Deranged Doctor Design
Editing by Tia Silverthorne Bach
Formatting by Avanturine Press, LLC
For more information about this book and the author visit:
https://nadirahfoxx.wordpress.com/blog/
“I will not fail my family or the citizens of my town.”
Kerrie King
Prologue
A Tragic Beginning
Ryan
It was a Friday night. No different from any other, and I was on my way home after a long day at Sentinel Security—my cybersecurity firm. I had already swung by the daycare center and picked up Ryan Junior. Whenever my wife worked late at the Liberty City Police Department, I took care of our child. I believed in doing whatever was necessary for the sake of my loved ones.
Kerrie Thomas and I met as sophomores in high school. We married after college graduation, fulfilling everyone’s expectations. Not only did we tie the knot, but we had the idyllic suburban lifestyle. As a CEO, I was able to make it happen. The love of my life deserved anything and everything I could do for her.
Glancing in the rearview mirror, I smiled at the delightful two-year-old asleep in his car seat. The chubby toddler inherited his mother’s honey-maple blond hair and smoky-gray eyes. His heartbreaker smile was all mine though. Poor kid would be a handful when he got older. Although I was only interested in my spouse, I still had to beat off admirers.
Speaking of Kerrie…
Using the hands-free setup, I dialed her number. As soon as the call connected, I responded with a cheery, “Hey, babe.”
“Hi, sweetie. Is RJ with you?”
“He’s sleeping soundly in the rear seat. You sound tired. Want me to start dinner?”
“That would be amazing.” She yawned. “Mm…sorry. It’s been insane around here. Can’t wait to see you.”
“Same here. Oh, I have something to show you later.”
Her voice perked up. “Is it that project you’ve been working on?”
“It is,” I said proudly, switching lanes. A horn blasted and snagged my attention. “Babe, I’d better go. You know how crazy the roads can be on a Friday.”
“Okay, Ryan. Give RJ a kiss for me when you get home. Be careful.”
“You too. Love you.”
“Right back at ya!”
She disconnected, and I focused on the road ahead.
Within minutes, I exited the interstate and entered the quiet bedroom-community of Liberty Heights. Unlike the turbulent metropolis, the burgh was the perfect place to settle down. Sprawling immaculate houses with well-tended lawns was the kind of town where kids could play safely. Residents could leave their homes unlocked without fear.
Despite Kerrie’s preference for downtown, I persuaded her that the outskirts of Liberty City were better for raising a family. The best thing about Liberty Heights? People respected one another. I didn’t have to worry about my neighbors wanting to chit-chat about my personal business. Back in Liberty, it seemed like everyone wanted to gossip about what other people did or didn’t do. I was a man who cherished his privacy.
Pulling my black Lincoln Navigator into the driveway, I forwent the garage since I planned to slip out after Kerrie arrived. As I removed my still sleeping son from the car seat, my mind returned to my special project. My team at Sentinel had worked on the task for months. I was almost ready to reveal it to the public, but I desired Kerrie’s input first. Because we crafted it specifically for her body type, it seemed only right that she saw it before anyone else.
Shutting the vehicle’s door, I tucked RJ close to me and crossed the short distance to the front of the house. For a fleeting second, I considered trimming the overgrown hedges. Despite living in a safe neighborhood, it was unwise to let the landscape become unruly. It created a dangerous barrier between the house and approaching strangers. I made a mental note to call the gardener the next morning and have him make a second trip out.
A distinct click forced my eyes up. Someone pointed the barrel of a gun at the base of my son’s skull.
Swallowing hard, I said, “You can have whatever you wish. Just don’t shoot.”
The burglar, wearing a dark ski mask, laughed. “I’ve already taken what I want.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. Everything would be fine. I hadn’t seen the burglar’s face. Surely, the intruder would simply leave. But as fate would have it, RJ woke up. His head swiveled around, and he cried. Loudly.
“Shut that brat up!”
Bouncing my boy, I said in a shaky voice, “Shh. It’ll be okay.”
The perpetrator hesitated for a moment as if he was considering letting us go. Suddenly, his partner-in-crime ran outside. He was moving so fast. The masked man didn’t have time to react.
What happened next was like a scene from a movie played at half-speed.
A body propelled forward and bumped into mine. The revolver slid from his hand. Pop!
RJ’s torso jerked.
I screamed.
My lungs burned. I couldn’t breathe. My legs collapsed, and we crashed to the ground. I expected cold. Instead, I felt a spreading warmth.
The overrun bushes became fuzzy. Everything near me went dim. Except for their voices.
“What the fuck?” the gunman shouted.
“We gotta get outta here.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
Quick footsteps collided with the sidewalk. Soon, it was eerily silent. The men weren’t going for help. They left RJ and me to die.
I’d imagined a lot of things in my lifetime. Dying wasn’t one of them, especially holding my child. As my life slipped away, I thought about Kerrie and the life I’d miss with her. We’d wanted more children. Pain coursed through me—partly from my wound and partly from the realization that there’d be no more tomorrows.
For a split second, I remembered my phone—in the SUV.
No way could I get to it.
I couldn’t count on my neighbors either.
Blackness descended upon me. The suburbs had a benefit but not at that moment. Right then, I didn’t need residents who kept to themselves. Truth be told, the privacy it afforded cost me more than I could pay.
Sadly, those nonintrusive neighbors were nowhere around.
1
It Hits Hard
For some unknown reason, computer-related felonies seemed to escalate. It created a long, hectic week at the precinct. Out of the blue, Liberty City had become a hotbed for miscellaneous crimes. Our captain, Cedric Stratham, didn’t take the situation seriously. He claimed nothing out of the ordinary was happening, but I begged to differ.
As a cybercrime analyst for the LCPD, I had carefully studied the reports. Data didn’t lie. The recurrent incidents shouldn’t be dismissed or downplayed.
“Heading home, Kerrie?” Josh Reynolds, my best friend and co-worker, leaned over the divider separating our stations.
“In a few minutes,” I said with a weary smile. “Any plans for the weekend
?”
“Naw. I’ll probably binge-watch a show on Netflix.” He raked a hand through his dark wavy hair. “Just my usual Friday.”
The man was undeniably handsome with amazing azure-colored eyes and an athletic build. I learned he’d suffered yet another break-up, but I was hoping he’d get back out there and find someone worthy of him.
“Since you don’t have any real plans, you could come by the house. Maybe hang out with Ryan?” My face scrunched up into a conspiratorial grin. “I think he might have tickets to tonight’s game.”
Josh’s gaze brightened with the prospect of going to see his beloved basketball team. The preseason match-up between the Patriots and the Crusaders sold out weeks prior.
“I might do that.” He put on his jacket and slung his backpack over his shoulder. “Ready to go? I’ll walk you out.”
“Almost. I have to finish this report, and then I can leave.”
He nodded. “Okay. Don’t forget to call me when you get in.”
“I won’t.” It was our routine. Whenever I worked late, I’d contact Josh so he knew I made it home safe and sound. He was like an older brother to me. “Love ya!”
“Me too. Be careful.” He winked and walked toward the front of the building.
I wrapped up the document I was working on as fast as I could. Ten minutes later, I packed up my gear and headed to my car.
It was a beautiful clear night, and the streets were busy. Apparently, a lot of citizens wanted to capitalize on the unseasonably warm fall weather. The interstate wasn’t much better with bumper-to-bumper traffic. My normal twenty-minute commute took nearly an hour.
A little gridlock didn’t unnerve me. I always found something to occupy my time—audiobooks, listening to the news, or simply singing along with my favorite playlist. That evening I thought about the information I tried to impart to my boss and his subsequent reaction.
“Captain Stratham, you have to admit the rash of break-ins is concerning.” I waved the printed report in the air.
The brown-skinned man ran a hand over his close-cropped hair and shot me a furious glare. “No, I don’t. Those cases weren’t in my precinct. Therefore, they’re not my problem or your concern.”
“With all due respect, sir, we should at least investigate. Take some precautions—”
He scoffed and said, “Just do your job, Ms. King. If the need arises, I’ll be sure to check in with an expert.”
The way Captain Stratham dismissed me perplexed and pissed me off. I was the expert—the right one to call in the matter. Crime didn’t happen in a bubble. Shouldn’t he have known that as our leader? If transgressions went unchecked, the aftermath spread like wildfire. The perpetrators wouldn’t stop with mere home invasions. They’d keep going until they killed someone.
What troubled me was that in each and every incident, the thieves targeted computer hard drives. They took nothing else from the victims. Even more disturbing was the pattern of the crimes. The stolen disk drives belonged to an executive from a technology firm. My interest wasn’t only for the general citizenry. I wanted to prevent those thieves before they landed in my backyard.
Pulling into the driveway, I noticed Ryan’s SUV parked out front. Odd, but then I remembered he said something about his project. He probably had to run to the office again. No big deal.
Not wasting another minute, I pressed the remote and the door lifted. After parking my aqua-colored 1967 Mustang in its usual spot, I grabbed my purse and exited the car. I’d come back later for the laptop bag. No one would steal it.
Darkness accompanied by an eerie quiet greeted me when I opened the door between the garage and house. Strange.
Feeling along the wall, I flicked on the light switch. I wished I hadn’t. My normally tidy kitchen was not so immaculate. Somebody had spilled bags of flour and sugar onto the counter. Dishes, pots, and pans were on the floor. Either a serious storm only hit my home, or someone was searching for… What? We didn’t keep any computer items outside of Ryan’s study.
Something bad had happened, but I wasn’t thinking about my safety. Carefully, I rushed around a pile of broken bowls. Entering the low-lit hall, I could see the living room was also in shambles.
Damn! Our house had been broken into. Where the fuck is my family?
“Ryan!”
I climbed the stairs two at a time. Not considering the dangers that could wait for me, I moved from room to room looking for my husband and child. The only thing I found was more damage. They confined the worst of the destruction to the bedroom I shared with Ryan. Whatever the burglars were searching for must have been in there. At first glance, however, I couldn’t tell what was missing.
For some reason, my purse was still on my shoulder. I dropped it on the bed, found my cell, and then removed my Glock—what I should have done before I came upstairs. I confirmed it was loaded and then called the precinct front desk.
“Liberty City Police Department. How can I direct your call?”
“Is this Bart?” The man’s voice sounded familiar, but I was too panicked to be certain.
“Yes,” he responded tentatively. “And this is?”
Running down the stairs, I replied, “Kerrie King from Cybercrime.”
“Hey, how are you?” His tone was informal. “They slammed you guys today.”
Idle chatter, however, was not on my agenda.
“I’m sorry to be rude, but I need a squad car at my house right now. It… It appears to have been broken into, and my husband and child are m-m-missing.” My composure was fading fast as my heart ricocheted in my chest.
The officer went from jovial to business mode in a split second. “Touch nothing, Kerrie. You never know…”
I stopped listening. Although I’d heard the drill at least a million times, I ignored Bart’s instructions. Securing the device beneath my cheek, I opened the front door and hurried down the porch steps. Maybe I would find something in Ryan’s SUV that might tell me what happened.
Once outside, I repositioned the phone again. My feet moved so quickly I didn’t watch where I was going and tripped on something. Looking down, I saw my worst nightmare.
An empty casing.
Blood.
So much blood.
“Noooo!”
“Kerrie? Kerrie, what’s wrong?” Bart shouted, but I couldn’t respond.
The phone slipped from my fingers, and I collapsed to my knees. Ryan lay on the ground, clutching RJ. Somehow, I had the good sense to set my weapon down first, and with a shaky hand, I checked both of them for a pulse.
Nothing.
RJ was colder than his dad.
This can’t be happening.
The tears fell and blurred my vision. I was too late. They were gone, and there wasn’t anything I could do for either of them. My family had left me…
I held my head back and screamed into the desolate night.
◆◆◆
My screams drew the attention of our self-absorbed neighbors. An older woman I’d seen a time or two sat with me until the cops arrived.
In retrospect, having someone pull me up from where I knelt was a great idea. Who knew how long I stayed in the spot beside Ryan and my son. It had been long enough, however, for their blood to soak my pants.
Suddenly, I wanted out of the stained clothing.
I jumped to my feet, leaving a shocked neighbor behind, and ran inside. Upstairs, I fled to our room. I had to get the gore off me.
My hands shook as I tried to unbutton my shirt. Frustrated, I pulled and ripped until the buttons flew.
“Kerrie.”
The voice belonged to Josh. Someone had to have called him. I listed him as my emergency contact at the station.
I tried hard to focus on him, but all I saw was a blurry figure. Crying made seeing straight impossible.
“Here. Let me help.” He stepped past me.
I heard him rifling through drawers and then the closet. The noise stopped, and he was by my side again, helping me put
on a sweatshirt.
“Lean on me, Kerrie.” His fingers went to my waistband to undo my pants.
The cold air hit my skin, but I barely acknowledged it. I moved like a robot as I attempted to step out of the ruined garment. My effort was akin to trying to undress a mannequin.
“I need you to work with me.”
When I refused to move, he picked me up and carried me to the bed. Slowly, he exchanged my trousers for the sweatpants. The entire time Josh spoke to me, but I couldn’t understand a word he said.
“Kerrie!” He grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him. “We have to go back outside.”
My head bobbed. He tugged me to my feet and led me down the steps past the forensics team.
In my front yard, more investigators were doing their job as the coroners zipped up body bags. My lips trembled. My friend gathered me in his arms. Unable to watch, I buried my face in his chest. No mother should ever have to see such a tiny bag.
I lost track of time. The only thing I recalled was the river that poured from my eyes. I didn’t realize a person could shed as many tears as I did. My grief mixed with an all-consuming fury that threatened to eat me alive. I blamed the complacency of my neighbors—so involved in their personal dramas that nobody noticed my family was in need. I blamed the police captain for not taking my warnings seriously. Mostly, I blamed myself. I knew the issue. I should have warned Ryan. Let him know there was a viable threat. If I had, he would have prepared for it. Regardless of being the one responsible for the demise of my husband and son, I’d be the one responsible for getting revenge for them.
Somebody shook my shoulders and snapped me from my reverie. I looked up. Concern danced across Josh’s face.
“You’re coming home with me. Understand?”
I jerked my thumb behind me. “What about? I c-can’t leave that—”
“Don’t worry about it.” He grasped my elbow and helped me up. “I’ll get someone to clean up the house.”
“O-okay.” I allowed him to guide me to his pickup.
Josh was being Josh. We’d been friends since grade school. He was good at picking up my messes. He’d fix whatever was wrong, and my world would be right again.