The Root of All Evil (Hope Street Church Mysteries Book 4)
Read The Root of All Evil (Hope Street Church Mysteries Book 4) Online
Authors: Ellery Adams,Elizabeth Lockard
Tags: #mystery, #romance, #church, #Bible study, #con artist, #organized crime, #murder
The Root of All Evil
Cooper Lee has never been happier. She has terrific friends at Bible study, a great boyfriend in Nathan, and best of all, a new niece or nephew on the way. But storm clouds are gathering when a string of church robberies comes to Hope Street and an art teacher is found dead in what appears to be a robbery gone wrong. With Halloween approaching, Cooper’s beginning to think there are far more tricks than treats coming her way.
No sooner do she and her friends step in to help the police unearth a killer than they discover a con artist among their flock. Lost in a morass of confusing clues—and even more confusing signals from Nathan—Cooper’s not sure which way to turn. With the stakes high, she sends up a prayer for some divine guidance, because Cooper knows that sometimes it takes the help of a higher power to bring down the lowest form of evildoer.
Beyond the Page Books
are published by
Beyond the Page Publishing
Copyright © 2014 by Jennifer Stanley and Elizabeth Lockard.
Material excerpted from
The Path of the Crooked
copyright © 2014 by Jennifer Stanley.
Cover design and illustration by Dar Albert, Wicked Smart Designs
ISBN:
978-1-940846-37-8
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Acknowledgments
The author would like to thank her loving family for their prayers and support and Cherry and Kandice for their fabulous cookie recipes.
Contents
Excerpt from
The Path of the Crooked
Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
1 Timothy 6:9–11 (NIV)
1
Cooper Lee slid around the hallway corner at Hope Street Church, her dress shoes skidding on the polished floor. She’d slept through her alarm and woke with just enough time to throw on clothes and race her truck to the church. Had it not been for the two kittens playing on her pillow right next to her head, she wouldn’t have had enough time for even that.
As Cooper hugged her Bible tightly and prayed for stability, she regained her balance and was able to sprint again. She could hear the Sunrise Bible Study Group in the science room ahead: Quinton’s full-bodied laugh, Savannah’s gentle voice, Bryant’s confident tone, and all the others.
Cooper tried to stop at the science room door, but her shoes didn’t comply. She skidded right past the opening, nearly tumbling over and dropping everything. Everyone stopped talking.
Nathan Dexter, Cooper’s boyfriend, poked his head out of the room. “Coop, you all right?”
Glad to know he was concerned about her clumsiness but embarrassed by it all the same, Cooper nodded. “Fine.” She straightened her blouse and hair as she walked toward the doorway. “I just realized why athletes don’t wear Mary Janes.”
Nathan stared back with a blank expression.
“My shoes are slippery.”
“Oh! Gotcha!” He took Cooper’s purse, Bible and study guide and set them on the chair beside his own. At that moment, still embarrassed, Cooper envied his long arms and big feet.
He
wouldn’t nearly drop everything, and with a foundation that big,
he
wouldn’t be slipping in the hallway. Of course, he also wasn’t wearing Mary Janes.
Nathan was a good-looking guy, and Cooper appreciated that about him. Nice guys were supposed to be plain and forgettable, but Nathan—the nicest guy she’d ever met—was anything but. He was tall, with a prominent chin, thick hair, friendly brown eyes and a kind, self-effacing smile. And he was a good kisser. Cooper appreciated that, too.
Savannah gazed at Cooper through dark blue eyes. Though legally blind, Savannah was adept at identifying the blurred figures of the people she knew. “Glad you could make it, Cooper. What happened?”
“I made an entrance,” Cooper explained, eyeing a little picture by Savannah’s purse. “Is that one of yours?”
“Pastor Matthews wanted to put some of the church members’ artwork in the foyer.” Savannah picked up the picture. It depicted David fighting the giant Goliath. The faces were without detail, but there was an emotion in the picture Cooper couldn’t explain. Sometimes she wondered if Savannah’s poor vision actually let her see things more clearly, especially in her folk art. While others stressed over the details, Savannah captured the big picture.
Cooper studied the picture. “It’s beautiful. And sorry I’m late.”
Savannah set her artwork back down by her purse. “No problem at all. You know how it goes. We were just visiting a bit before we got started. Is everything all right?”
“Just fine. Except I think I need a new alarm clock. Supposedly it went off this morning, but I didn’t hear a thing. Thankfully I have two cats that don’t let me sleep too late.”
Trish Tyler, sitting to Savannah’s left, laughed at the comment. “If you need a better alarm clock than cats, try kids!” She adjusted the stylish brown beret and matching scarf she wore to hide the lingering effects of chemotherapy. “I’ve got two you can borrow!”
“Alarm clocks are cheaper,” added Jake. He stretched his arm across the open space between his chair and Savannah’s and rested his hand on her shoulder gently. His other sleeve was rolled up, showing off the Celtic cross tattoo emblazoned on his forearm. “And you can turn ’em off.”
Bryant chuckled and chimed in, “You know, that’s not entirely true. Since I’ve been dating Jane, I’ve learned you
can
turn kids off. It’s called ‘chocolate.’”
Trish groaned. “You give her children chocolate to keep them quiet? That poor woman!”
“What? It works.”
“Only temporarily. Trust me. After you leave the house and the sugar hits, those kids are bouncing off the walls.”
Bryant looked genuinely concerned. “Oh. Oops.”
Cooper chuckled and headed for the snack table, where Quinton, the rotund banker and gifted baker, was fixing himself a plate. Cooper suspected it was seconds.
When she’d first joined the Sunrise Bible Study, Jake had told her it was the best study group because they had the best food. He hadn’t been kidding. Today’s snack selection consisted of a butterscotch fudge layer cake and maple-frosted cupcakes with large reddish sprinkles. And, of course, a full pot of coffee.
Cooper picked out a cupcake with extra-thick frosting and looked over at Quinton. “I take it these are yours.”
Quinton beamed. “Made the layer cake last night and the cupcakes this morning.” He delivered a piece of cake to Cooper’s plate.
Cooper studied the cupcake. “What kind of sprinkles are these?”
“Bacon.”
Cooper arched a brow and considered putting the cupcake back in its tray. Her expression must have betrayed her thoughts, because Quinton laughed immediately.
“Just try it!” he insisted. “You’ll love it.”
Still skeptical, Cooper took a deep breath and ventured a small bite. The sweet maple melted across her tongue and the salty bacon crunched between her teeth. “Mmm,” she hummed. “Is there pancake in this?”
“It’s a pancake batter cupcake.”
“Oh, my gosh! It’s like the best of all breakfast foods wrapped into one treat . . . but with way more sugar.”
Quinton nodded, satisfied. “Precisely.
Some
people are too narrow-minded to try new things.”
Jake threw his hands in the air. “I’m not
narrow-minded
. I’m just not sure how I feel about mixing bacon and dessert together. It’s a matter of principle.”
Savannah patted his knee. “And we’re all very glad you’re a principled man.”
Cooper wasn’t sure, but she thought that—for just a moment—a hint of a blush rose in Jake’s cheeks, only to disappear again in a coughing fit. Jake and Savannah were sweet together, and that sweetness made Cooper smile.
That
sweetness and the sweetness of her maple cupcake, of course.
“Cooper, while you finish up your plate, we’re gonna go ahead and jump into this morning’s study,” Savannah announced. “Today we continue our study of the expectations and responsibilities of the church. We’re in the book of One Timothy, chapter three.” Quickly, everyone quieted down and opened their workbooks and Bibles. Cooper poured herself a steaming cup of hazelnut coffee and then hurried to her seat.