by Jada Ryker
Arson Takes
a Dare
The Third Marisa Adair Mystery
Jada Ryker
This book is a work of fiction and a product of the author’s imagination. Any similarity to real people, places, or things is a coincidence.
ARSON TAKES A DARE
Copyright © 2014 by Jada Ryker
All Rights Reserved. This includes the right to reproduce any portion of this book in any form.
ISBN-13: 978-1495411717
ISBN-10: 1495411710
Acknowledgments
I offer a special, heartfelt thank you to Larry Mattingly. My character Larry Kenton represents a fictionalized version of Larry Mattingly’s story. The real Larry suffered in his childhood. His father had his ‘unruly’ mother committed to a mental institution, and the children packed off to a notorious orphanage. Larry shows the true strength of the human experience by not only surviving the ordeal, but also going on to successful military service and a career as a respected businessman.
Larry’s story appears in his book Eva’s Son. His wonderful book is available on Amazon.
Thank you to Jada’s Betas, the superhero readers. Through their efforts, Arson Takes a Dare is a better quality and more polished book. Jada’s Betas are Paul “Eagle Eye” Carwile, Grace “Captain” Kirkland, and Joyce “Joy of Syntax” Beauchamp.
Thank you to my wonderful children, Heather and Julia, for their ongoing support. They are beautiful, confident, and intelligent young women. When I look at them, I also see kids laughing on waterslides, playing basketball, and baking cookies.
Professional editing and proofreading services were provided by Bryan Miller. He may be reached through his website at www.williambryanmiller.com.
Some excerpts appear from Wikipedia. The source is identified in each instance.
Any errors are my sole responsibility.
A Special Message to the Reader
Thank you for taking the time to read this book. I hope you will enjoy reading it as much as I loved writing it.
A recurring character in the series is Althea Flaxton. Within the Takes a Dare series, she writes under the pen name Seretha Ranier. In the pages of Arson Takes a Dare, she shares her “story within the story,” which helps her make an important decision. An Alien Act of Honor is a science fiction/mystery short story. The short story is in a different font, Courier New, since Althea is attached to her typewriter. Althea and I hope you like it.
As an author, I rely on feedback from readers. If you enjoy Arson Takes a Dare, please take a moment to leave your comments on Amazon.
I want the book to be perfect. Pesky typos seem to have a cloaking ability while I’m looking at them, only to uncloak later for you. If you found any typos or have suggestions, please email me at [email protected]. To learn more about me and my work, please check out my webpage at www.JadaRyker.com.
If you would like to try a different type of book, Dog Days of Karma is a mystery adventure with romance and a soupçon of the paranormal. It’s the first book in the Karma series, chronicling the adventures of Celeste Carr and Ericka Maah, of the Carr – Maah Consulting Agency.
My published titles are listed at the end of the book, and are available on Amazon in electronic and paperback formats.
Enjoy!
Jada
Table of Contents
MEET THE CHARACTERS IN THE TAKES A DARE SERIES
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
MEET THE CHARACTERS IN THE TAKES A DARE SERIES
Marisa Adair spent her chaotic childhood in poverty and abuse in rural Kentucky. Now recovering from various addictions, she’s the trauma hospital’s human resources administrator… and an amateur sleuth.
Friends
Alex Caldwell was part of Marisa’s childhood. Although a puny child, Alex tried to save Marisa from a gang of bullies. Now an adult, he hangs onto his sanity by a thread as he tries to save her from danger.
Tara Ross is a pretty blonde with her own addiction… to shoes. She’ll need a twelve-step program to kick it.
The Trauma Hospital
Elizabeth Furlong wants Alex’s old job, and she wants Alex. She also hates Marisa.
Director of Nursing Tom Cordon and Maintenance Director Carlos Santana support Elizabeth in her vendetta against Marisa.
Andrea Tartin, the Rehab Services Director, is sick of Elizabeth’s devious scheming.
Vickie Miller, Social Services Director, and Jerry Holt, the Continuous Quality Improvement Director, hate to commit to anything… especially each other.
Roommate
Laithe, a regal Abyssinian cat, is Marisa’s roommate. The smart, mischievous feline shares space with Marisa, but she’s not the boss of him.
Support Group
While Fred and Marisa will never go shopping together, they’re friends. Fred is brave, and has Marisa’s back to the point of foolhardiness. His girlfriend is Clara, a retired lunch lady who used her “slay-dar” to help Marisa in her investigations.
Fred is also The Librarian of the support group. The Library is housed in an ancient piece of luggage. Marisa wonders if The Library is bewitched, larger on the inside than on the outside. Regardless, wherever Fred goes, the scuffed bag goes with him, either reposing at his feet or rolling along behind him.
In leather chaps and his body hung with enough chains to secure a junkyard, Jason appears tough and intimidating. He’s a brand new attorney, ready for his first client.
The Club
Diana is Marisa’s unconventional friend, shaking her aging body on the stripper pole for decreasing tips and developing other hidden talents.
Anton is the bouncer. He’s hellhound-hard on the outside and puppy-soft on the inside.
Claude is the manager. He manages to piss everyone off.
Family
Barbara Adair, Marisa’s mother, spent decades enabling the alcoholics in her life, including Marisa’s youngest brother, Mosely Adair, who was brutally murdered and the perpetrator caught in Mayhem Takes a Dare.
Adversaries
Alisa Atkins was the leader of Marisa’s childhood tormentors. Now as an adult, she’s expanding her bullying skills on social media.
Parvis Stidham, an investigative reporter, unearthed Althea’s secret life as a successful novelist. On the down low, Althea used Marisa’s chaotic background in her books. Parvis ambushed Marisa with the explosive information after his personal relationship with her didn’t work out.
Private Detective
Burke Lee Creed is a private detective from Florida. The lure of Berea Kenton’s offer of her fortune in return for solving her daughter’s decades-old murder is irresistible.
City Police Department
Lieutenant Dreamus “Cam” Camden tries to keep Marisa, Alex, and Tara out of his murder investigations. He fails. Spectacularly. Since Tara Ross is his girlfriend and Marisa’s friend, it’s a particularly thorny burr under his saddle.
Officer Josh Landis is a new
police officer, motivated to impress his boss.
Miss Daisy is a rodeo clown accused of killing the top rodeo contender. Her friend Bert gives Josh a surprise and Dreamus important information for another case.
Sheriff’s Office
Sheriff Knox Creeter, aka Sheriff Creature, uses his position of power to control women he perceives as vulnerable. He miscalculates when he tries it on Marisa.
Luke Creeter, Knox’s father and retired sheriff, unofficially assists Marisa and her friends with the investigation.
The Hotel Beatrice
After the Assisted Living Center burned due to a planted bomb in Book Two, Mayhem Takes a Dare, the clients and staff temporarily moved to a local hotel.
Althea Flaxton, retired teacher, mother figure, and secret author, covertly used details of Marisa’s colorful life in her novels. Marisa feels betrayed, while Althea doesn’t believe she did anything wrong.
Clay Napier is Althea’s handsome boyfriend. He retired from a mysterious government job, but he’s not the typical former civil servant. His relationship with Althea is on shaky ground, due to his disappointment in Althea and her sneaky ways.
Berea Kenton is prepared to pour her newly-acquired lottery winnings into finding her daughter’s killer. Beautiful, talented Mayla was murdered two decades ago by a serial arsonist. Berea is estranged from her husband, Larry Kenton.
Flora May and Starla are best friends who work in the assisted living center. They love to interfere in their clients’ lives, including Althea and Clay.
CHAPTER ONE
Brownout. Marisa Adair lazily watched the gauzy word float into her hazy consciousness like a neon sign marking a hectic night club in the mist. The disembodied voice of an addiction counselor filled her mind. “A brownout happens when a person is drinking. The short-term memory doesn’t record events. The person may come to her senses in a totally new setting, unaware of how she got there.”
Brownout. The word dissolved into the beating of butterfly wings, covering her disconnected body like a shroud. The exotic butterflies reverse morphed into furry caterpillars, the endless feet insistent against her skin. The caterpillars transformed to robotic insects, the metallic marching harsh. The persistent thuds of inhuman feet spun into the thumping bass of hard rock music.
The last gossamer threads faded from her brain as Marisa realized she was seated in a chair. The padded edge in front of her was familiar. The raucous music pounded at her ears and vibrated through her slumped body.
Brown bottles. Long necks, glittering with condensation. Beer bottles! Marisa recoiled in horror. Her elbow sent several empty bottles spinning to the floor. I quit drinking. I went through inpatient rehab months ago. Didn’t I?
She rubbed her aching forehead, digging through the layers of disorientation. I’m in the most notorious strip club in the region. Did I drop by to see my friend Diana? Marisa peered up at the woman on the stage. There’s Diana. But I wouldn’t sit at her stage like a customer. We’re friends. When we hang out, we’re both fully clothed.
The glittering bikini top and bottom highlighted rather than covered Diana’s strong, muscular body as she gyrated through the athletic dance moves. Her slight smile was incongruent with her watchful gaze. The silver glitter on her eight-inch black heels caught the flashing lights, with silver straps highlighting the defined calves. She paused in the middle of the stage, her long, blood-red nails expectantly holding open the bikini bottom.
A rabid body builder, Diana kept her body tone with daily weightlifting and strenuous exercise. As the club’s oldest dancer, Diana had needed a gimmick to differentiate herself from the tender young women on the adjacent stages. While the dim lights helped disguise the laugh lines at her eyes and her muscular body was in better shape than the vast majority of women her age, it was impossible to hide the effects of gravity with a skimpy bikini.
Diana had hit on the perfect way to capture the capricious attention of the customers. With the televisions jammed in every corner of the club constantly tuned to sports of all sorts, she was well aware of the competitive nature of males. Accordingly, she made the first dance of her set into a game. She challenged those seated at the stage to try and throw balled up currency into her held-open bikini bottom. It was always a huge hit with men of all ages.
Diana hasn’t noticed me yet, Marisa thought. Won’t she be surprised? And disappointed. She pushed away the last thought and perked up. I’m here anyway. I don’t want to go home. Maybe she can hang out with me between her dances. “Hey, Diana,” Marisa called, wildly waving her arm and nearly taking out a waitress with a tray loaded with glasses.
Ignoring the flying balls of currency pelting her, Diana strode to Marisa’s edge of the stage. The fury in her dark eyes flashed like a solar flare. “Marisa, what the hell are you doing here?”
When the man next to Marisa reached for Diana’s ankle, she adroitly avoided the clawing fingers. The dancer ignored the disgruntled shouts from her disappointed audience at her stage’s perimeter.
“Diana, don’t be mad at me,” Marisa said, avoiding the dancer’s angry glare. “I’m not even sure how I got here.”
“I don’t believe that.” Her face twisted, Diana pointed with her toe. “Are you with that guy?”
Marisa focused on her friend’s face. Diana is not happy with me. “What guy?” Her head lolling on her shoulders, Marisa tried to look around. Bodies surrounded her, moving to the music. She could see the other stages, each perimeter crowded with spectators and a lone dancer in the center, caught in the bright spotlight over her head and in the avid customers’ eyes.
“Marisa, focus.” Diana snapped her fingers in Marisa’s face. “Is the guy sitting to your right with you?”
Which one is the right hand? I write with my left hand so… Marisa carefully toggled to the right. She squinted, struggling to bring the features into focus. “Nope. Never saw him before in my life.”
Under the black billed cap, the handsome face flushed. “I’ve been buying you beer for the last hour, and you’ve been guzzling it like a thirsty bear at a waterhole! You had better be with me!”
The beer came from him. And since the bottles are empty, I must have drunk them, Marisa thought. She stared at the face. Under the baseball cap visor, the deep set dark eyes were angry. The long nose was bisected with a speed bump from an old break. His clenched, square jaw was rough with stubble and etched with lines of temper. His bared teeth glowed white and straight. The face segued into a muscular neck, broad shoulders covered by a western-style plaid shirt, a trim waist and thick legs, with worn jeans ending in scuffed cowboy boots.
Diana scowled. “Unfortunately, I have seen him in here before. He’s Sheriff Creature, I mean Sheriff Creeter. He’s a regular.”
“If you call me Creature again, I’ll get you fired.” The sheriff growled and scooted his chair closer to Marisa. He angrily knocked empty bottles to the floor as he threw a thickly muscled arm around Marisa’s shoulders.
Marisa tried to shrug off the heavy arm. It was like trying to throw off a giant boa constrictor. Given all of those empty bottles, it’s no wonder I feel… “Pain free! I’m pain free, Diana!”
Marisa held up one finger. “The pain of my brother Mosely’s murder is a dull ache.” She held up another finger. “Althea’s betrayal doesn’t hurt. She was my savior when I was a little girl. Then she stole the angst of my life to spice up her novels. Even that doesn’t hurt.” She held up a third finger. “Where was I?” Frowning, she stared at her hand in confusion.
Diana’s face was set in anger. She tapped her toe. “You’re so wasted you can’t even think.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Marisa waved it away, knocking Sheriff Creeter’s cap askew. She ignored his growl. “What does matter is that I feel good.” She haphazardly bounced in her chair. “Do a little prance, make a little jive talking, get down tonight, wooo…”
Diana winced. “Enough disco! The seventies are dead. Thank God.” Her pained features melted i
nto compassion. “I’m sorry your brother was brutally murdered right in front of you. I’m sorry Althea used your childhood abuse and your adult addiction struggles in her books. But enough is enough.” Diana extended her hand, palm up. “Marisa, give me your cell phone. Now.”
Obediently, Marisa dug in her pockets until she found her phone.
Diana bent over the phone, ignoring the loud grumbles of her customers. “I’m calling Alex to come and get you.”
“Not Alex!” Marisa’s wail rose over the loud music.
“Alex Caldwell is your boyfriend.” The dancer punched buttons. “He gets to retrieve you.”
“I’m not a lost package, for God’s sake. And Alex is not my boyfriend. Give me back my phone.”
Diana placed it in Marisa’s hand. “Here. And if he’s not your boyfriend, then what is he?”
Marisa tried to think. “He’s the interim Chief Executive Officer of the trauma hospital. Therefore, he’s my new boss, at least for now. My last boss Mike Bolte got fired when I was giving him hell about his girlfriend and his wife walked in. And my boss before that got fired after he was arrested because of me. If it hadn’t been for my down low investigating, he’d have gotten away with his crimes.”