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Authors: Robin Alexander
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going to get better is to stand on your own two feet!”
Blake flopped over on her side. Above all, loneliness had propelled her to leave New York. And when the temptation to run home became great, that was what kept her in Cypress Glade. Well, that and the fact that she couldn’t drive, and she’d have to have help to escape. The bigger truth was that Blake wanted to live like everyone else. She wanted a life, a partner.
She’d had three significant relationships, the longest had lasted a year. Beth Pace, Cassidy’s assistant, had been patient, had known before they got together that being with Blake would be difficult. That was why Blake trusted that what they had would last, but even Beth grew tired of what she termed “being held hostage by fear.” The morning Beth left, Blake had followed her as far as the sidewalk outside of her apartment building but could not make her feet move as she watched Beth round the corner and walk out of her life. Blake wondered—hoped—that with some time, she could gain the fortitude to walk into Cassidy’s office and win Beth back.
“It’s a damn dog!” Blake said aloud. “Go to sleep, chicken shit!”
Chapter 9
Quinn swallowed hard as she watched water wash away the dirt piled up next to the base of the Sutters’ home. It was a pier and beam house and sat a few feet above ground, but the space between the ground and floor had been bricked just like Blake had written. Quinn knew the irrational fear was foolish, but she was having a hard time with the thought of crawling into that enclosed space.
Jacob spat on the ground near the rivulets of water coming from beneath the brick. “It’s either a crack in the pipe or a bad coupling. My bet’s on the coupling.”
“Why do you spit? You don’t chew tobacco or dip.”
Jacob narrowed his eyes as he glanced at Quinn. “Spitting is what a man does when he disapproves of something or if he just wants to.”
Quinn spat into the dirt next to his boots.
“That’s so not you. Don’t do it again, you looked stupid.”
Quinn spat on his boots. “So do you. I’ll get a hammer and start breaking this wall.”
“What?” Jacob grabbed her arm. “We’re not breaking anything. Do you know how much that’ll cost to replace?”
“That opening on the backside isn’t big enough for even you to shimmy through,” Quinn argued. “We’re gonna have to break something. We might as well do it near the leak.”
“You’re forgetting they have a trap in the washroom that’s close to the leak. We’ll go in through there.”
Quinn swallowed hard. “Do you really think it’s gonna take both of us?”
“No, if you want, you can go down there alone, but it’d be a lot easier with the both of us so someone could hold the light and hand tools. What’s wrong with you?”
“Blake used me as a character and described something just like this, and I found a dead body under the house, then the owner stabbed me and locked me down there.”
Jacob stared at her for a moment and grinned. “I don’t think she likes you very much, which is sad because I wanted to be able to say my sister is dating Blake Taylor.”
“I was just a character, a secondary one.” Quinn sneered. “It doesn’t mean anything. That’s what she said. You may worship her, but I don’t.”
“Quinn, get the tool bag and the couplings. Let’s get this done before dark.”
*******
The musty air that came out of the trapdoor was as cool as the air-conditioned house. Quinn watched as Jacob’s feet disappeared. In her mind, she saw so vividly what Blake had written and hoped Blake wasn’t psychic and had predicted her end.
“Would you like something to drink before you go down there?” Mrs. Sutter asked kindly as she stood nearby.
“No, thank you…and you should stay back from the trap…way back.” Quinn gazed up at the silver-haired woman. “If you were to step off in this, you could break a hip. That would be debilitating, maybe even
Blake flopped over on her side. Above all, loneliness had propelled her to leave New York. And when the temptation to run home became great, that was what kept her in Cypress Glade. Well, that and the fact that she couldn’t drive, and she’d have to have help to escape. The bigger truth was that Blake wanted to live like everyone else. She wanted a life, a partner.
She’d had three significant relationships, the longest had lasted a year. Beth Pace, Cassidy’s assistant, had been patient, had known before they got together that being with Blake would be difficult. That was why Blake trusted that what they had would last, but even Beth grew tired of what she termed “being held hostage by fear.” The morning Beth left, Blake had followed her as far as the sidewalk outside of her apartment building but could not make her feet move as she watched Beth round the corner and walk out of her life. Blake wondered—hoped—that with some time, she could gain the fortitude to walk into Cassidy’s office and win Beth back.
“It’s a damn dog!” Blake said aloud. “Go to sleep, chicken shit!”
Chapter 9
Quinn swallowed hard as she watched water wash away the dirt piled up next to the base of the Sutters’ home. It was a pier and beam house and sat a few feet above ground, but the space between the ground and floor had been bricked just like Blake had written. Quinn knew the irrational fear was foolish, but she was having a hard time with the thought of crawling into that enclosed space.
Jacob spat on the ground near the rivulets of water coming from beneath the brick. “It’s either a crack in the pipe or a bad coupling. My bet’s on the coupling.”
“Why do you spit? You don’t chew tobacco or dip.”
Jacob narrowed his eyes as he glanced at Quinn. “Spitting is what a man does when he disapproves of something or if he just wants to.”
Quinn spat into the dirt next to his boots.
“That’s so not you. Don’t do it again, you looked stupid.”
Quinn spat on his boots. “So do you. I’ll get a hammer and start breaking this wall.”
“What?” Jacob grabbed her arm. “We’re not breaking anything. Do you know how much that’ll cost to replace?”
“That opening on the backside isn’t big enough for even you to shimmy through,” Quinn argued. “We’re gonna have to break something. We might as well do it near the leak.”
“You’re forgetting they have a trap in the washroom that’s close to the leak. We’ll go in through there.”
Quinn swallowed hard. “Do you really think it’s gonna take both of us?”
“No, if you want, you can go down there alone, but it’d be a lot easier with the both of us so someone could hold the light and hand tools. What’s wrong with you?”
“Blake used me as a character and described something just like this, and I found a dead body under the house, then the owner stabbed me and locked me down there.”
Jacob stared at her for a moment and grinned. “I don’t think she likes you very much, which is sad because I wanted to be able to say my sister is dating Blake Taylor.”
“I was just a character, a secondary one.” Quinn sneered. “It doesn’t mean anything. That’s what she said. You may worship her, but I don’t.”
“Quinn, get the tool bag and the couplings. Let’s get this done before dark.”
*******
The musty air that came out of the trapdoor was as cool as the air-conditioned house. Quinn watched as Jacob’s feet disappeared. In her mind, she saw so vividly what Blake had written and hoped Blake wasn’t psychic and had predicted her end.
“Would you like something to drink before you go down there?” Mrs. Sutter asked kindly as she stood nearby.
“No, thank you…and you should stay back from the trap…way back.” Quinn gazed up at the silver-haired woman. “If you were to step off in this, you could break a hip. That would be debilitating, maybe even
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