Jake groaned and tried to sit up. The vest had saved his life, but he felt like he’d been hit with a sledgehammer.
Walter Coleman froze a moment, staring at his partner, dying on the floor. He spun around and stopped with his hand on the doorknob as a second shot buried itself into the door near his head. He turned back, his arms out to the side. “You won’t shoot me, Rosemary,” he said.
There was fire in her eyes, a burning anger. “If you move, I will,” she said and Jake knew she meant it.
Epilogue
Saturday, September 3rd, 7:32 p.m.
THE OFFICER snapped the cuffs on Walter Coleman’s wrists and tightened them. Rosemary paid no mind as they led her husband out to the waiting cruiser. For the first time, she broke down, her head bowed, the tears flowing as Annie sat beside her, an arm around her shoulder.
The body of Eli Martin still lay on the floor, the pooled blood beginning to turn a darker hue as it soaked into the wooden floor of the cabin.
Hank had arrived and was talking with Jake across the room. The ME was on her way and soon the area would be taped off. There would be a lot of questions they all had to answer, but Annie was certain Martin’s death would be a clear case of self-defense.
Rosemary looked up as Hank approached. She dabbed at her eyes, cleared her throat, and smiled through her tears.
“We’d better go outside,” Hank said. “This place will soon be overrun.”
Annie helped Rosemary up and they skirted around the body and followed Hank and Jake outside. The forensics van rattled up the laneway and investigators would soon start the necessary formality of gathering evidence and taking photos.
Annie turned to Hank. “We didn’t have a chance to call you earlier. You can stop looking for Mouse. I have him locked up in the basement of Martin’s shop.”
Hank grinned. “You kidnapped him?”
Annie managed a faint smile. “Sort of.”
“And you had illegal possession of a firearm?” Hank continued.
“Yup.”
The detective laughed. “Well, I guess we won’t be pressing charges.”
“You’d better not,” Jake put in. “I don’t think we’re going to get paid for this job. One client is dead and the other one is going to prison.”
“Rosemary, did you have any idea this was possible?” Annie asked.
Rosemary shook her head. “It had been a little rough between Walter and me lately, but I thought we’d patched it up and I had no idea he would try to …” Her voice trailed off and she took a deep breath.
Annie put her arm around the shaken woman. “We’ll help you through this. If there’s anything you need, just ask.”
Rosemary nodded as a small sob escaped her lips. “Thanks,” she whispered.
Jake turned to Hank. “What happened to the officer at the Coleman house?”
“After a while he went to see where Rosemary was and when he couldn’t find her, he called it in. Officers have been patrolling the neighborhood streets ever since, looking for her.” Hank turned to Rosemary. “I’m glad you’re safe.”
Rosemary didn’t seem to hear as she watched the police cruiser carry her husband away. Annie felt deeply for her, but she knew Rosemary would find the strength to move on.
“Let me get you out of here, Rosemary,” Hank said, offering his arm.
Rosemary smiled weakly and let Hank lead her away.
Jake put his arm around Annie and drew her close. They stood quietly and watched them go.
It had been a harrowing week for all of them and Annie was glad it was over. Maybe now they could get some long-overdue rest.
###
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Rayven T. Hill
Books by Rayven T. Hill
Blood and Justice
The First Book in the Series
When sixteen-year-old Jenny James goes missing, and the local police are unable to find her, the girl’s frantic mother hires private investigators Jake and Annie Lincoln to search for her daughter.
When the body of Jenny’s boyfriend is discovered, the mystery of her disappearance deepens. Shaken out of their comfort zone of Internet searches and poring over public records, the couple soon find themselves facing the frightening possibility they are looking for the latest victim of a serial killer.
As more bodies pile up, the town is gripped with fear. It seems no one is safe, and the Lincolns race to solve an impossible puzzle before they become the killer’s next victims.
Buy BLOOD AND JUSTICE Now
Cold Justice
The Second Book in the Series
Late one night an emotionally disturbed woman, Abigail Macy, witnesses a murder. She reports what she saw to the police, but out of fear that the killer will return to eliminate her as a witness, she keeps quiet about his identity. When the police investigate her claim, they find no evidence of a crime, and influenced by her psychiatrist’s diagnosis that she was delusional, the case is closed.
Abigail’s condition deteriorates, and she shuts herself away, withdrawn and distraught, refusing to speak to anyone except the occasional word to her husband. To ease her tormented mind, he hires private investigators Jake and Annie Lincoln to find a supposed killer, with no proof that one exists.
When Abigail is found dead two days later, the coroner concludes that she had committed suicide, however the Lincolns aren’t convinced of the verdict. Now, with the only witness dead, the challenge to unravel the truth and find a murderer becomes more baffling.
The Lincolns find themselves in danger of being the killer’s next victims as they are drawn into a perilous web of lies, deceit and cover-ups.
Buy COLD JUSTICE Now
Justice for Hire
The Third Book in the Series
A young girl who has been missing for eight months, suddenly reappears and commits a heinous murder. She claims not to know why she did it, or where she had been for the last few months. The girl’s desperate parents hire private investigators Jake and Annie Lincoln to find the truth behind their daughter’s disappearance, and why she would return and kill a stranger in cold blood.
An ex-con, who had seemingly turned his life around, becomes the next victim when a young boy shoots him, and then casually holds the gun to his own head, and pulls the trigger. An aspiring city councilor is executed in the same manner. None of the deadly murderers seem to be aware of their actions.
As the Lincolns race to solve the puzzle of why young killers are casually murdering without remorse, they are drawn into a dangerous conspiracy and become targets of a merciless assassin.
Buy JUSTICE FOR HIRE Now
Captive Justice
The Fourth Book in the Series
When a woman is abducted and the self-proclaimed “Merchant of Life” demands strict adherence to his impossible terms, the police are perplexed.
Private investigators Jake & Annie Lincoln are drawn into peril when the kidnapper demands Jake deliver the ransom money. The exchange takes place as planned, but when the abducted woman’s body is discovered brutally murdered, the search for an unpredictable madman begins.
As the kidnappings continue, the Lincolns own lives are put in jeopardy as they scramble to unweave this baffling puzzle before the treacherous murderer can claim more victims, among whom may be the Lincolns themselves.
Buy CAPTIVE JUSTICE Now
Justice Overdue
The Fifth Book in the Series
Private investigators Jake & Annie Lincoln make plans to take a break aw
ay from their hectic schedule and relax. The family’s goal of a peaceful weekend spirals into chaos when an escaped convict creates havoc and threatens the lives of everyone around him.
The trail of destruction leads from a sleepy town to the untamed northern wilderness, where the Lincolns own lives are endangered by the most unpredictable creature of all, the ruthless and inhumane Varick Lucas.
Buy JUSTICE OVERDUE Now
Justice Returns
The Sixth Book in the Series
In this much-requested sequel to Blood and Justice, the first book in the series, private investigators Jake and Annie Lincoln are drawn into double jeopardy when a serial killer escapes from prison and hires them to find out who killed his parents, and why.
The detectives’ own lives are at stake when they find themselves caught in a dangerous and deadly situation, torn between their moral obligation to investigate the cold case murders of the two innocent victims, and to catch the cold-blooded killer who hired them.
Buy JUSTICE RETURNS Now
Personal Justice
The Seventh Book in the Series
When a man is brutally murdered and the suspected killer has disappeared, the family of the victim hire private investigators Jake and Annie Lincoln to track down the missing murderer.
A dangerous and deadly pursuit begins, in which both the hunted and the hunters become embroiled in a lethal conflict that could result in the Lincolns forfeiting their own lives in their battle to bring a ruthless killer to justice.
Buy PERSONAL JUSTICE Now
Silent Justice
The Eighth Book in the Series
After the gruesome murder of a school counselor, the victim’s overwrought husband hires private investigators Jake and Annie Lincoln to track down the young suspect wanted for the brutal murder.
The senseless slaughter continues as the distraught fugitive struggles to retain his sanity and control his unstable mind while striving to evade a police manhunt.
The Lincolns’ own lives are put in danger when their search finally brings them face to face with the desperate man, who seems determined to inflict revenge on his enemies at all cost.
Buy SILENT JUSTICE Now
Coming Next
Web of Justice
The Ninth Book in the Series
About the Author
Rayven T. Hill was born in 1954 in Markham, Ontario. He has had a variety of occupations and careers since then, spending the last fourteen years as a computer programmer and web site designer.
His first novel, written in 1960, was an instant hit with his mother and one sibling. He then put his career as a novelist aside for half a century to concentrate on making a living, but has now ventured back into the world of writing.
His first real novel, Blood and Justice, was published as an eBook in June 2013.
He lives with his wife in Toronto.
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Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, businesses, organizations, events and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Published by Ray of Joy Publishing
Copyright 2014 Rayven T. Hill
Captive Justice: A Private Investigator Mystery Series (A Jake & Annie Lincoln Thriller Book 4) Page 23