The Perfect Smile

by Blake Pierce

  “Hi,” he whispered when he was right next to her. “I’m Dr. Riggs. You must be Jessie.”

  She nodded, not sure how effective her voice would be after this long without speaking.

  “I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” he said. “I can’t answer all of them. But I can tell you how you’re doing medically. Do you think you’re up for that?”

  She nodded again.

  “Okay. The short version is that you don’t have any permanent damage, though you will be moving slowly for a while. The knife wound to the right side of your back required thirty-seven stitches. You’ll have limited mobility in that area for a while and will need extensive physical therapy. The wound to your right thigh was especially traumatic and will take quite some time to heal. And, of course, you’re going to have a number of additional scars. Considering you were stabbed or cut over two dozen times and lost a lot of blood, I’d say you came out of the whole thing pretty well. You also have a cracked rib, a fractured left wrist, a strained right ACL, and a concussion to go with a pretty sizable knot on your head. As you can imagine with that being the short version, the long version will take some time. But we can save that for later.”

  Jessie took a moment to let everything he’d said settle in. Considering that she wasn’t sure she’d ever wake up when she drifted off in that mansion, she considered herself lucky.

  “Murph?” she managed to croak. She braced herself for the answer.

  Dr. Riggs looked perplexed.

  “I’m not sure what that means,” he said.

  “She asking about the status of Marshal Murphy,” Dolan said sleepily. His eyes remained closed.

  “Oh yes, Patrick Murphy, the marshal who was hit by the car. He’s actually in another surgery now. Both his legs were broken in the collision and then he fractured his clavicle when he hit the ground. He should eventually make a full recovery but it’s going to take a while—easily six months.”

  Jessie nodded. It could have been far worse. It occurred to her that until this moment, she hadn’t known the full name of the man who’d risked his life for her. The same was true for another man who’d sacrificed his.

  “What about Emerson?” she asked, knowing the answer already.

  The doctor looked confused, which made sense. He would only know about patients who needed treatment, not people who came to the hospital already dead. Dolan, with his eyes now open, sat fully upright. He shook his head.

  “The service will be this weekend,” he said quietly. “I’ll FaceTime it if you can’t go.”

  “She won’t be able to attend, I’m afraid,” Dr. Riggs said, picking up on the nature of the situation.

  Jessie nodded, then thought of another question.

  “And the girl—Hannah?”

  Riggs clearly knew who she was talking about.

  “Hannah Dorsey escaped with very little in the way of injuries. Lots of bruising. Her right wrist was pretty nicked up. But she said she did that herself when she was cutting off the tape. Her long-term issues are more likely to be psychological, as neither of her parents survived.”

  “I’ll fill you in more on that later,” Dolan said in a tone that suggested the conversation ought to be confidential. Beside him, Kat stirred, then opened her own eyes lazily.

  “Sorry to wake you, princess,” Jessie said hoarsely.

  Kat’s eyes opened wide and she hopped out of her chair and rushed over to the bedside.

  “Gentle,” Dr. Riggs warned her.

  Kat stopped short of hugging her but smiled broadly.

  “I can’t leave you alone for a second, can I?” she said.

  “Apparently not,” Jessie allowed.

  “I’ll leave you all for a bit,” Dr. Riggs interjected. “We can discuss your situation in more detail later. But for now, the one rule is: take it easy.”

  “Yes sir,” Jessie said. She had every intention of following the rule.

  Once he left, Jessie returned her attention to Kat.

  “When did you get back?”

  “About six hours ago. Your boy Hernandez gave me a call. I told the Interpol agent who didn’t realize I knew he was watching me that he was off the hook and I caught the next flight back. I figured you might need a roommate slash nursemaid for a little while, until you’re all better. Are you still considered a protectee of the Marshal Service?”

  “I don’t know. I’m kind of out of the loop,” she said, turning to Dolan. “Am I?”

  Technically yes,” he said. “Corcoran says that as long as Crutchfield is out there, you’re at risk.”

  Jessie debated how forthcoming to be and decided there wasn’t much downside anymore.

  “Yeah, about that. I didn’t mention this earlier but Crutchfield was at the Jerebko house when I showed up to question them. He could have gotten the jump on me, which would have been his second opportunity to kill me in as many days. Instead, he showed me where exactly on the forehead Thurman was physically vulnerable. That was after warning me that Thurman might come after me at the safe house.”

  Dolan’s mouth dropped open. Jessie waited for him to recover before continuing.

  “Bolton Crutchfield may not be done messing with me. I think he views himself as a cat and me as the ball of yarn he likes batting around. But I feel pretty confident that he doesn’t want to kill me.”

  “Are you willing to stake your life on that?” Dolan asked skeptically.

  “I’m willing to get back to leading my life. I can’t spend every moment looking over my shoulder. I want to be done with that. And with my father dead, I should be able to finally do that.”

  Neither Dolan nor Kat responded to that. Suddenly Jessie felt less confident.

  “He is dead, isn’t he?”

  Dolan seemed to realize his silence had caused unexpected anxiety.

  “Yes,” he assured her quickly. “He is very much dead. In fact, Decker will probably have a few questions for you about that.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “It’s just that he’s not only dead, he’s ‘windpipe-crushed, skull cracked open, brains oozing out’ dead. There’s a view among some that you used… unnecessary force.”

  “Unnecessary force?” Jessie repeated, her voice cracking in fury. “I was tied up and being slowly filleted. I got a momentary advantage and used it. I had to make sure he was no longer a threat. Should I have just tried to kick him in the balls and hoped for the best?”

  “Calm down, Hunt,” Dolan said softly. “I’m not questioning you. And I don’t think Decker is either. I just think some of the bureaucrats looked at the nature of his injuries and raised concerns. They don’t really appreciate the context.”

  “So am I in trouble?”

  “No. I seriously doubt the civilian profiler who singlehandedly took down a serial killer who’d been on the loose for two decades and who is currently hospitalized is in any long-term trouble. But you may have to make a visit or two to the shrink to discuss your inner demons; you know, the ones that led you to split open your daddy’s head like a melon.”

  “Like you should be talking about inner demons,” she pointed out.

  “Actually, Hunt, if anyone should be able to speak to them, it’s me,” he said. “You’ve seen how I deal with what happened to my family. I think we both can agree it’s not the healthiest way handle to handle past trauma. And it leads for a lonely life. There’s a reason I work sixteen hours a day. I don’t have anything to go home to. I’d hate for you to end up like that, Hunt; lonely and angry with double bourbons as your only refuge from the pain.”

  Jessie wasn’t sure how to respond to that. She saw that Kat was equally uncomfortable with the roguish FBI agent’s sudden earnestness. Finally, deciding this wasn’t the time to focus on how she was processing her father’s death, she determined the best course was to change the subject entirely.

  “Yeah, well. Maybe you should be working less than sixteen hours because you got it wrong. I didn’t take down Thurman single-han
dedly. If it hadn’t been for that Hannah girl, I’d be dead right now. She really stepped up when it mattered.”

  Dolan smiled, happy to let the sincere moment pass as well.

  “Speaking of the girl, that’s what I wanted to fill you in on after the doctor left. We learned a little more about her.”

  “Yeah,” Jessie remembered. “Thurman said her family didn’t live there—that he brought them in from another neighborhood entirely. Do we know what that’s about?”

  Dolan glanced over at Kat hesitantly.

  “Okay to speak freely in front of your pal here?” he asked.

  “Absolutely,” Jessie guaranteed him. “She’s in the circle of trust.”

  “I’m flattered,” Kat said with a smirk, though she was blushing at the compliment.

  “Okay,” Dolan continued. “We’re pretty sure we know the reason your father specifically brought them in. As you know, he had the whole scenario planned out—to kill the parents and then you and have Hannah watch the whole thing.”

  “Right, he said as much.”

  “Yes,” Dolan said, now choosing his words more slowly and carefully. “We believe he was repeating the cycle.”

  “What cycle?” Jessie asked. “Of making a young girl watch, tied up in a chair, as people are murdered in front of her?”

  “Not just any people, Hunt. We interviewed Hannah earlier. Apparently, the Dorseys adopted her when she was a baby. On a hunch, I had the doctors do a blood test on her. And she was a match.”

  “A match for who?” Jessie asked, her stomach already tightening in apprehension.

  “For two people: her father, Xander Thurman. And you, Jessie. Hannah is your half-sister.”

  NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER!

  THE PERFECT LIE

  (A Jessie Hunt Psychological Suspense Thriller—Book Five)

  “A masterpiece of thriller and mystery. Blake Pierce did a magnificent job developing characters with a psychological side so well described that we feel inside their minds, follow their fears and cheer for their success. Full of twists, this book will keep you awake until the turn of the last page.”

  --Books and Movie Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re Once Gone)

  THE PERFECT LIE is book #5 in a new psychological suspense series by bestselling author Blake Pierce, whose #1 bestseller Once Gone (a free download) has over 1,000 five-star reviews.

  When a gorgeous, popular gym trainer is found murdered in a wealthy suburban town, criminal profiler and FBI agent Jessie Hunt, 29, is called in to find out who killed her. Yet the twisted secrets that this affair-ridden town holds is unlike anything she has encountered before.

  Who was this woman sleeping with? How many marriages did she shatter?

  And why did they want her dead?

  A fast-paced psychological suspense thriller with unforgettable characters and heart-pounding suspense, THE PERFECT LIE is book #5 in a riveting new series that will leave you turning pages late into the night.

  Book #6 in the Jessie Hunt series will be available soon.

  THE PERFECT LIE

  (A Jessie Hunt Psychological Suspense Thriller—Book Five)

  Did you know that I've written multiple novels in the mystery genre? If you haven't read all my series, click the image below to download a series starter!

  Blake Pierce

  Blake Pierce is author of the bestselling RILEY PAGE mystery series, which includes fifteen books (and counting). Blake Pierce is also the author of the MACKENZIE WHITE mystery series, comprising thirteen books (and counting); of the AVERY BLACK mystery series, comprising six books; of the KERI LOCKE mystery series, comprising five books; of the MAKING OF RILEY PAIGE mystery series, comprising five books (and counting); of the KATE WISE mystery series, comprising six books (and counting); of the CHLOE FINE psychological suspense mystery, comprising six books (and counting); and of the JESSE HUNT psychological suspense thriller series, comprising five books (and counting).

  ONCE GONE (a Riley Paige Mystery--Book #1), BEFORE HE KILLS (A Mackenzie White Mystery—Book 1), CAUSE TO KILL (An Avery Black Mystery—Book 1), A TRACE OF DEATH (A Keri Locke Mystery—Book 1), and WATCHING (The Making of Riley Paige—Book 1) are each available as a free download on Kobo!

  An avid reader and lifelong fan of the mystery and thriller genres, Blake loves to hear from you, so please feel free to visit www.blakepierceauthor.com to learn more and stay in touch.

  BOOKS BY BLAKE PIERCE

  A JESSIE HUNT PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE SERIES

  THE PERFECT WIFE (Book #1)

  THE PERFECT BLOCK (Book #2)

  THE PERFECT HOUSE (Book #3)

  THE PERFECT SMILE (Book #4)

  THE PERFECT LIE (Book #5)

  CHLOE FINE PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE SERIES

  NEXT DOOR (Book #1)

  A NEIGHBOR’S LIE (Book #2)

  CUL DE SAC (Book #3)

  SILENT NEIGHBOR (Book #4)

  HOMECOMING (Book #5)

  TINTED WINDOWS (Book #6)

  KATE WISE MYSTERY SERIES

  IF SHE KNEW (Book #1)

  IF SHE SAW (Book #2)

  IF SHE RAN (Book #3)

  IF SHE HID (Book #4)

  IF SHE FLED (Book #5)

  IF SHE FEARED (Book #6)

  THE MAKING OF RILEY PAIGE SERIES

  WATCHING (Book #1)

  WAITING (Book #2)

  LURING (Book #3)

  TAKING (Book #4)

  STALKING (Book #5)

  RILEY PAIGE MYSTERY SERIES

  ONCE GONE (Book #1)

  ONCE TAKEN (Book #2)

  ONCE CRAVED (Book #3)

  ONCE LURED (Book #4)

  ONCE HUNTED (Book #5)

  ONCE PINED (Book #6)

  ONCE FORSAKEN (Book #7)

  ONCE COLD (Book #8)

  ONCE STALKED (Book #9)

  ONCE LOST (Book #10)

  ONCE BURIED (Book #11)

  ONCE BOUND (Book #12)

  ONCE TRAPPED (Book #13)

  ONCE DORMANT (Book #14)

  ONCE SHUNNED (Book #15)

  ONCE MISSED (Book #16)

  MACKENZIE WHITE MYSTERY SERIES

  BEFORE HE KILLS (Book #1)

  BEFORE HE SEES (Book #2)

  BEFORE HE COVETS (Book #3)

  BEFORE HE TAKES (Book #4)

  BEFORE HE NEEDS (Book #5)

  BEFORE HE FEELS (Book #6)

  BEFORE HE SINS (Book #7)

  BEFORE HE HUNTS (Book #8)

  BEFORE HE PREYS (Book #9)

  BEFORE HE LONGS (Book #10)

  BEFORE HE LAPSES (Book #11)

  BEFORE HE ENVIES (Book #12)

  BEFORE HE STALKS (Book #13)

  AVERY BLACK MYSTERY SERIES

  CAUSE TO KILL (Book #1)

  CAUSE TO RUN (Book #2)

  CAUSE TO HIDE (Book #3)

  CAUSE TO FEAR (Book #4)

  CAUSE TO SAVE (Book #5)

  CAUSE TO DREAD (Book #6)

  KERI LOCKE MYSTERY SERIES

  A TRACE OF DEATH (Book #1)

  A TRACE OF MUDER (Book #2)

  A TRACE OF VICE (Book #3)

  A TRACE OF CRIME (Book #4)

  A TRACE OF HOPE (Book #5)