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Brody and Daphne were outside the Italian restaurant, holding hands and examining the chopper.
“This was yours?” Her face scrunched in disbelief.
“Originally, it belonged to one of the club’s founders, but I rebuilt her from the frame up.” Brody’s hand caressed the gas tank.
Sadness crossed Daphne’s face. “You’re leaving, aren’t you?”
“The club knows I’m here. If I stay, evil men will keep coming to Pleasant Valley.”
She looked away.
“There are two seats on this bike,” Brody said.
“Do I look like a biker’s girlfriend?”
“I’m not a biker anymore.”
“What are you then? You’re not a bookstore owner, and that’s the guy I fell for.”
“You can’t fall for me if I’m on the run?”
“I don’t want to be on the run,” Daphne said. “I like it here.”
He smelled the ocean’s aroma and felt the humidity on his skin. He admitted to himself that he liked Pleasant Valley, too, but a lot of it had to do with the woman next to him.
A Chevrolet Impala pulled up to the curb. U.S. Marshal Ted Onderdonk sat behind the wheel. Brody knew he only had a moment to tell her how he felt before the lawman came up and destroyed the moment.
“Daphne, I—”
The door to the Italian restaurant opened, and the Fixer stepped out with a gun in his hand. “Get inside, rat. And bring the woman.”
Brody instinctively pulled Daphne behind him. “You don’t want to do this.”
“It’s already done,” the Fixer said, leveling his gun at him. “I called the bosses. They know you killed Frankie the Dove. You think you had trouble before. Now the whole world is about to come down on you.”
A car door opened behind Brody.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” he said.
The Fixer smirked. “Stop stalling. Get in—”
A gun fired, and Brody flinched. Daphne screamed and hugged him from behind. The glass door to the Italian restaurant splintered behind the Fixer.
The gunman looked around, trying to determine what had just occurred. Then he listed to the side, took a half-step to correct his balance, before shuffling forward several steps and dropping to a knee. He remained there for a moment as his chin fell to his chest. He blinked several times, each blink slower than the last. Finally, he stopped blinking all together and tilted to the side. His head thunked on the sidewalk.
Onderdonk slowly approached, his gun between two hands. When he was near the Fixer, he kicked the man’s weapon away. He reached down and pressed two fingers against the gunman’s neck. When he was satisfied, he righted himself and put his firearm away.
“You didn’t tell him to put his hands up,” Brody said.
“That’s for the movies.”
“Don’t think I owe you,” Brody said, “because you created this mess.”
“There’s a whole pack of Satan’s Dawgs coming up Interstate Ninety-Five. We need to get you out of here.”
“I’ll get myself out of town.”
“Not a chance. You’re my responsibility. I told you I would protect you, and I meant it.”
“Not today,” he said. He pulled the keys from his pocket and lifted his leg over the chopper. “I’ll call you when I get someplace safe. I promise.”
Daphne watched him with sad eyes.
“You coming?”
“I can’t.” She leaned in and kissed him on the lips. When she broke away, she stepped back and said, “This is my home. Besides, I’ve got to get back to the store.” He watched her walk away. She never turned around to look at him.
For a moment, Brody thought about staying, but that would be suicide. The club was on the way, and the mob knew who had killed their underboss. Running was his only option—for him, Daphne, and Pleasant Valley.
“Hey,” the marshal said. “That woman you had me look into, the one in Massabesic Lake? It wasn’t Alice Walker.”
“Don’t worry, Ted. Alice will turn up. Trust me.”
“What do you know?”
He put his hand on the motorcycle’s key.
“Do not start that bike,” Onderdonk said.
“I’ll call you when I get somewhere safe. If you’re here when the Dawgs arrive, tell them I went to Daytona Beach.”
“Is that where you’re going?”
The motorcycle revved to life.
“What about your cat?” the lawman asked.
Brody throttled the engine, piercing the quiet of Pleasant Valley.
“Do you want me to get him for you?” Onderdonk yelled over the roaring bike.
The big man gunned the engine twice and lifted the kickstand. The bike accelerated smoothly away from the curb.
He drove slowly down Main Street to the lighthouse and turned around, taking a final look at the ocean. Even though he knew now that Onderdonk had messed with the computer to send him to this quaint community, he wished it had worked out differently. Maybe this was where the universe had really wanted him to be.
But he wasn’t a man to linger on wishes and dreams. He had to live in reality. And it was a fact that the entire chapter of the Satan’s Dawgs was on the way to Pleasant Valley. To save himself and the town, he had to leave now.
He revved the bike’s engine before slowly driving through the center of town.
As he passed The Pleasant Peasant, he waved goodbye to Daphne. She watched him with tears in her eyes. He pulled his gaze away, swallowed with great difficulty, and continued up the street.
When he drove past Pleasant Valley Sundae, he scowled at a group of children eating ice cream. They giggled and jumped for no reason.
Several people looked into the windows of The Red Herring. Brody wondered if the marshals would continue to use the bookstore as a cover for the Witness Protection Program or if they would sell the business now.
Whether they did was not his concern, though, for as he raced westbound on US 103, Brody Steele truly felt like a free man.
But as he drove away, a final thought occurred to him.
He hadn’t finished reading The Deep Blue Good-by and would never get to talk with Daphne Winterbourne about it.
Beau Smith
returns in...
Cozy Up
to Murder
SPINACH CASSEROLE
(aka Joe’s Special)
Courtesy of Gertrude von Finklestein
––––––––
One pound ground beef
One small package of frozen chopped spinach (thaw and squeeze out excess liquid)
One medium onion, chopped
Combine in a large frying pan and cook until meat is done. Drain off grease.
Add:
One 4 oz. can of mushrooms, drained
One can Cream of Mushroom soup
½ cup sour cream
¾ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon pepper
Combine all ingredients in the frying pan.
Spray coat an 8″ x 8″ pan and put the mixture in it.
Top with grated mozzarella or cheddar cheese.
Bake it at 325 degrees for 25 minutes.
A message from Gertrude:
We modified this recipe from my father's favorite, Joe's Special. It was originally from a restaurant in San Jose. They cooked it in a frying pan and didn't use the soup or sour cream. I changed it to a casserole.
For better flavor, use fresh chopped garlic and cook it with the meat.
DID YOU LIKE THE BOOK?
I love when friends and family recommend a book for me. I’ll often give it a read just because the recommendation came from someone I trusted. That’s probably how we all are.
If you enjoyed this story, I’d truly appreciate it if you would tell your friends and family or leave a review at where you got the book.
All writers need feedback on their work. Not only to help other readers discover them, but so they know they’re delivering the goods with their stories.
Thanks for reading and hope to see you again!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Besides writing The Cozy Up Series, Colin Conway is the author of The 509 Crime Stories, a series of novels set in Eastern Washington with revolving lead characters. They are standalone tales and can be read in any order.
He is also the co-author of The Charlie-316 series. The first book in the series, Charlie-316, is a political/crime thriller and has been described as “riveting and compulsively readable,” “the real deal,” and “the ultimate ride-along.”
Colin served in the U.S. Army and later was an officer of the Spokane Police Department. He's a commercial real estate broker/investor, owned a laundromat, invested in a bar, and ran a karate school.
He lives with his beautiful life partner, their three wonderful children, and a crazy, codependent Vizsla that rules their world.
Find out more about Colin at his official website—colinconway.com.
COZY UP TO MURDER
A man hiding from his past.
A detective hunting for a murderer.
This is no time to bake a pie.
Today is Owen Hunter’s first day in the coastal city of Costa Buena, California. He’s the new owner of Rockafellers, a vintage record store struggling to find customers. Much of that is due to Headbangers, a competitor with a better product mix and an aggressive owner.
There is also a local do-gooder group who wants Owen to fall in line with their vision for a kinder, gentler Costa Buena.
None of that worries Owen, though, because he is determined to be the number one used-music store on the boardwalk—even if that means stepping on a few toes. But when a murder occurs shortly after his arrival, he’s identified as prime suspect number one.
Owen Hunter must clear his name fast because he can’t afford to have a bunch of nosy cops poking around.
For Owen is a man with a secret that he must protect at all costs. The U.S. government has invested a lot to keep him safe, but his enemies will stop at nothing to find him.
Do prosperity and happiness await Owen in this coastal community?
COZY UP TO BLOOD
A man running from his past.
A thief with a taste for blood.
This is no time for scrapbooking.
Welcome to Belfry, Oregon. The home of Evenfall!
Years ago, a series of sparkly vampire movies were made on this north Oregon island. Every autumn, a festival is held to celebrate the films and let fans reenact their favorite scenes.
Murray Lee has no interest in bloodsuckers, though. For the past several days, an outlaw motorcycle gang seeking revenge has pursued him. He’s tired, alone, and cranky. Amid a torrential downpour, Murray barely crossed the lone working bridge to Belfry before it washed out.
Now, he’s stranded on the island as his enemy musters its forces and plans an attack.
To make matters worse, someone is biting and robbing the citizens of the island. The local cops seem to think Murray fits the description and are digging into his background.
But Murray is a man with a secret he must protect. The U.S. government has invested a lot to keep him safe, and his enemies will stop at nothing now that they’ve found him.
Murray Lee is about to be immersed in vampire culture in a way he would never have expected.