Read Laina Turner - Presley Thurman 02 - Necklaces & Nooses Online
Authors: Laina Turner
Tags: #Mystery: Cozy - Boutique - Chicago
Laina Turner - Presley Thurman 02 - Necklaces & Nooses (21 page)
“This is Detective Landon from Chicago. I need to get a hold of whoever is on duty. I spoke to Sheriff Thompson yesterday. Sure, I understand. Have him call me when he can.” He hung up and turned to me. “We are on our own for now. The entire department is on the other side of Crivitz at a four-car accident, but they’re sending a car over.”
“What should we do?”
“I want you to go back to the car. I will not have you involved in this with Sheila holding a gun.”
“But…”
“No buts. This takes it to a whole new level. Go back to the car.”
“I understand your concern, but you need my help.”
He looked at me, and I could tell he knew he was fighting a losing battle. “You better promise to do exactly as I say.”
“I promise.” And I even meant it.
He sighed.
“So what’s the plan?”
“I think we are going to have to walk right in there and talk her into surrendering. I don’t think there is any other way without backup.”
“Well, then what are we waiting for?” I said with false bravado. It wouldn’t do for Willie to think I was scared. We walked back up the drive to the front door and could hear voices arguing. “Should we knock?”
“Yes. I don’t think it would be safe to just barge in. No telling what Sheila will do.” He lifted his hand up and knocked.
“Who the hell…?” we heard Sheila exclaim.
Chapter 25
W
ow, it’s like Grand Central Station around here,” James said wryly. Willie and I added to Sheila, James, and Steven, making five people and one gun, two, if you counted the one I was sure Willie had somewhere on his person—all in a small cabin at four in the morning. Not exactly where I thought I would find myself. I should be in bed sleeping and was more than a little annoyed that Jared had got me into this mess, though I was glad I was here for Willie’s sake, even though he might not agree.
“What are you two doing here? Can’t you just leave my family alone?” said Shelia, seeming irritated that we showed up, though seemingly not surprised.
“Shelia, I would love nothing more than to leave your family alone, but first you will have to give me the gun.”
“Ha!” She snorted. “Speaking of guns, I’m sure you have one on you somewhere. How about you put it on the floor and slide it over here to me.”
Willie reached inside his jacket to his shoulder holster and pulled out his gun, set it on the floor, and nudged it over to Shelia.
“Is that the only one you have on you?” she asked suspiciously.
“Yes, Sheila, this is the only one.”
“Shelia, for God’s sake, why are you doing this?” James said.
Sheila turned her attention from us back to James, which was fine with me, as I didn’t like having a gun pointed at me.
“Because, James, she had everything that should have been mine. She had you, she had money, and she wasn’t even a real part of the family.”
Until right that minute we had thought it was Peter who had killed Solange. And, while we knew Sheila had paid Peter to try and get Solange in trouble for smuggling illegal goods, we thought he was trying to double cross her and pin the blame for Solange’s death on her. Instead it now seemed we were way off base.
“But Sheila, she loved you,” James said. “She was your sister.”
“Adopted sister. She just loved doing better than me in everything. My life would have been perfect if she hadn’t been around.”
“You are so crazy. She never did anything intentionally to hurt you,” James said.
“Don’t call me crazy!” Shelia screamed. She took a deep breath to calm herself. “That bitch had the audacity to try and have a relationship with my daughter. The one thing I could do she couldn’t, so she had to take over.”
“Solange didn’t try to have a relationship with Amber just because she couldn’t have children and wanted to take the pleasure of being a mother away from you,” James said. “She pleaded with you several times to meet with Amber and get to know her. You could have had that, too, Shelia. You’re the one who kept turning Amber away.”
“Because Solange already beat me to her. I was tired of always being second to that bitch. Everyone liked her better.”
Our childhood fears and thoughts always seemed to follow us. I almost felt bad for Sheila that she was still bitter over things that had happened twenty or more years ago.
“You are just a selfish, bitter women,” James said
“She had no place in our family. She had no right taking things that should have been mine.”
Sheila was more of a loose cannon than I thought.
“Actually, Sheila, she did,” came a voice from the doorway.
We all turned. It was Lorraine.
“Mother, I told you to stay in the car,” said Steven.
I was glad Lorraine was here—it was about time Shelia knew the truth.
“What are you talking about, Mother?” Sheila said.
“Shelia, Solange was your sister,” Lorraine said. “Your half sister.” All of them turned their heads and looked at Lorraine like she was crazy.
“Are you sure you want to say that?” Sheila said, pointing the gun at her own mother. She was losing it.
“Sheila, you don’t want to do this,” Willie said. “We can resolve this without violence. You keep waving that gun around, and someone is going to get hurt.”
“No can do, Detective. This is my assurance.”
“Sheila, what the hell are you doing?” Steven yelled.
“I am tired of being treated like a second-class citizen to that bitch.”
“Oh, Sheila, grow up,” said Lorraine.
I agreed with the sentiment, but thought maybe she was a little crazy springing this on a woman with a gun, even if it was her daughter. Lorraine just seemed very disappointed, not even really surprised or scared that Sheila had just pulled a gun on us.
“Put the gun down,” Lorraine continued. “I don’t know what you think you are doing.”
“Why all of a sudden an interest in what I’m doing? Your precious Solange is dead, and now you have time to pay attention to me?”
“That’s ridiculous, Sheila. You have got to let this bitterness go. You had just as much opportunity as Solange did. She did nothing to hold you back.”
“She stole James from me when I was pregnant with his child.”
“She didn’t steal me, Sheila, I went willingly,” James said. “Get that through your head. It’s been twenty years; get over it.”
“You’re such a bastard,” Sheila choked out.
Lorraine inched toward Shelia, who was so upset by James she didn’t notice. What the hell was she trying to do? I looked over at Willie and saw him looking at Lorraine, too. Was Lorraine nuts? Sheila had already pointed a gun at Lorraine and at Steven, so I didn’t think the family card would help. It looked like she was going for it anyway. Just when Sheila seemed to notice her out of the corner of her eye, Lorraine made her move to grab the gun. At the same time, Willie jumped forward into Sheila knocking her down. The gun flew out of her hand. I ran over to get the gun just as the Crivitz police broke down the door.
“Nobody move,” the officer in charge, yelled. We all froze. I was so happy to see them, though they could have come about five minutes sooner and the situation would have been a lot less stressful.
Chapter 26
S
o let me get this straight, Peter Green was smuggling in ivory necklaces disguised as costume jewelry because Sheila not only paid him, but told him if he got caught he could pin it on Solange, since it would make perfect sense that she would have costume jewelry shipped in?”
“Yes,” I said excitedly. “He knew her ex-husband, which is how he knew about her and the boutique. He rented a space right next door after looking at the buildings and seeing that he could easily crawl through the heating ducts from one building to another. The guys on his end would somehow intercept her shipments and stick in fake jewelry that contained the ivory. He then would crawl over at night and take the fake ones, go back to his hideaway, break them open and take out the ivory.”
“And he killed her because in this last shipment there weren’t any ivory necklaces. He thought she had discovered them and took them and sold them for herself,” Willie said.
“Yep. Little did he know that Solange would have never stooped to that level or been caught dead”—I winced a little at my poor choice of words—“with anything ivory.”
Willie shook his head. “Peter’s contacts on the other end double-crossed him and didn’t put any ivory in this shipment, thinking, and they were right unfortunately, that he would blame Solange.”
I never stopped being amazed at the lengths people will go to be dishonest. “But he didn’t kill her, and Sheila realized this was her opportunity to get rid of Solange once and for all.”
“Sad that twenty years of bitterness did this to her, that she would kill her own sister,” he said.
“But I thought you said it couldn’t be a woman. That only a man would have the strength to do that.”
“We were wrong. Clearly, Shelia was fueled by enough anger she was able to do it.”
I couldn’t help but to feel sad for Mrs. Barker. This had to be such a hard thing to have to deal with.
Chapter 27
A
re you angry with me?”
I was more in shock than anything else, and I wanted to be mad, but I couldn’t be. I could completely understand; after all, I still had feelings for Cooper. “I’m not really angry,” I said. “I guess I’m confused. You broke up with her, and you told me it was for sure over. But I guess somewhere deep down I knew after the night we saw her at the street fair.”
He had the graciousness to look embarrassed. “I swear, I didn’t lie. I thought it was over. There were things we just never could see eye to eye on, and I felt when I broke up with her, it was the right thing to do. But when I saw her at the street fair, I realized I still had feelings, strong feelings, for her. I like you, Presley. A lot. But I have a long history with Molly, and I think I owe it to myself to see if we can make it work long-term. I really am sorry. I never meant to hurt you.”
He really did look sorry, and I felt bad. You can’t help feelings, and even though I was a little annoyed because I had started to like him, he did tell me as soon as he realized he still had feelings for Molly. I couldn’t fault him for still being in love with his ex of three years. Good for them if they could make it work. “I’m happy for you, Willie, really I am.”
“You mean that?”
“Yes, I do,” I said, patting his hand. “Who am I to stand in the way of true love?”
“Thanks, Presley. That means a lot. Friends?”
“Friends.”
The End
If you loved this book, I know you’ll enjoy the rest of my novels. Scroll through the titles below, or check out my website at
http://www.lainaturner.com
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Presley tells her boss what he can do with her job in HR and embarks on a new career as a freelance journalist. What seems like a simple interview with a Senator turns to murder when the day after her interview the Senator turns up dead. Does the fact that Presley was one of the last people to see him alive make her a suspect? Her ex-boyfriend Cooper, who was in charge of the Senators security, might think so. Presley is determined to clear her name but can she do it and resist Cooper’s charms?
A FREE download available on Kindle, Nook, iTunes, Smashwords, and Kobo and you can purchase the paperback on Create Space or audio book on Audible or iTunes.
Necklaces & Nooses
When Presley’s boss is found hanging she thinks its suicide until the police discover its homicide. Who would want to kill a boutique owner? Presley’s not sure but she’s determined to find out. The cute detective assigned to the case makes it all the more exciting.
Available on Kindle, Kindle UK, Kobo, Smashwords, Nook, and iTunes and as an audio book on Audible.
Presley went to Vegas to watch her friend Anna get married and the event turned into solving the mystery of her brother’s girlfriend disappearance. But Ashley wasn’t exactly the schoolteacher she appeared to be. Who was she and was she kidnapped?
Available on Kindle, Nook, iTunes, Kobo, Smashwords and as an audio book on Audible.
And the holiday short…Mistletoe & Murder
In this holiday short story, Presley goes home for Christmas expecting it to be a relaxing holiday until her old boyfriend, Brian, asks for her help finding out who has been stealing from him and it turns from theft to murder. Why would anyone want to kill Tommy and what was he hiding?
Available on Kindle, Nook, Kobo, Smashwords and iTunes and purchase the audio book on iTunes or Audible.
Presley heads to San Diego to hang out with Cooper and enjoy the great west coast weather. She didn’t expect that while hanging out at the local coffee shop she would be a witness to a robbery and murder at Gemstone’s Unlimited. Much to Cooper’s dismay Presley feels compelled to investigate. She discovers that not only was the storeowner a womanizer but also was filing false insurance claims for diamonds that weren’t really stolen. Was that why he was being blackmailed? Was that why someone robbed his store? Presley’s determined to find out!
Available on Smashwords, Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and iTunes.
Get the first 5 Presley Books PLUS the short story
A Day in the Life of Trixie Pristine
in the
Presley Thurman boxed set
.
Available on Smashwords, Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and iTunes.
Presley wins a bet and thinks she finally is going to get a chance to work with Cooper and show her she’s got the potential to be a good security detail for his company. She is miffed when she finds out her first assignment is to protect a bunch of self absorbed beauty queens at a Texas pageant. It soon becomes a more interesting gig than she thought, much to her delight and Cooper’s dismay, when one of the beauty queens turns up dead and the fierce competition leave the door wide open to suspects.
Available on Kindle, Nook, Smashwords, Kobo and as an audio book on iTunes and Audible.
Cupids & Crooks
A trip to an all-inclusive resort in Cabo San Lucas. No work and all play was all that was on her mind until well renowned Mexican soap opera star, Lucia Vegas, turned up dead in the hotel pool. Accident it was not and Presley couldn’t help but wonder what had happened. Then she met reporter, Belinda, who told her the theory that Lucia was just one of a string of murders targeting young actresses. Vacation or not, Presley had to find the murderer!
Available on Kindle, Kobo, Smashwords and Nook.
Vows & Victims coming soon
Back in Alkon for her best friends wedding, Presley shaded her eyes with her hands and leaned against the front window to eliminate glare so she could see in better. She looked around and could see Katy had replaced the tile colors with a softer blue, which gave the salon a much lighter feel than it had before. As she looked around she saw a mannequin sitting, or rather slumped over in one of the hair styling chairs. Why would Katy have a mannequin in there? Or was it a mannequin? She squinted to see better and almost wished She hadn’t. Holy crap, that was most certainly not a mannequin. Presley reached for her phone thinking where were the odds this would happen to her twice. She had just found a dead body.
If you enjoy reading about Presley’s adventures then you won’t want to miss reading about Trixie Pristine and her friends Berklie and Sophie in A Day in the Life of Trixie Pristine and Books Aren’t Just for Reading.
A Day in the Life of Trixie Pristine
In this short story prequel, Trixie and her friends Berklie and Sophie, considered themselves typical thirty something females until someone turned up murdered in their newly opened bookstore/wine bar. They thought they would be living out their dream in their new shop not trying to catch a killer. Who killed Sylvia and why? Or was one of them the intended target?
Available on Kindle, Nook, and iTunes along with the audio version on Audible, iTunes, and Amazon.
Trixie and her friends, Berklie and Sophie, are excited about the opening of Read/Wine their new business venture of a bookstore/wine bar. All is going well until they happen to find a dead body in the shop and that wasn’t part of the business plan. All signs pointed to Berklie since it was her ex-husband’s lover who was murdered. Trixie knew Berklie hadn’t murdered Sylvia so who did?
Available on Kindle, Nook, Kobo, Smashwords, iTunes and as an audio book on Audible and iTunes.
Cupcakes Aren’t Just for Eating
Trixie, Berklie, and Sophie are enjoying the success of their bookstore/coffee shop/wine bar, Read-Wine, and planning for Sophie’s upcoming wedding when they start receiving hang up calls. At first they chalk it up to a wrong number but soon the caller reveals himself. It’s Stephen making good on his threat. He wants his money back. The fact that the police confiscated it doesn’t matter to him. He wants it back and has given them a deadline. A deadline they need to meet before anyone else ends up dead.
Finding out Sophie’s fiancé isn’t who he says he is a shock but his alter ego might come in handy getting Stephen to leave them alone. But with this much money at stake will he? Or are they in danger?
Now available on Kindle.
Get the first three Trixie books PLUS Athena’s Holiday as a boxed set.
Available on Kindle, Nook, Kobo, Smashwords, iTunes and as an audio book on Audible and iTunes.
Read the first book in the new Athena Parks series.
Meet Athena Parks, thirty something law professor who on a whim invites a guy she just met, Tristan West, home with her for the holidays. As crazy as it might seem she was willing to risk him being an ax murder in order to have a buffer between her and her mom. They had
that
kind of relationship.
Things were going well and she couldn’t deny there was chemistry between them. Maybe this was a sign she had finally found a good guy. Until her uncle Peter recognized Tristan. Who wasn’t Tristan at all. Who was he?
Available on Kobo and Smashwords for purchase, Kindle and iTunes as a FREE download and available as an audio book on Audible.
Next in the series,
Athena’s Dilemma
, due out
early 2014.
Athena Parks, law professor, has accepted a one year teaching contract at Hartford Law in Louisville, Ky to replace professor, Bill Peterson, who was taking a leave to defend embezzler, Randall Whittier. What should have been a quiet summer teaching summer school took a turn for the
opposite when Athena found Bill murdered in his office.
Was Bill killed to keep him from defending Randall or was there something else at play here?
Other books by Laina Turner…
Raising Awareness for Multiple Sclerosis is a cause Laina is passionate about due to her mother suffering from the disease.
The MS Project – Volume 1
A collection of stories of people afflicted by MS or who have loved ones afflicted. This book is meant to be informational regarding the disease as experienced by real people and to showcase the amazing strength people find when facing adversity.
Available as an e-book on Kindle, as an audio book on iTunes and Audible and as paper back on Amazon.
The MS Project – Volume 2
An inspiring collection of stories by people who have Multiple Sclerosis. These wonderful people give us a glimpse of their life with MS, their courage, and their determination to live the life they want regardless of the obstacles in their way.
Available on Kindle and as an audio book at Audible and iTunes.
The MS Project – Volume 3 due out fall 2013
More great stories raising awareness for Multiple Sclerosis.
Check out my website at www.lainaturner.com, sign up for my mailing list (and get a free short story), or download my iPhone app, Laina Turner, to be updated on upcoming books and events.
All About Ebook Marketing
All I Know About e-Book Marketing
, is a short book, because I, by no means, claim to know all there is to know about e-book marketing, nor am I even an expert. What I am is experienced in what not to do, enough that I have somehow stumbled on to a few things that actually work and I want to pass that on to other authors. I hope this book will give you at least a few nuggets of helpful of information.
Available on Kindle and as an audio book on iTunes and Audible.
But It’s my Business
The common pitfalls of owning and running a business, this book is filled with real stories relevant to any business owner.
But It’s My Business
takes a practical, upbeat and candid look at why, as a business owner, you need to follow some rules but others are made to be broken. It also discusses how to get the biggest bang for your buck in areas such as your employees, your online presence, creating a brand, and leveraging your finances.
Available on Kindle.