Authors: Candice Poarch

Deadly Intentions (25 page)

BOOK: Deadly Intentions

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Alyssa perused all the preserved animals in Greg's house. Some hung from the walls. Others were positioned at various locations.

“Creepy,” she said. They had been there for hours. Their search had begun in the main house.

Alyssa wandered into a room that must have been Greg's office. There were lots of papers on which he'd written sketchy notes. Bills, receipts, pens, paper clips. The drawer was unusually tidy.

“Jesus,” said an officer from the basement.

“What's wrong?” Harper asked from another room.

“I've seen it all,” the officer said. “Come look.”

Alyssa and Harper ran downstairs and toward the back of another room filled with preserved animals. The officer backed up so they could see into a smaller room.

A preserved woman was placed on the bed.

Alyssa had seen her share of bizarre murders in the last year. She was astonished and dismayed by the sickness of the deviants.

Alyssa's phone rang. The dealer who had sold the bowl to Knight's grandfather's friend told her the identity of the person he'd purchased the bowl from. He claimed he was unaware the bowl was stolen.

Wade Ripley was working at The Cove when the Virginia Beach police arrived along with Sheriff Porterfield and Alyssa Claxton.

It was Thursday and Brian was back at work. Lisa was having lunch with her sister, Vanetta, in The Cove's restaurant.

“Vanetta.” The restaurant manager approached the table. “The police are in Wade's office. They are arresting him,” he said.

“What?”

Both Lisa and Vanetta left the restaurant and headed through the lobby to the offices. The Virginia Beach PD had cuffed Wade and read him the Miranda.

“What's going on?” Vanetta asked, looking at Alyssa for a response.

Alyssa shushed her.

Lisa listened as Wade was placed under arrest for the theft of the bowl.

“But how?” Lisa asked.

“You'll have to talk to him at the station, ma'am.”

“Can't I have one moment with him, please? Just one moment.”

“Ma'am . . .”

“Just a moment,” Alyssa said.

Lisa approached Wade. He turned his back to the group. The officers began to talk among themselves.

“Did Jackie help you steal the bowl?” she asked.

Wade shook his head no.

Lisa hoped he was telling the truth. “Did Ben?”

He shook his head again.

A great weight lifted from her chest. She had been deeply saddened by Ben's death. She would miss him. “Why, Wade? Why would you steal from us?”

“Why does anyone?” He faced the officers, effectively ending their conversation.

After the necessary paperwork, Wade would be extradited to the island. That evening when Brian came to the island Lisa was more than glad to see him. She stood at the kitchen sink peeling potatoes for dinner while he prepared the steaks for the grill.

She never would have guessed Wade. He was a GM in an upscale hotel. He was paid very well.

“He worked night and day. He was always at work,” Lisa said. “The hotel guests loved him. Who would have thought . . .”

“It was greed,” Brian said. “You've got to accept it.”

“After all this time. We've been searching for that bowl for an entire year and the thief was in our midst,” Lisa said. “Do you think he was too fixated on money? Am I too fixated on money?”

“No. This worrying about every little thing has got to stop. Come over here and let me give you something more pleasant to think about.”

“What do you have in mind?”

He came up behind her and began to caress her.

Lisa was filled with pure pleasure. “If you start that, we'll never finish dinner.”

“I have something more important in mind than dinner.”

“Yeah? Like what?” Lisa asked mischievously.

He kissed her behind the ear. “I want a quick wedding.”

Lisa groaned. “How quick?”

“June.”

“Brian . . . it's May.”

“Baby, you're going to be my wife. You have to be adaptable.”

She turned around. She liked the sound of that. “Your wife, hmm.” All thoughts vanished as he took her into his arms.

EPILOGUE

A year had passed and Brian was taking a week's leave to spend with Lisa. He'd been away a month this time. He was taking a couple of weeks next month for their anniversary.

The family bowl was in the Hampton University museum for a year. It would move on to another campus after that.

Harper still didn't know why Nicholas had thought Ben was involved with the bowl's theft when Wade had actually stolen it and had originally sold it to the dealer who sold it to Knight's friend. They'd found several hundred thousand dollars in his bank account. He certainly hadn't made that kind of money working as a GM at The Cove.

At least the bowl was back where it belonged.

Alyssa's wedding was Friday. The crab fry was Saturday and this time Naomi and Lisa were frying together. Lisa still didn't understand why Alyssa wanted to get married on such a busy weekend.

Lisa had planned Brian's homecoming all week.

A lot had changed in a year, Lisa thought as she placed a vase of flowers on the kitchen table. Bright sunlight streamed in. She and Brian had married last June. He'd looked splendid in his dress uniform and his limp was gone.

After their honeymoon in Hawaii, he'd insisted she make the changes she wanted to the house. After all, the place had been nearly destroyed. They had to almost start from scratch anyway. And by contributing, he felt it was more theirs than just hers.

Lisa didn't want Brian to feel excluded. For someone who hadn't had a real home since his father died, she wanted him to feel comfortable in his new surroundings. Truthfully, she liked the changes. The layout was more open. Miles of windows faced the ocean. The master bedroom suite was twice its previous size. The house now had four spacious bedrooms instead of three small ones. The kitchen had been extended into a much larger space and was open to the family room. When they had children she could watch them play while she cooked.

During the renovation, Brian had gone back to full duty. He was happy to return to his SEAL unit. She rarely saw him and he sometimes left with little notice. But, they reminded themselves, it wouldn't be forever.

Unfortunately, she'd had to move back into her parents' garage apartment for the renovations. Her dad seemed okay with it this time. He hadn't grumbled once. And her mother stopped nagging her about marrying a suit.

She smiled. She had news for Brian this trip.

A car drove into the yard. Lisa ran to the door and down the stairs.

Brian bolted out of the car, caught her in his arms, and twirled her around. They giggled and kissed like teens.

“Welcome home,” she said finally.

“Oh, babe.” He returned her to the ground and they walked arm in arm into the house. “I'm not complaining, but it looks like you put on a little weight. It looks good on you.”

“Really? Well, if you like this, be prepared for me to gain a lot more in the next few months.”

Brian stopped midstep, gave her a narrow-eyed look. “Are you saying what I think you're saying?”

Lisa nodded. “Around the first of December, it's going to be three of us.”

“Oh, Lisa.” Brian couldn't contain his happiness.

“I didn't think anything could render you speechless.”

“You just did it, babe. You just did.” They had another round of hugging and kissing.

Lisa's smile softened. “I'm happy, too.”

“Does Grandma know yet?” Naomi had insisted Brian call her Grandma. He'd felt good about that.

Lisa shook her head. “I just found out and I don't want to impose on Alyssa's wedding. It took Jordan a long time to get her to marry him, then settle on a date. Besides, I had to tell you first.”

“You're right about that. We'll tell her Saturday before the crab fry.”

“Deal.”

Dear Reader,

I hope you enjoyed Lisa and Brian's story, the last title in the series “Quest for the Golden Bowl.” Lisa was a troubled character from
Golden Night
. In
Deadly Intentions
, Lisa comes into her own and we discover the cause of her sour disposition and that people can change. I thought it would make a nice change to have a heroine who began with major flaws. I hope you like her transformation from the first book to a main character in the fourth.

The first title in the “Golden Bowl” series,
Golden Night
, featured Gabrielle Long and Cornell Price. The second title,
Long, Hot Nights
, featured Alyssa Claxton and Jordan Ellis, and the third title,
Island of Deceit
, featured Barbara Turner and Sheriff Harper Porterfield. The theme of this series is family history, so I hope you are talking to your older family members to gather your family's interesting stories or writing your own family's history.

I hope this series has offered satisfying reads. I enjoyed creating and working with the characters and hope you were pleased with them.

Please visit my web page:
www.CandicePoarch.com
. You may contact me at:
[email protected]
or write me at: P.O. Box 291, Springfield, VA 22150.

With Warm Regards,
Candice Poarch

DAFINA BOOKS are published by

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

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.”

Dafina and the Dafina logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

ISBN: 978-0-7582-3803-0

BOOK: Deadly Intentions

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