Excerpt
~Prologue ~
Twelve Months Earlier
It was all wrong, and he simply couldn’t accept it. There
had to be something connecting these deaths, and he just wasn’t seeing it
clearly. Sheriff Charlie LaRue sat at his desk in his home office, eating his
dinner with his case files open on his lap. As he compared the three victims,
there had to be a reason their lives all came to an end. It wasn’t as if these
were the first deaths the town had seen, and yet something rubbed him the wrong
way. Just last year there had been a drowning in the lake, but they chalked it
up to too much booze on the holiday, but these three... they truly screamed ‘foul’. Charlie was bothered enough to
keep digging through the information. Eventually, he would get to the bottom of
it, even if it became his life mission. Now he was a dog with a meaty bone, and
plenty of time to strip it bare. It seemed that all he had left at this point
in his life was time.
He’d been a lawman
for thirty years now. Charlie worked his way up through the ranks in the big
city, supporting a wife and daughter on his salary. He truly loved the job.
Then one day, that all came screeching to a halt. His wife, on her way to a
soccer game with their only child, was killed in a car accident. He then was
forced to become the mom and dad to a stubborn little spitfire. Big city life
had to come to an end. When they had the chance, he moved them to Salem, to
slow down the pace. This would ensure that he would live long enough to raise
his daughter.
In his opinion, there was nothing like living in the Deep
South. In the north, time moved forward quickly, where in Salem- it didn’t. It
stayed a sleepy old town.
His work there was gratifying as sheriff. It wasn’t always
exciting, but he got to interact daily with the people he swore to protect. It
also allowed him to watch his daughter grow up into a fine young woman. Sadly
though, slow town life didn’t suit her at all, and once she graduated college,
Elizabeth was off to Quantico to become part of the FBI.
Pride swelled in his heart as he stared over at her picture
on his book shelf. She was the spitting image of her momma, and the stubborn
duplicate of her father.
God help the world!
As he refocused on the files in front of him, Charlie
continued eating his salad, despite how much he loathed the leafy clippings. It
reminded him of lawn cuttings and tasted just about the same. But a promise was
made to his daughter, one he intended to keep. If he ate better and stopped
smoking, then maybe he would get to see grandkids one day.
He glanced down at the greens that he had dumped from the
big container in his refrigerator. Yeah, this was going to be torture. His
ex-wife couldn’t get him to eat healthy, but his daughter and a promise of
grandkids one day certainly could.
In her last email, she mentioned a possible second date. It
gave him hope that it would lead to more. Charlie desperately wanted her to
find the love he once had with his first wife. She had been his soul mate, and
he desired that for his daughter too.
Since he’d been thinking of her and the emails, he needed to
send one back. Maybe he should ask for a second set of eyes to take a look at
these files. It was possible a trained special agent with the FBI would have a
better chance at sorting through all this crap. Then possibly, Elizabeth could
give her old man a clue.
He rolled his eyes in disgust as more greens went down the
gullet.
Apparently, Charlie would do anything to one day see those
grandkids.
As he began to type the email, he felt a quickening in his
pulse and a tightening in his chest. Possibly, he was pushing himself a little
too hard. In his medical history, there was a slight arrhythmia that gave him
concern. The doctor assured him with medication, he would be fine. Maybe taking
the rest of the night off would be a good thing; after all, he wasn’t a young
man anymore. Sixty was right around the corner, and he hadn’t exactly lived a
clean life. Yeah, the smoking and beer were catching up to him, so maybe he’d
just finish his lawn clippings and head to bed.
Charlie was almost done. All that was left was to hit send.
Before he could, there was a scraping noise from the patio. It sounded like
someone was opening his door, trying to get into gain access to the house.
Immediately, Charlie shut down all his files and closed his laptop.
It would have to wait until his company was gone.
In his mind, Charlie had plenty of time.
Charlie tried to stand, but the room swam and his throat
began to constrict.
Oh God, something was
wrong!
He reached for the phone to dial 911, but it slipped from
his hand. All the feeling in his hand was gone, as the numbness spread to his
legs, his thighs, and finally his chest. Suddenly, he wished he sent the email,
or better yet had taken the time to call his daughter.
“Did you enjoy your salad, Charlie?” questioned the voice
from the doorway.
Charlie tried to speak, but his tongue felt incredibly
swollen. He couldn’t understand why the visitor was in his house.
Uninvited.
“Oh, don’t worry, Charlie. While you were at work I mixed
you up some special greens of my own.”
Panic set in as his breathing slowed. How he wished he could
get to his gun and take one well aimed shot.
“I’m sure you realize now what Foxglove can do to the body.
It’s very toxic and the poison works fairly quickly. Isn’t it delightful that
digitalis is both a toxin and a cure? Nature can be such a wicked thing. As can
humans, Charlie.”
He knew it was over, and he began whispering a mental
goodbye to his daughter. He prayed when she was forced to come home, that she
wouldn’t stay. If she remained, ultimately she would die too.
“It’s time to end your reign as Sheriff, Charlie. You won’t
be investigating these deaths anymore. It’s time to sleep,” mocked the voice,
as the man slowly began to slump over his laptop.
Breath shuddered, as
everything came to a stop. He swore he heard the last beat of his heart. Soon,
all his last cognizant thoughts were gone before the blackness came and
swallowed him.
The laughter was sadistic and evil. “Tick, tock, Charlie.
Now it looks like you’ll be my next victim. Sadly, they’ll think you had a
heart attack, you old coot. Let’s keep that our own little secret. It appears
you’ll be taking it to your grave.”
The voice placed the receiver back in the cradle and closed
Charlie’s dead eyes. Now that he was gone, the purification of Salem could
continue, but first, there would be a little break. There would be a new
sheriff and the trail needed to temporarily go cold, until the replacement was
found and studied. No need to draw suspicion with another death. There was
plenty of time. Why rush and screw it up? After all, this was all a calling.
One from God!
Six Hundred Miles Away
Ethan Blackhawk tossed and turned in his bed. The dream
grabbed him, refusing to let go, no matter how hard he tried to wake himself.
He should be used to it by now, since the same woman had been habitually
invading his nights and sometimes entering his days. There were moments where
she brought him peace and other times abject horror.
Good dreams, bad dreams, even horrific ones all centered
around her as if she was the catalyst. There were even some dreams that would
make him blush if he wasn’t asleep. Ethan was ashamed to admit it, but his
favorite ones were the voyeuristic dreams, where his blood heated his body. All
of it was driving him mad with want.
The dreams were becoming more urgent. In this one the woman
was standing in a circle of blood, as it ran over her body in sick rivulets. In
one hand was a gun and in the other was a badge. Barely visible was the FBI
lettering. Her long, black hair waved in the breeze, as she stared at him with
the prettiest blue eyes he had ever seen. Correction, they were the most
beautiful eyes he had ever seen in his life. They captivated his attention with
their color alone. Her body was next to draw his full attention. The woman was
tall and lean. Her hair whipped around her, like a cape in the invisible
breeze. What Ethan wouldn’t give to slide his hands into the mass of black
silk, holding her to his body.
“Come find me, Ethan. I need your help,” she whispered, into
the darkness. It was as if she was staring right through him, seeing all his
secrets.
“Where are you?” he pleaded. The desperation was building,
as he needed to find her. Maybe if he located her, it would end the torment he
was suffering. His life was plagued with this woman and the need to protect
her. She had become his obsession, driven by his own selfish desires to touch,
taste and feel her.
“I’m at the mouth of hell.” It was simply spoken with both
fear and honesty. Wherever she was, it was indeed hellish. Death was
surrounding her, and she couldn’t hold it back any longer. Soon it would be
coming for her.
“How am I supposed to find you?” His own voice betrayed him,
as all the need and want flooded through with the emotions. Blackhawk prided
himself in being a man of few words. Yet in his dreams with her, he was always
a geyser; desperate to keep her there with him as long as possible.
She tipped her head to the side, pondering the question and
searching for the answer herself. How could she explain to him that she
couldn’t supply him with the very thing that eluded her too? “Follow the trail of bodies, and they’ll lead
you to me,” she replied, dropping her gun and badge into the puddle of blood,
willingly abandoning them.
“Wait!”
“Hurry Ethan, I need
your help!” With that she turned and began walking away, leaving a trail of
bloody footsteps marking her path.
Ethan watched the dream waver, sitting up in a panic and
finally breaking through. He scrubbed his hands over his face, hoping to wipe
away the dream and the panic brewing, but to no avail, it remained. He
shuddered and pulled himself from his bed, walking to the window and staring
out at the silence of the city.
“I’ll find you, I promise,” he whispered, praying it
wouldn’t be too late for either of them.
Everything in him screamed the truth.
Ethan needed her to survive.
Back In Salem
One Year Later
The truck bounced haphazardly down the rocky road. It spewed
pebbles and gravel behind it, as it sped into the darkness without a care in
the world.
Death had no schedule.
When it was time to die, it was the end of the line and
these two witches deserved it. They flaunted their bodies, giving away what
shouldn’t be bargained so freely. They deserved what happened to them.
At first, it was easy to just get them high. It only took a
few special joints and to lure them, one by one, to the Jacuzzi. It was quite
simple as they didn’t weigh more than one hundred pounds each. Both girls were
barely legal in age, and easy to trick into doing his will. There was such
stupidity in youth, but alas, that was handled now. There would be no fast
living; there would be no more drugs, sex and rock and roll. All there was now
was the finality of death.
Theirs.
Both had gone fairly quickly. They were held under the
water, until eyes were huge with fear. Ignored were their struggles, as they
fought to survive. Although, he had to admit, there was definitely remorse with
the second girl. Her parents were kind people, and it wasn’t their fault that
they were raising a witch. How could they know she was willing to dance naked
under the moonlight for any man?
What a shame! There was even a moment of pity, when she was
pulled to the surface, allowing her to catch her breath and beg for her life.
Only it wasn’t meant to be, as he pushed her back under to begin the torture
all over again. He wasn’t permitted to stop. The voice had demanded it be done.
Cleanse the town of
all the witches!
Evil was everywhere in the world, including Salem, and he
was ‘chosen’ to find the offenders
and purify his town.
This was his calling.
Now it was time to dump their bodies and head home. It had
been almost a year since the last cleansing had taken place. The break in
between only fueled the hunger and need to do the duty assigned at his birth.
This was his calling, and a mission from God. It was one that needed to be
completed. Everyone in town would benefit, and a new, pure Salem would be
reborn.
He brought the truck to a stop beside the serene lake. It
would be a good place to leave the girls. By morning they would be found by
someone, and if not, it just prolonged the fun of watching the new sheriff
trying to solve the crimes.
Charlie LaRue had been smart and didn't miss a thing. His
replacement looked like she should be modeling in a magazine. Elizabeth LaRue
had been in the FBI, but now her father’s death had brought her home.
That would be the worst decision of her life!
Attempting to match wits with a killer was one thing, but
trying to stop the divine intervention of God was another. If she got too
close, she too would end up one of the victims. Honestly, that wouldn’t be a
bad thing. Like the second girl, he’d regret it a little bit, but as usual the
voice would give him strength and urge him forward.
It always did!
As the bodies were lowered into the lake, they made light
ripples around the shoreline. The tiny fish began checking to see what was now
disturbing their habitat. The moon shone down on their corpses, as they were pushed
towards the deep, center of the water. Soon, they would sink and their
transformation would be complete.
From sinner to
cleansed.
From life to death.
The count was once again growing and the game was starting,
anew. Continuing the hunt for the next witch was his ultimate plan. But why
rush? Tonight was their baptism, and it should be all about them.
A silent prayer was said for their souls, and then followed
by barely suppressed laughter.
Once again ‘the
killing times’ were upon them. It was all about purging Salem of the evil
that had found its way there.
Sinners beware.
Salvation was on its
way!
