The Unraveling of Shauna Blackman

By J.C. Nicholson

On a cold November night while the world slept, Shauna Blackman left Massachusetts believing she murdered her husband. Her need to escape made sense except she didn't have a husband. It was the night Shauna fell into a rabbit hole, the story not to be confused with Alice in Wonderland. If she knew of a state with heat to spare she wuld have gone there, but it was the first place anyone would look for her. The only one who knew how her mind worked was her twin sister JessE, but JessE couldn't be trusted. Something was up with that girl.

Trapped in a tiny town in Maine overrun with secrets, lies, and murder, fate turned against her. The bartender in town blamed her for a murder and the man she fell in love with was a bounty hunter. It was a no win situation unless fate had a change of heart.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Sep 16, 2013
• ISBN: 9781481758796

J.C. Nicholson

I grew up in Ma, where the boundaries of the small town I lived in, led to another group of small towns dotted by mid sized cities As time went on I expanded my horizons, moved to Hawaii, and eventually settled in California. It was only after I moved to the west coast that I learned to appreciate the beauty and history I left behind. At first I wasn’t sure writing would work for me, but the seed, once planted took root. It required changing my life three hundred and sixty degrees to put my brain in charge and set the work of writing in motion. It took exposure to different people, cultures, cities and town over the last twenty years to effectively describe what I saw and how I felt about what I experienced and the home I left behind. They say everyone has two lives, one to learn, the other to live. Today I am living my passion, the dream I knew was mine.

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

Shauna Blackman shoved both hands into her coat pocket and shook them until the warmth returned to her fingers. From the screened in porch she could hear the wind howl through the empty trees. She was not surprised that it sounded angry. Its anger matched her own. Winter was on the way and it was coming fast. The proof was in the empty trees, the icy wind and the stars that seemed to wink instead of twinkle. Cold weather meant one thing to Shauna Blackman. Snow. Other than a sharp chill in the air, New Englanders would say the weather was seasonal. Most were convinced it had no bearing on what happened to Shauna the night she fell into a rabbit hole, the story not to be confused with Alice in Wonderland. No one seemed to know how it happened; only that it did. Unknown to Shauna, the past was about to catch up to her.

In the distance the sound of a coyote cut through the frosty hills. It was the cry of a pup, a hungry one. Shauna understood hunger; her own was the size of a football field living quietly inside her heart. The blonde peeked into the living room, studied the wallpaper with its large cabbage patch roses, but everything looked exactly the same. The dark pink roses were faded and the white background had yellowed. The house with its chipped paint, partially hidden by overgrown shrubs and staggering oaks was depressing. No doubt the crescent moon and the unsettled sky was the reason for her humming-bird sized thoughts. She should have known better than to come here tonight.

The sound of tires grinding over the graveled driveway broke her reverie. A late model car stopped in front of the house and an older gent got out. She didn’t recognize the person or the car at first. By the light of the moon the only thing she could tell was that the man was older and well dressed. When she saw his face her heart stopped and her body trembled. How dare that sonofabitch show his face here?

CHAPTER 2

Nice night, huh? The tall dark haired man said. Shauna couldn’t help noticing how much Trent Stillwell had aged or how much he smelled like liquor.

What the hell do you want?

More than a year had passed since Trent had stopped by unannounced. Each time he did he managed to sweet-talk her into bed. Sex was Trent’s trump card. Trent knew it and Shauna knew it, too. She had plenty of alone time to dig into what Trent Stillman was all about. But what was his purpose in stopping tonight? In the past it was sex. But that was then and this was now. She was so past that now. On the surface Trent Stillwell was pretty much the same, a suave, easy going liar with a line of bullshit as long as his arm. She would never forgive or forget the physical and emotional abuse she suffered because of him.

What do you want? She asked again, her voice dripping with sarcasm. If it’s what I think, it’s never going to happen. Not with me. Get it? She shouted, her voice shaking.

Before you get any angrier, hear me out. The truth is I was hoping you had gotten over your bitterness. Shauna was sure Trent Stillwell didn’t know the first thing about bitterness. As far as he was concerned it was just another word in the dictionary.

Truthfully? Your chances of winning the lottery are better.

Don’t you miss me even a little?

Does a rat miss the trap that broke its back?

It looks like a hurricane ran through this place, Trent said changing the subject.

I think someone broke into this house, Shauna informed him with icy indifference. She had too much history with this man to trust him with information that was none of his business.

And you didn’t bother reporting it?

I didn’t say that. You did. The sound of a siren in the distance got Shauna’s attention.

By the way Trent, where do you live now, Shauna asked, feigning curiosity.

Same place as before, why do you ask?

I’ll need to know what to tell the police when they start asking questions about you.

Why you lousy slut! His body visibly shaking with rage as he started down the wooden stairs.

Slut, huh? Well that’s certainly an upgrade. I’ll take that as a compliment. There’s a restraining order against you and don’t even try and tell me you didn’t know."

You bitch! Trent Stillwell said fuming.

Wow! Thank you, you’re full of compliments tonight. Before Shauna could close the door to the living room, Trent turned around, pushed his way back onto the porch and into the house.

You’re crazy! You know that don’t you? He shouted, bouncing an index finger off her nose. And then he did the one thing he should never have done. The thing that drove Shauna wild; that always drove her wild, the thing she had never forgiven him for or forgotten about. He was laughing at her, just like he had so many times in the past after he’d used her.

Grabbing a pair of scissors from a nearby table, Shauna lunged at the drunken man throwing him off balance. Trent Stillwell trying to stabilize his footing grabbed a handful of air and landed on his face. Confronted with opportunity, Shauna plunged the scissors into the drunken man’s back. Over and over her hand worked feverishly, her arms aching from the effort. But try as she might, she couldn’t stop.

The injured man tried to pick himself up but lost his balance and fell forward into a growing pool of blood. Pain shot through him like an electrical charge. The icy look on Shauna’s face said it all. Payback was a bitch.

Trent Stillwell barely heard the sirens in the background above Shauna’s high-pitched laughter. Scoffing Trent’s cigarette lighter from the floor, she walked over to the dusty drapes held the lighter to the material until they turned into a wall of flames. Then she put a flame to Trent’s jacket and exited the burning house without a backward glance.

Further down the road police sirens returning to the city after chasing a false alarm flew past the street where the flames had begun to grow. The sirens were not coming for the bleeding man. Not now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. Not ever. Shauna was bluffing, something Trent Stillwell should have realized about this childish woman. Struggling for breath, Trent Stillwell dragged himself to the porch, tumbled down the wooden stairs with his back on fire and blacked out. Shauna shook her head to clear it. Was this really happening or was it wishful thinking?

CHAPTER 3

Shauna got into the late model Honda and drove to the main road. She didn’t stop until she was safely in the city. Then she circled the empty streets a half dozen times until she was composed.

Inside the rented apartment she looked in the mirror. Her face was red, her eyes were swollen, and her hair was a mess. Had she been crying?. She didn’t know. Her mind was in turmoil. No, it didn’t seem likely she would have cried for that S.O.B. There were traces of blood on her hands. No, no, not blood, it wasn’t blood. The dark red color was from an oil-based stain she was using on a small end table she planned to use in her condo.

Some serious thinking was in order. Why had she attacked Trent? He wasn’t part of her life anymore. There should have been a simple answer, but there wasn’t. Certainly not one that made sense. Shauna stared in the mirror at the blank look on her face, clueless.

Jesse had the answer. Jess had all the answers. Jesse was the smart one, the one with all the degrees. She was the brainiac and the most important person in her life other than her live in lover, Brett Star. Jesse adored Brett, wanted him badly, but that was no surprise. Everyone wanted Brett. Brett looked and dressed like a rock star. He was tall and lean with blonde streaked hair, straight white teeth, and a beautiful smile. Add to that the man had perfectly chiseled features, full sensuous lips and jeans that hugged his hips like a second skin. His body swayed like music when he walked, which made everyone think he was listening to a song that no one else was privy to. Jesse never could get over why Brett had chosen mousey Shauna over her. The answer of course was simple. Brett had zero interest in Jesse. Just because Jesse’s dark mysterious eyes said she could have anyone she wanted, proved her wrong. Her flawless complexion and to die for body were her best assets. Jesse was high on Jesse, always had been and always would be. Everything revolved around Jesse. Jesse was mentally on a perpetual cruise in the Caribbean or some south sea island basking in the sun with one of her lawyer boyfriends. Jess held herself in high regard.

She looked at her watch. It was late, but Jesse was and had always been a night owl. Shauna dialed her number and let it ring several times. If Jess didn’t answer, that would be the time to hang up. True to her nocturnal habits, Jess answered on the fourth ring. Surprisingly she sounded full of life.

Jess? It’s me Shauna. I just killed someone.

You were in an accident? Jess screeched into the phone. Oh my God, are you all right? Shauna listened to Jesse inhale nervously on a cigarette, waiting for her to blow the smoke out before answering.

There was no accident. I did it on purpose.

Are you drunk? Was it Brett?

Be serious. Shauna thought about Brett and how he was putting the squeeze on her to marry him.

Then tell me who you killed, where it happened and why it happened?

It was Trent, instead of asking more questions Jesse started to snicker and then giggle. In seconds the giggling turned to hard belly laughter.

It sounds more like wishful thinking to me. Are you drunk? Jess asked a second time. How stupid of me, of course you’re drunk. Why else would you be telling me a story like that at this hour of the night? I can understand why you’d want to kill him, but I doubt that you would. Where in the world would you run into him after this many years? And then she went back to giggling. She could hear Jesse flicking the cigarette lighter and lighting another smoke. That’s what Jesse did when things were troubling her. Shauna listened to Jess take in several deep drags from her cigarette before speaking again.

You need to stop laughing Jess. I’m serious

I was hoping you weren’t

I wouldn’t kid you about a thing like that.

Well then, what the hell happened?

Exactly what I said. It wasn’t simple and it wasn’t nice.

And that’s it?

Good. What about Brett, does he know?

He doesn’t know a thing. We had a big fight a couple of weeks ago. I left him at the condo and rented a room for a month to get away and think. I’ve been here about a week. I needed the space. He keeps pushing the marriage thing. I got tired of it.

You little witch. I can’t believe you ditched that man; he’s such a babe. You were upset with Brett, so you killed Trent? You’re not making any sense Shauna.

I know. Nothing makes sense anymore. That’s why I called you. You’re the brainy one; I was hoping you could help me sort things out.

I doubt I can do much at this hour. Can we get together tomorrow?

Sounds good. I’ll call you.

Good. Sweet dreams baby girl. I’m sorry for your troubles. Maybe he’s not dead after all. Goodnight.

If there was anyone that made her feel protected in this world, it was Jesse.

Who else did you tell this to?

No one. Just you.

Good. Keep it that way.

CHAPTER 4

Shauna hung up the phone and stood in the mirror fluffing up her longish blonde hair. What she had done to Trent tonight had been impulsive and so unlike her. Though her feelings for Trent Stillwell over the years had turned to hate, there was no way she could have known it would lead to murder. If he was dead, she would spend the rest of her life in jail. If he was alive they would get her on attempted murder and she would go to prison for more years than Trent Stillwell’s life was worth.

The cell phone rang. She checked the name before answering. It was Brett. He was the last person she wanted to talk to tonight. She let the call go to voice mail, while she got undressed for bed. Shauna wasn’t quite sure why she was undressing knowing she wouldn’t be able to sleep a wink. If she could take back what she had done, she would have. It was beginning to look like a bizarre part of her psyche had made its cameo appearance tonight.

She punched the pillow several times to get comfortable and when that didn’t work she put a second pillow under her head to try and relax. She didn’t want to spend the rest of her life in prison. Her eyes closed and opened several times. She told herself she mustn’t sleep. There was a way out of this; she just had to find it. Again her eyes closed. This time she could not fight the heaviness that allowed her to slip away. In seconds Shauna was asleep. She couldn’t be sure how long she’d been lying there when she felt the presence of someone in the room. Her eyes opened, slowly at first, and then flew open, terrified. Trent Stillwell was standing at the foot of the bed clutching his bloody clothes, his jacket charred, his face smudged with soot and he was smiling. Smiling at what? Smiling because he intended to make her pay for what she did? She understood that part, but was it real? Was Trent Stillwell still alive?

Who are you? She asked.

Who do I look like? Shauna grew silent. You know exactly who I am. Did you think I’d let you get away with what you did?

I don’t know what you’re talking about.

I think you do.

You’re dead!

If you say so. Do I look dead?

You’re a figment of my imagination.

Believe what you want, but you won’t get away with it.

What is there to get away with if you’re still alive?

Shauna, you never were too bright. They’ll charge you with attempted murder.

Can you prove it?

I think so.

Shauna sat up in bed, looked around the room, looked in the bathroom, but there was no sign that Trent Stillwell or anyone else had been in the room. Shauna looked at the clock. Three-thirty. She had slipped into bed after one. There were plenty of hours left to dwell on what her options were before morning. By then it would be time to call Jesse and get some straight talking advice.

CHAPTER 5

At five-thirty a.m. Shauna Blackman packed her clothes and fled Massachusetts to escape the ghost of Trent Stillwell. She made the bed while the dawn went busily about its business slicing chunks of light and stuffing them through the dusty slatted