Read Online Between the Cracks and Burning Doors: Book 2 of The Extraction List Series by Renee N. Meland - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Renee N. Meland
Ads: Link
sight.
As useful as it was, I felt a peculiar aching in my chest, seeing they had to grow so talented at it.
I peered through the peephole at the door. The man didn’t appear dangerous wearing tattered jeans and black shoes…except for the badge in his hand.
This is it. It’s all over. Should I run?
I held my breath as I opened the door. “May I help you?”
The man extended his hand, grasping mine in a shake before I could even raise it all the way forward. “Hello, sir, my name’s Officer Keegan. Marcus, actually. Just call me that.”
I nodded.
“Mind if I come in?”
I shut the door behind me, keeping both of us on the porch. “For what?”
Marcus smiled. He had one of those hidden builds: slender but toned. Toned enough to punish you if you crossed him on the wrong day. “Gosh, I’m sorry. I’ve been gettin’ some calls from members of the congregation at this church.” He leaned in. “Look, I know Father Dominic’s in jail. Nice guy, real nice. People keep callin’ us though, concerned that he just up and left without saying why. And from all the talk of some goodwill mission to some place or other, I figured he didn’t want me to tell them the real reason.”
My muscles relaxed, but not by much. “That’s very nice.”
“Figured if I came by and checked on the place, might ease people’s minds a little. We can tell them one of us came by and Dom’s not lying dead in the basement or something.” He elbowed me in the side as he chuckled. I had to force my lips to part into a smile. “This way I can truly say I came by. Not a lie, just not the whole truth. So if you don’t mind…oh yeah, I’m sorry, what was your name again?”
“Jack. I…I’m taking care of it while he’s gone. He’s a family friend. My parents are…gone too, so it worked out. Come on in.”
I bit the inside of my cheek to keep myself focused.
As we walked around the church, I strained my ears, listening for any sound that might give us away. I heard a rustling, but couldn’t be sure where it was coming from. We were almost to the basement door when Nick fell out of the supply room closet and onto the floor in a pile of brooms and buckets.
I froze. I have to admit it. I froze. I didn’t know whether to run, hide, or hit Officer Keegan over the head with something and hope for the best. So when Nick crawled out of the rubble and came over to us, I thought we were all about to be carted away to jail. Or worse.
Nick looked up at me with his freckled face. “Bro, who’s this?” I remained frozen. For just a moment, I didn’t understand that he had not only recovered beautifully, but he had added another element that made me NOT match the description of Cain Foley. “Jack?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, this is Officer Keegan…uh, Marcus. He’s just checking on the place.”
With the confidence of a presidential candidate, Nick threw his hand out to Officer Keegan. “Pleased to meet you, sir! Are you gonna play Hide and Seek with us?”
Keegan laughed. “Sorry, son, maybe next time.”
The three of us headed toward the door. “Shoot, I didn’t check the basement…oh well, I think I’ve interrupted your game enough.” He ruffled Nick’s hair. There was something about the way he did it that I didn’t like…a little too much force in his fingertips. “Oh, one more thing though, maybe you can help me. Couple of us are trying to find a missing person, asking around town and stuff.” He dug into his pocket and pulled out a folded photo. When he opened it so I could see the picture, the hair on my arms stood up and my legs felt like we were on a ship in the middle of a typhoon. “You haven’t seen this guy, have you? He went to…nobody’s seen him since last night. Plain disappeared. Name’s Billy. My brother and one of my best guys. We’ve been on the force together for fifteen years now.” He glanced at Nick then back at me. “You take care of your brother. Can’t be too careful these
As useful as it was, I felt a peculiar aching in my chest, seeing they had to grow so talented at it.
I peered through the peephole at the door. The man didn’t appear dangerous wearing tattered jeans and black shoes…except for the badge in his hand.
This is it. It’s all over. Should I run?
I held my breath as I opened the door. “May I help you?”
The man extended his hand, grasping mine in a shake before I could even raise it all the way forward. “Hello, sir, my name’s Officer Keegan. Marcus, actually. Just call me that.”
I nodded.
“Mind if I come in?”
I shut the door behind me, keeping both of us on the porch. “For what?”
Marcus smiled. He had one of those hidden builds: slender but toned. Toned enough to punish you if you crossed him on the wrong day. “Gosh, I’m sorry. I’ve been gettin’ some calls from members of the congregation at this church.” He leaned in. “Look, I know Father Dominic’s in jail. Nice guy, real nice. People keep callin’ us though, concerned that he just up and left without saying why. And from all the talk of some goodwill mission to some place or other, I figured he didn’t want me to tell them the real reason.”
My muscles relaxed, but not by much. “That’s very nice.”
“Figured if I came by and checked on the place, might ease people’s minds a little. We can tell them one of us came by and Dom’s not lying dead in the basement or something.” He elbowed me in the side as he chuckled. I had to force my lips to part into a smile. “This way I can truly say I came by. Not a lie, just not the whole truth. So if you don’t mind…oh yeah, I’m sorry, what was your name again?”
“Jack. I…I’m taking care of it while he’s gone. He’s a family friend. My parents are…gone too, so it worked out. Come on in.”
I bit the inside of my cheek to keep myself focused.
As we walked around the church, I strained my ears, listening for any sound that might give us away. I heard a rustling, but couldn’t be sure where it was coming from. We were almost to the basement door when Nick fell out of the supply room closet and onto the floor in a pile of brooms and buckets.
I froze. I have to admit it. I froze. I didn’t know whether to run, hide, or hit Officer Keegan over the head with something and hope for the best. So when Nick crawled out of the rubble and came over to us, I thought we were all about to be carted away to jail. Or worse.
Nick looked up at me with his freckled face. “Bro, who’s this?” I remained frozen. For just a moment, I didn’t understand that he had not only recovered beautifully, but he had added another element that made me NOT match the description of Cain Foley. “Jack?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, this is Officer Keegan…uh, Marcus. He’s just checking on the place.”
With the confidence of a presidential candidate, Nick threw his hand out to Officer Keegan. “Pleased to meet you, sir! Are you gonna play Hide and Seek with us?”
Keegan laughed. “Sorry, son, maybe next time.”
The three of us headed toward the door. “Shoot, I didn’t check the basement…oh well, I think I’ve interrupted your game enough.” He ruffled Nick’s hair. There was something about the way he did it that I didn’t like…a little too much force in his fingertips. “Oh, one more thing though, maybe you can help me. Couple of us are trying to find a missing person, asking around town and stuff.” He dug into his pocket and pulled out a folded photo. When he opened it so I could see the picture, the hair on my arms stood up and my legs felt like we were on a ship in the middle of a typhoon. “You haven’t seen this guy, have you? He went to…nobody’s seen him since last night. Plain disappeared. Name’s Billy. My brother and one of my best guys. We’ve been on the force together for fifteen years now.” He glanced at Nick then back at me. “You take care of your brother. Can’t be too careful these
Similar Books
