Eyes Only (26 page)

The joke was feeble at best and didn't even draw a smile from Kala, when Jay said, “Guess Sophie can pay our bill now if this is on the up-and-up.”

Kala shook her head. “We took the case pro bono, and that's the way it stays. My God, how do we tell this to Sophie?”

“Well, I don't think we should say anything at all to her until . . . until they shovel the last bit of dirt on that bastard's coffin. I'm not sure I'm buying all of this,” Jay said.

“What part aren't you buying, Jay?” Kala asked.

Jay threw his hands high in the air. “The whole damn thing. Guys like Adam Star don't have a conscience. They take crap like this to their graves. The man didn't give two shits that a young girl got sent to prison for life. For
life,
Kala! Now, because he's dying, he wants to make nice. Be forgiven! Like Sophie is going to forgive him for taking ten years of her life, leaving her with no hope for a future? She has to hate his guts. How could she not hate that bastard? I don't think the word
forgiveness
is in her vocabulary these days.”

Kala leaned back and steepled her fingers. “I think you're wrong. Sophie's bitch is going to be with Ryan Spenser, not with Adam Star. She knew just the way we knew that Adam was guilty. All three of us tried to convince Spenser of that, and he turned a deaf ear. Sophie will take the position that Adam tried to make it right in the end, mark my words. When Spenser finds out, if he doesn't already know, he's going to blow a gasket. And you can take that one to the bank. I think now that this has happened, it's why he was planning on attending my retirement luncheon. To see if I knew about it.”

“Boy, what a shame that you're leaving for that six-month retirement vacation tomorrow,” Jay said slyly as he winked at his wife. Linda did her best not to laugh out loud at Kala's expression. “Okay, let's view this cinematic masterpiece.” Jay pressed a button, and Adam Star's face filled the screen.

No more than three minutes in length, the video was painful to watch. Everything Adam Star had said in the office was now verbalized, with a face to make it real. At the end, his lawyer, a man named Clayton Hughes, and two witnesses verified the date, the time, and the fact that they were in attendance when the DVD was made.

Jay turned the machine off, popped the DVD, and slipped it into a plastic sleeve. “I think this should go in the safe. I also think we should burn maybe, let's say, three extra copies. Just for . . . whatever.”

Kala nodded in agreement. “And to think today is
Tuesday!
” she said. “You're right, we'll sit on this until . . . well, until Mr. Star goes to meet his maker. In the meantime, I'm canceling my reservations for tomorrow. Linda, do me a favor and call Ben and tell him I'll meet him outside the courthouse in an hour.”

“It will be my pleasure, Kala. Are you sure we can't let Sophie know?” Linda asked.

Before Kala could say anything, Jay piped up. “We're sure.”

Again Kala nodded.

FERN
MICHAELS
is the
USA Today
and
New York Times
bestselling author of the Sisterhood and Godmothers series and dozens of other novels and novellas. There are over seventy-five million copies of her books in print. Fern Michaels has built and funded several large day-care centers in her hometown, and is a passionate animal lover who has outfitted police dogs across the country with special bulletproof vests. She shares her home in South Carolina with her four dogs and a resident ghost named Mary Margaret.

Visit her website at fernmichaels.com.

In this page-turning new novel in her beloved Sisterhood
series,
New York Times
bestselling author
Fern Michaels pits the indomitable Vigilantes
against a corrupt and ruthless billionaire . . .

 

All good things must come to an end. Even the
women of the Sisterhood—the stalwart sorority
that has helped to right so many wrongs—have
been content to let their gold shields gather a
little dust while they enjoy friends, family, and
the comforts of civilian life. But the group's
leaders, Myra Rutledge and her best friend,
Annie de Silva, remain as vital and feisty as
ever. So when a string of anonymous e-mails
arrives at Pinewood, suggesting shady dealings
at a local assisted-living facility, the two immediately
set out to investigate.

 

Emanuel Macklin, the financial wizard behind
the sprawling, high-end senior complex, has
amassed a private fortune that would make
Fort Knox look like spare change. But the
hefty returns Macklin promises his investors
may be garnered at others' expense. In fact,
Macklin's entire enterprise is one enormous
Ponzi scheme that's about to collapse—taking
the life savings of thousands of innocents with
it. Myra and Annie know this is a mission tailor
made for their brand of justice, but they'll
need to enlist some new and untested allies.
And even as they set out to foil one of their
most cunning adversaries to date, Myra faces a
personal challenge that will rock the
Sisterhood to the core . . .

 

 

Pediatrician Lorrie Ryan has been looking
forward to camping with her seven-year-old
nephew, Davey. It's a chance to let the fragile,
sheltered boy spend time away from his
nervous, overprotective parents and have the
adventure he's always wanted. But in the lush,
verdant woods, Lorrie never imagines that
they are not alone . . . or that their idyllic
trip will soon become a chilling nightmare
of survival . . .

 

In one terrifying moment, Davey disappears.
The local police find no trace of him, and a
desperate Lorrie turns to the one man who
can help—FBI agent Stuart Saunders. Now,
the hunt is on for a child growing weaker by
the minute . . . and a cruel predator whose
twisted game of cat and mouse has only
just begun . . .

 

“Candy Canes and Cupid” by Fern Michaels
All private investigator Hannah Ray wants for
Christmas is a quiet day at her Florida beachfront
condo. When her biggest client insists
she join him on a Colorado ski trip, she has
little choice—but what she finds on her
arrival could melt the coldest heart . . .

 

“White Hot Christmas” by Nancy Bush
Aspiring PI Jane Kelly likes to pretend she's a
bah-humbug kind of girl, but she's had mistletoe
on the brain ever since she shared a kiss
with her boss, Dwayne. Before she can hope
for a repeat performance, Jane must solve a
kidnapping that's as twisted as a candy cane—
and not nearly as sweet.

 

“Seven Days of Christmas”
by Rosanna Chiofalo
Five years ago, Bianca Simone received a wonderful
early Christmas gift from her
boyfriend, Mark—a week amid the stunning
Alpine scenery of Innsbruck, Austria. Now
she's back under very different circumstances,
but Mark has one more special gift in mind . . .

 

“A Smoky Mountain Gift” by Lin Stepp
Veda Trent is back in Townsend to fill in as
temporary manager of the Crafts Co-op, but
she's not planning to stay. Though the mountain
town is small, it holds lots of unsettling
memories. Yet the wind can change, bringing
with it new opportunities—and the chance to
create the kind of Christmas Veda has always
longed for.

ZEBRA BOOKS are published by

Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018

Copyright © 2014 by Fern Michaels

Fern Michaels is a registered trademark of KAP 5, Inc.

 

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

 

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

 

If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the Publisher and neither the Author nor the Publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

 

 

Zebra and the Z logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

 

First Kensington Books Hardcover Edition: September 2014

First Zebra Books Mass-Market Paperback Printing: January 2015

ISBN: 978-1-4201-3591-6

 

ISBN-10: 1-4201-3591-0

First Zebra Books Electronic Edition: January 2015
eISBN-13: 978-1-4201-3594-7
eISBN-10: 1-4201-3594-5