Unexpected Reality: Book 1: Gamer Girl (5 page)

Chapter 9

Jones talked to the commander who had searched the place and there was nothing to be found. “We’ve been fooled.” He said. “He knew we would track the game and set it up.” He photographed the gamer’s fingerprints and sent them to the precinct. They came back quite quickly with the name of Carter Malone and Jones realised he had the wrong man. This man was on record for a series of petty crimes but had no connection to the wood yard or the murders they were investigating. In fact he was not the sharpest knife in the box and they took him off to the precinct. Jones sent the armed team back to the station and set off for the gaming office to meet up with Rossi. He found the place secured and forensics working hard to find any clues but it was a bit of an impasse.

“We’ll find her.” He assured Adam but in fact wondered which way to turn next. He asked Adam to follow them to the precinct and they would go over what had happened. “We can decide which way to go next. He and Rossi left the crime scene people working and left. Adam was left in the office feeling desperate and at a loss. He paced back and forth a little bit, unwilling to leave the last place Claire had been and wondering if there was just something that might help. The officers worked around him and one man encouraged him to move out and go to the precinct. He still could not make the move to leave. Adam vaguely wondered how Kassie and her Mom were getting on and shuffled the papers that she had left on the desk before she left. He picked them up and idly flicked through them. Then he went back a page and looked again. The man from the wood yard had another address. His heart did a flip. He read out the address and looked at Kassie’s notes. She had written that they had a holiday cottage. He was not going back to the wood yard so the next obvious place would be the holiday home. He grabbed the paper and left at a run for his car. It took a few minutes to put the address into his sat nav and it told him that it was thirty miles away. Adam gunned the car and set off under the directions from the disembodied voice in the GPS. After a few miles, when he had time for his heartbeat to settle to normal and rational thought to enter his brain, he rang Jones and told him that he was following the address of the holiday cottage and would come in to the precinct later.

Claire and her captor had arrived at their destination and he opened the rear door, reached in and hauled her roughly to her feet. “Home.” He said. “Welcome to my little hideaway. I’m sure we can get to know each other really well.” He slammed the van door shut and propelled her towards the house. It was more a wooden cabin than a house and was in a lonely spot at the coast. In front of the cabin the beach stretched away to the sea and she could hear the sound of the waves on the shingle. It could have been a pleasant spot under the right circumstances. The place was a bit unkempt and had obviously not been cared for properly for a long time. The fence was broken down and weeds ran over the path from what had once been a garden. He opened the door and pushed her inside. When the light was switched, the room in front of her had once been a cozy home from home for the family but now was a jumble of clothes and empty food boxes. Drinks cans and other debris were everywhere and on the table duct tape, rope and a selection of knives. He saw her spot the things on the table and grinned. “You’ve seen my knives and implements.” He sneered and pushed her across the room to a sofa. “Sit.” He said. “I need a drink and something to eat. It’s been a long day.”

Claire was trying so hard to control the shaking that was threatening to take over. She could see no way out of the situation and had realised that nobody knew where he was likely to take her. She had to try and save herself but it looked pretty unlikely. When he came back in carrying a sandwich and a coffee she asked him his name. “You mean you haven’t found it from the net?” He answered. “Levi. Levi Saunders.” He told her through the sandwich. “You can get to know me really well after I finish this snack.” The man used a false name even to himself. The wood yard people were called McGinty.

“Where is this place?” She asked hoping to keep him talking and he told her it was his parents’ holiday house. “We used to come here a lot when I was little but they never used it as they got older.”

“Then you killed them.” Claire could not resist the jab. It had no effect whatsoever. He simply looked at her over his coffee cup and nodded. “I saw a hand in the woodpile.” She said. “If you’d been more careful it would never have been discovered.” The man was totally unmoved by the fact that she knew he was a murderer. “Nobody knows about this place.” He said with an absolute certainty and she realised he really believed that. With a flash she remembered Kassie leaving the details of the holiday home and it gave her a little flare of hope. She would have to keep him talking. “Have you not got any gaming stuff here?” She asked to take him onto what seemed to be his interest. “No internet.” He said. “No tracking. No triangulation. Phones switched off and completely off the grid.” He smiled a smile that showed his confidence in being in charge of the situation. Claire sighed. “Why do you hate my blogs so much?” She asked. “You might as well tell me now.”

“Women should not be in charge.” He said. “Think you are so smart with your crowdfunding and making millions. Opinions on everything and everybody. Smart ass.” He paused. “Not so smart now though.” He said all of this with a very reasonable voice. There was no shouting or anything to suggest this man was a maniac. He would have fooled everyone he met into thinking he was a nice young guy who like his computer games.

“I could give you the money to get safely away out of the country.” She suggested.

“No way.” He replied. “I can get away if I want to anyway but this is much more fun. Think of it as a little holiday before you go visit my parents.” He took the cup and plate back to the kitchen and then came back to run a hand over her hair. Claire could not prevent the shudder that ran through her body. “That’s my girl.” He said “Shivering with anticipation.”

Detective Inspector Jones had a lot to organise and had not realised Adam had not arrived at the station. Then his phone rang and he heard Adam’s garbled message about going to the  holiday home. At first he was annoyed that the man had simply gone off and then he called Rossi. “Did we have a message somewhere about a holiday home?” He asked and Rossi flicked his phone open and showed him the notes from Ray. “Maybe his last piece of police work will save the girl.” He said. “Let’s go. Get the team back that came to the wood yard.” There was a rush of activity as the word went around and a mass exit to the police vehicles. Sirens blazing they took the road to the coast at a ruthless pace.

Adam had reached the vicinity but it was unclear exactly where the house was that he was after. He had several dead ends into small roads that led nowhere even though the GPS told him he had reached his destination. Eventually after walking on foot for awhile he found a track that led towards the beach and took the car down it until he saw there was a house at the end. Then he parked and walked the rest. There was a light in the living room window and a van parked outside the gate. “This must be it. There’s nothing else for miles.” He thought and crept to the window. Sliding along the wall carefully he tried to get a glimpse inside and what he saw made his blood run cold. Claire was tied to a chair and the man who had captured her was running the edge of a knife along his thumb. She was as white as a sheet and had bruises on her face but he thanked all the gods she was still alive and went quietly around the back of the house to find a way in.

Adam was still not as fit as he would like to be from the fight with the man at Claire’s house. He knew it was the same man from the build. He looked around for a heavy weapon to hit the man with and found a broken table leg lying in what had once been garden. “At the worst I can break the window and bring him to see what it was.” He thought but then found a window that was not properly fastened and gently eased it open. It took a little time but he had to risk it for the element of surprise. There was no sound from within as he eased over the sill and reached over for his table leg. He took a firm hold on the makeshift weapon and tried to get to the living room without falling over anything. He reached the door and simply charged through flailing the table leg and caught the man by surprise. He got in a couple of blows before the murderer reacted and started to fight back. Adam knew this man was strong because he had one altercation with him before. This time the man was fighting for his life and liberty and he knew it. He got in a good uppercut to Adam’s chin that knocked his head back with a snap but Adam grabbed him and brought him down to the floor. The two men rolled back and forth and there was nothing Claire could do but watch in alarm as her captor appeared to be getting the upper hand. Adam brought the table crashing down onto the man’s head and scrambled to his feet but his opponent was up and at him in an instant and came at Adam with a back kick. Adam did what reflex training from martial arts had taught him and grabbed the leg. He hauled with all his might and the man fell to the floor. Adam kept hold of the leg and twisted it as the murderer screamed in pain and grabbed for his own leg. In that instant Adam released the leg, grabbed the table leg and brought it down with as much force as he could muster on the top of ‘Razor’ McGinty’s head. The man moaned and lay still.

Adam rushed to Claire, put down the table leg and grabbed the knife to cut her free. He had managed that when she shouted and his opponent had risen from the ground and grabbed him from behind. Claire picked up the table leg and hit her kidnapper with enormous force on the head. He sank back to the floor. “Take that you murdering bastard.” She said. “I hope you find out that a woman knocked you senseless.” They found the rope and trussed him up on the floor and then Adam wrapped his arms around Claire. “That’s ma girl.” He said. “You whacked him good.” And they both started to laugh hysterically in reaction and relief. The sound of the sirens could be heard in the distance and shortly Jones’ voice telling them it the San Francisco Police Department and they should give themselves up.  Adam went to the door and waved them inside.

It was very satisfying to see the man handcuffed and taken away by the proper forces even though Adam knew he would be in trouble for haring off on his own to rescue his girl. She recounted what had happened briefly to Jones and Rossi and then he left the team to search and secure the property and they all went back to the precinct.

“How’s Karl?” Claire asked and tears flowed as she heard he would pull through. She was desperately sad to hear about Ray and grateful that his last act had been one that solved the crime.

Chapter 10

After essential medical checks and statements she was allowed to leave and they went back to the hotel. They rang Kassie and found out her Mom was okay and then told the story again but assured her all was now well. The same procedure happened with Claire’s cousin and she told her she would collect Delta the next day.

“A shower and bed feels like heaven.” She said to Adam as he wrapped her in his arms and carried her to the shower.  The hot water and gentle soap suds washed away the grime of the day and soothed both of them to a gentle relaxation. He kissed her lips through the curtain of warm water and she opened for him. He nuzzled her neck and slid a hand down her body. She followed his lead and found him ready and waiting and she gently took him inside her. They moved together as one person and enjoyed the completeness as she offered herself from the bottom of her heart and he took it with tenderness and gratitude. Holding to each other in the still falling water she murmured. “Oh My God I needed that.” Adam agreed. “Thinking of you and the wonderful time we’ve had together kept me going in that awful place.” She finished.

“I was so beside myself.” He told her. “I couldn’t think straight or function. I just had to find you.”

“And you did. For once being rescued as a damsel in distress was wonderful.” She answered. He turned off the shower and handed her a robe. Wrapping one around himself he carried her back to the bed and sat her on the side. She lay back and held out her arms. “Just hold me Adam.” She asked and he lay beside her.

“Claire.” He said after a few minutes and she turned towards him with a concerned look.

“I know you will have to go back to Hollywood sometime, if that is what you are trying to say.” He shook his head and smiled. “No. I was going to say that I will rent a place in San Francisco.” She shot up in the bed with a smile on her face that lit up his heart.

“I have never said this to another woman,
ever, Claire Costas but will you please take me on and become Mrs Adam Osorascos? The thought of life without you is unbearable.”

There was a stunned silence as Claire took in the full meaning of what he had just said. “Have I ruined everything?” He added and saw tears start to stream down her cheeks. She shook her head.

“You wonderful, gorgeous, hero of a man. Of course I’ll marry you- in a heartbeat, in an instant, forever and ever. I thought I would have this memory of our time together and nothing more.” She flung her arms around his neck and he enfolded her in an embrace. Two both of them it was a coming home. It was a solid ending to an adventure that had promised to be disastrous but they had come through together and the future stretched ahead of them, bright and full of love.

“Tomorrow we go for Delta, tell my cousin and start house hunting together. I might actually have a proper holiday at last.”

“No computers, no work, no games and no looking over shoulders for danger.” He finished. “I love you Claire Costas, with every single cell of my body.”

“I was frightened to admit that I had fallen in love.” Claire told him. “But I have and it is wonderful.” They lay curled in each other’s arms and morning found them in exactly the same position. He woke and stroked her cheek with a finger. When her eyes opened he asked “Will you still marry me today?” And she smiled and kissed his lips.

“Today, any day, every day. I love you so much Adam.” The love they made then was born of a new awareness that this was the start of the rest of their lives. They had found their soul mates and everything would be alright.

Claire rang Kassie and did ask how her Mom was before telling her the news. Kassie screamed with delight and Claire had to hold the phone at some distance and she screamed again when she heard she would be the bridesmaid. “That is just the most fantastic news ever.” She said and hesitated “Apart from the bit about you still being alive.”

“Tell everybody else, Kassie because I am on holiday and am definitely not coming to work.” She rang off and rang her cousin to say they would come for coffee and pick up Delta, She did not tell her about the proposal “I’ll save that for face to face.” She said and they dressed and set off for Val’s house.

With even more congratulations and happiness, she was reunited with Delta who was so excited that his whole body was wriggling like a worm. That tail was wagging itself enough to drop off and a little later she, Adam and Delta were walking through Chrissy Field together hand in hand. The weather was beautiful, the views were stunning and she turned to the man she had fallen in love with and stood on tiptoe to kiss him.

Happy ever after, Adam.” She said “Happy ever after.”

Bonus Books

Dance with Me

Chapter 1

Chloe nervously placed her nametag on her shirt, looking around the room at the other contestants. She took a deep breathe, having a hard time believing that she had finally made it.
The National Art of Dance Competition,
she thought to herself, excitement flowing freely through her. Over the next five days she would be matched with a partner, get lessons from famous choreographers, and end it all with a national dance competition.

Chloe looked down at her itinerary, scanning over her schedule for the week. She would be meeting her partner soon, and she couldn’t help but worry she might not end up with someone she liked. Chloe shook her head and reminded herself that she has had countless dance partners over the years, real talent doesn’t depend on someone else.

A woman walked onto a stage in front of a sea of tables that sat the contestants. She kindly asked everyone to take a seat at their assigned table. Chloe quickly walked over to the tables, searching for her name card. When she found her table she sat down quickly, there was another man and woman seated at the table. Chloe turned to her left, concerned that her partner had yet to reach the table. Her eyes flashed down to the name card next to her,
Evan
was printed neatly in cursive. There was a heavy enigmatic weight to the mystery behind his name. So much of her dream dependent on a man she had never met.

A voice pulled Chloe from her internal musing. She looked up at the gorgeous blonde woman who sat across from her. Her features dripped with daunting beauty, with glowing blue eyes and a set of full rose-colored lips.

“My name is Julia, it’s nice to meet you.” she said sweetly, offering Chloe a kind smile.

The man next to Julia introduced himself as well. “I’m Chad.” he said nodding at Chloe.

She noticed that he was very good looking as well, with long dark hair pulled back and handsome facial features. Chloe also noticed that the pair seemed a few years younger, looking barely older than 21. Feeling inadequate in comparison she began to feel a bit self-conscious.

“I’m Chloe, it’s great to meet you guys.” She replied back, putting on a friendly smile and trying to calm her queasiness.

“I’m Evan.” a deep timbre voice came from behind her. Chloe watched as the man slid silently into his seat, kindly nodding at the others as the introduced themselves politely. She stared at him, taken aback. If she thought that the others were good looking, she couldn’t even begin to compare them to Evan.

He had a tall and lean frame, as most male dancers do, but the way he carried himself enhanced his gorgeous body. He had thick and rich dark brown hair that fell softly into his eyes, hiding the most beautiful sea glass colored eyed. Below that, his face was set with a pointed nose and a strong chin, complete with a dominant jawline.

He turned to her and gave a smile that shook her to her bones and said, “I look forward to working together, Elizabeth.”

The way he purred her name made her blush and she softly said, “You can call me Chloe.”

His smile widened and he said, “Okay, Chloe.”

Their attention was pulled back to the speaker at the podium, going over the schedules and guidelines for the next few days. As Chloe laid in her hotel room  bed that night she felt exuberantly awake, the excitement of the contest making her feel giddy and a bit nervous. She had to admit to herself though, that these feelings were also attributed to her new partner, Evan.