Dead Reckoning

Table of Contents

 

 

Praise for
DEPTH PERCEPTION

“A tightly written novel of romantic suspense by an author at the top of her game.”—
All About Romance

 
FADE TO RED

“Castillo is pushing the envelope. And she is doing a very convincing and, yes, disturbingly good job . . . This is not a book for the fainthearted . . . If you like nothing better than an adrenaline rush and a hero and heroine possessing multiple character layers, then be assured that
Fade to Red
will be exactly what you are looking for and so much more.”

 
“A throwback to the old days of romantic suspense . . . chilling . . . Great character development, an ability to totally immerse the reader into the sleazy underbelly of porn and cause a shiver or two.”
—Romance Reviews Today

 
“Enlightening and original.”
—The Romance Reader

 
“Chillingly graphic—romantic suspense at its best.”

 
 
THE SHADOW SIDE

“An electrifying chiller rife with action and passion . . . splendid.”
—The Dallas Morning News

“
The Shadow Side
is exhilarating romantic suspense . . . never slows down until the final moment. Read this thriller.”
—Midwest Book Review

 
“Stunning. A masterpiece of suspense polished off with a raw romance. This book, the best romantic suspense I’ve ever read, knocked me out. The characters were hot, the story was downright chilling . . . but so compelling. The pace constantly keeps you on the edge . . . giving you twists and turns and never giving you any clues as to what’s going to happen next . . . until the very last minute! Don’t miss this thriller; you’ll be sorry if you do. They don’t come any better than this.”
—Romance and Friends

 
THE PERFECT VICTIM

“Castillo has a winner! I couldn’t stop turning the pages!”

—Kat Martin,
New York Times
bestselling author of
The Fire Inside

 
“
The Perfect Victim
is a gripping page-turner. Peopled with fascinating characters and intricately plotted . . . compelling suspense that never lets up. A first-class reading experience!” —Katherine Sutcliffe, bestselling author of
Darkling, I Listen
and
Obsession

“An exciting thriller . . . action-packed [and] powerful . . . a strong tale that fans of suspense will love.”

—
Midwest Book Review

 
“Intense action . . . sizzling sex . . . a thrilling climax . . . the reader is carried along on the ride.”

—Lynn Erickson, author of
After Hours

 
“Linda Castillo delivers a powerhouse punch.”

—Merline Lovelace, author of
After Midnight

 
“Realistic dialogue, beautifully vivid descriptions, and an intricate plot add up to a chilling, fast-paced, riveting read.”—
Library Journal

 
“Both romantic and suspenseful—and in nearly equal measures. If you’re looking for a real page-turner with a strong and determined heroine, and an even stronger, even more determined hero, you’ve found it.”

—
All About Romance

 
“I couldn’t put this book down . . . The escalating suspense and sexual tension pushes the story forward and keeps you hooked. Not many authors keep me up all night but Linda has succeeded with this riveting read.”—
The Best Reviews

THE PERFECT VICTIM
THE SHADOW SIDE
FADE TO RED
DEPTH PERCEPTION
DEAD RECKONING

THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada
(a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
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(a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
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(a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South
Africa

 
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

 
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

 
DEAD RECKONING

 
A Berkley Sensation Book / published by arrangement with the author

 
PRINTING HISTORY
Berkley Sensation edition / December 2005

 
Copyright © 2005 by Linda Castillo.

 
All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

For information address: The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.

eISBN : 978-0-425-20720-8

 
BERKLEY® SENSATION
Berkley Sensation Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
BERKLEY SENSATION and the “B” design are trademarks belonging to Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

 

 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Special thanks to former state prosecutor Debbie Benko for so patiently and expertly answering my questions about the inner workings of the district attorney’s office.

 
A huge thank-you to insurance compliance officer and fellow writer Susan Jarnagin for helping me through the complex world of the insurance industry.

 
I would also like to thank Scott Garland, former assistant district attorney, for sharing your knowledge and taking the time to answer all of my crazy questions.

 
Any and all mistakes contained in the book are from my own lack of understanding or my taking literary license to make the story and plot work.

“The prince of darkness is a gentleman.”

—WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

PROLOGUE

SATURDAY, JANUARY 14, 2:53 A.M.

Cashiering at the Snack and Gas wasn’t the dream job Evangeline Worth had always imagined, but then she’d always had big dreams. When she was fifteen she’d wanted to be a Las Vegas showgirl. At seventeen she’d had her heart set on becoming a soap opera actress in New York City. Her mama had wanted her to go to college to become a veterinarian because Evangeline had always had a way with animals.

But time and circumstance had a way of chipping away at dreams. Like a thousand other young women, Evangeline had slowly learned to settle for less and make do with what she had. Now, at the age of thirty-six, twice divorced and the mother of four, Evangeline figured she was lucky to have a job at all.

Honestly, working at the Snack and Gas wasn’t so bad. Mama complained about the hours, which were midnight to eight A.M., and the neighborhood, which had been on the decline for too many years to count. But Evangeline didn’t mind the hours or the neighborhood. The cops stopped by for coffee at least once during her shift. And she’d never felt the least bit scared, even though the coffee shop down the street had been robbed twice in the last six months.

The real pleasure of working at the Snack and Gas was her coworker. Irma Trevino might be sixty-two years old and as crazy as the day was long, but she knew how to have fun. With Irma around, the eight hours Evangeline spent selling beer and gas didn’t seem quite so mundane.

“You going to stand there staring into space all night or are you going to help me stock these sandwiches?”

Evangeline looked at her coworker over the top of the cash register and smiled at her scolding tone. “Oh, don’t be so prickly, Irma. I told you I’d help.”

“Telling me you’re going to help and doing the work are two different things.”

Shaking her head in feigned exasperation, Evangeline started for the sandwich display cooler at the rear where Irma stood. As she rounded the counter, she glanced through the front window, saw the blue pickup truck idle slowly past the pumps and park near the door. “You’re going to have to wait another minute while I ring up this customer.”

“Oh, for Pete’s sake.” Irma glared at her over the display of Powder Puff doughnut boxes, but Evangeline knew that meangrandma look was an act. Irma was about as mean as a Labrador pup. One that liked to growl a lot.

The bell on the front door jingled, and a thin young man with a day’s growth of beard and scraggly brown hair entered the store. You never knew who you were going to get at three o’clock in the morning, so Evangeline always made it a point to look. She and Irma had once talked about what they would do if they ever got robbed. Irma had said, “Give them the money like it was on fire, then get on the floor. Decent robber ain’t going to shoot no woman.”

Evangeline had never reconciled the word
decent
with
robber,
but she’d thought that maybe even amongst Dallas’s criminal element there must be some slapdash code of honor.

But the young man who’d entered didn’t look like a robber. Just a regular guy out for beer and cigarettes. There were a lot of those in this neighborhood. People just trying to get by. As long as he wasn’t drunk, he wouldn’t give them any problems.

Head down, he huddled in his coat as he passed the candy display. His boots thudded against the tile as he walked to the cooler at the back of the store and grabbed a six-pack of Budweiser. Evangeline glanced at the television where a
Seinfeld
rerun blinked in and out of focus. One of these days they were going to have to put an antenna on that thing. Or else shoot it and put it out of its misery.