Faces in Shadow

By Tessa Carr

Investigator Mitch Spencer is quite unprepared for what he finds when he rescues Molly from the abandoned house where she’s been taken. Within 24 hours, he’s lost his heart to this tiny young woman.
She’s so determined to appear tough, but he can see through that tough exterior to what’s inside. And he knows she’s scared.

After her past, she knows she’s afraid to trust anyone, anymore.
And he knows she’s not out of danger.

Yet.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Decadent Publishing
• Release date: Jan 13, 2021
• ISBN: 9781683614586

Tessa Carr

Pippa Greathouse has been publishing for several years, and along with writing as author Tessa Carr, is the author of well over thirty books. There are several genres, some historical fiction, some have a touch of paranormal in them and most include romantic mystery and suspense. Several are written with Ruby Caine. (Check out their release coming soon, They're now working on a new book (Shh! It's a secret!)But did you know she also writes as Tessa Carr and has around ten books under that name and is working on the 11th now? These are Romantic Suspense with mystery and Thriller! Her newest from Tessa is "Screams in the Night" (Shadows of Council Creek, book 3). Soon to be released: "Blood Spatters Don't Lie"According to Pippa...It all began with an assignment from my beautiful and elegantly coiffured fifth grade teacher, Mrs. J, who had our class write a short story and then to read it aloud.So, I did. The story began with a group of my friends and classmates, who went on a fictitious camping trip.Enter a grizzly bear. As it attacked the camp and body parts began flying, I looked up.Poor Mrs. J. A twitch had appeared somewhere around her left eye, and she looked horrified. But she kept quiet and let me finish.By the time the story ended, she was white as a sheet.I admit, I learned to control the gore in my stories somewhat after that. But at the time, my friends all thought it was cool, so the stories kept coming, morphing into space and spy stories and eventually, (yes) Romances! And lately, Romantic suspense with Mystery and thrillers.Most of those can be found under the name Tessa Carr.I so hope you enjoy them!~Pippa (And Tessa)

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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Faces in Shadow

Copyright 2020 by Tessa Carr

ISBN: 978-1-68361-458-6

Cover art by Tessa Carr

Smashwords Edition

All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work, in whole or in part, in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.

Published by Decadent Publishing Company, LLC

Look for us online at:

www.decadentpublishing.com

Investigator Mitch Spencer is quite unprepared for what he finds when he rescues Molly from the abandoned house where she’s been taken. Within 24 hours, he’s lost his heart to this tiny young woman.

She’s so determined to appear tough, but he can see through that tough exterior to what’s inside. And he knows she’s scared.

After her past, she knows she’s afraid to trust anyone, anymore.

And he knows she’s not out of danger.

Yet.

Hello! It’s so wonderful to meet you! Thanks for picking up my book. I really hope you’ll enjoy it! Please feel free to contact me at [e-mail] . I’d love hearing from you!

Dedicated to my friend GG, who has always been

my greatest inspiration in life.

Faces in Shadow

Shadows of Council Creek (Book One)

By

Tessa Carr

Chapter One

February 9th 2018…

Molly rushed to gather up her things. She shouldn’t have stayed so long after work. One look out the window told her it was already dark outside.

The sense someone had been following her had grown stronger lately. Warily, she descended the steps to the parking lot, trying to close the distance between her car and the building. She was still ten feet away when she heard it: a footstep on gravel?

Almost there. A click on the fob and the car unlocked. She opened it with a sigh of relief and raised one foot to get in.

And screamed.

A hand clapped suddenly over her nose and mouth, holding a strange sweet-smelling cloth. Molly tried to cry out, but no sound came. She struggled, clawing at the arm, and kicked backward. Her foot connected with something, and a curse sounded in her ear. The hand over her face grew tighter, and she was forced to breathe in the terrible smell. Her efforts to free herself were fruitless. A few seconds later, her body began to grow limp as her senses faded.

The last thing she heard was the jingle of the keys as they fell to the ground.

***

Slowly regaining consciousness, Molly realized she was in a darkened room. She was lying on her belly on a scratchy mattress and tied to the iron bedframe, the only piece of furniture in the room. It smelled musty. A basement? Her wrists were tied to the head, her ankles to the foot, spread-eagled. She jerked suddenly, pulling against the ropes.

So. You’re awake. His voice was little more than a whisper, almost as if he kept it that way purposely. "Let me introduce myself. They call me The Collector."

She turned her head to the right, craning her neck, to see him. The sight of the large knife so close to her face brought a shudder, and a scream erupted. However, it only succeeded in producing a laugh from him.

Scream away. No one will hear you down here.

The knife touched her cheek briefly, and she sucked in a breath. The blade slid along the side of her face, resting against her neck.

He’s going to kill me, she thought in terror.

The man above her chuckled and moved behind her. He grabbed the tail of her sweater and slid the blade up the back. Cold air kissed her skin as he cut the garment in two, but when the knife reached her neck, it stopped.

Look at me, he commanded, stepping back and leaning down near her face. Coward. I want to know you’re awake when I do this.

Coward? How dare he call her a coward! Anger built in the pit of her stomach, and she struggled to see him, no longer full of fear but of fury. She was glaring now.

A flashlight on the floor facing upward gave him a terrifying appearance. He wore a hood and a mask, with openings only for his eyes. They glittered from behind it, almost glowing. And yet… There was something uncannily familiar about them.

Should she know this man?

The knife in his hand flashed in the light as he stepped forward again then slit her sweater down the length of her arm. Those eyes mocked her.

They were cold. But something else about him struck a chord in her. His voice—a familiarity there, too, tugged at a nerve inside her. Did she know him?

Why are you doing this? She tried to sound firm, but to her ears it sounded utterly terrified.

Come now. Such a stupid question, for such a smart girl. You don’t know?

The knife trailed along her other arm, leaving a cold feeling in its path, and she shivered.

If I did, I wouldn’t ask.

Careful. He’s the one with the knife.

With a pompous laugh, he reached under her and ripped the sweater away, leaving her in her bra. She bit her lip to keep from crying out, and he laughed, leaning forward to work on her blue jeans.

Oh, but you do know. The flat side of the knife moved from her shoulders down her spine, and she felt it turn. The point moved down inside the inner seam of her jeans, between her legs, and suddenly ripped upward, leaving a gap straight down the center.

Molly sucked in her breath and prayed.

The blade lifted, and there was silence. She dared not move as he stood with his hands on his hips, looking her over. When he moved again, it was to grasp one leg of her jeans and begin to cut. The other leg came next, and he gave a swift yank downward. A second later, he dropped what remained of her jeans in front of her. She was unable to take her eyes from them, trying hard to keep from showing the fear that gripped her throat like a vise.

I’m observant, you know; a most unfortunate thing for you. You’ve broken the rules. And now it’s time for atonement.

Molly stiffened. What—what do you mean?

A large hand reached around her throat, and fingers closed inward, pressing against her airway.

Please, God, don’t let me die. Not like this!

The fingers relaxed suddenly, and he traced one downward toward her bra. A wheezy chuckle sounded close to her ear.

You know better than to ask, don’t you?

There were three swift cuts as he severed the straps and the back of her bra and yanked it away, leaving her just in her panties.

The gleam of evil, visible in the light, was overwhelming. He reached forward, the weapon in his hand, and waved it in front of her face. Slowly, slowly, he brought it toward her lower spine. Turning it so the blade faced upward, he slid it under her lacy panties and cut, sliding the blunt edge downward against her skin.

Despite her anger, a keen of abject fear escaped her throat as he moved the blade upward, slicing through the garment. Another swift cut up the sides, and, with a sudden jerk, he brought the shredded lace through the crevice of her bottom.

She lay silent as he stood over her naked body. It seemed forever before he spoke in that same cruel whisper.

You’re too thin, he said, pausing. "I might not want you after all. If you were a fish, I’d throw you back." He squatted down in front of her, studying her face.

Molly fought the fear, realizing how much she was shaking as the sound of a phone ringing echoed off the concrete walls.

"Shit!" An expression of rage followed by a string of profanity filled the room. He lashed out, sending the flashlight crashing into the cement wall. When it immediately shattered, the room became black, and he laughed again.

Molly waited.

Something strange was happening here. In the midst of his laugh, he gasped. The phone was in his hand now, and Molly could see his face in the reflected light. As he was staring at the number, his expression became serious.

I’ll return. His voice had a wheeze in it as he rose to his feet. Seconds later, he whirled and took the steps toward the upper floor.

Light-headedness came over her as his footsteps grew more distant. What had just happened here?

***

A few seconds elapsed before she heard a door slam. Then silence.

Was it a trap? Was he waiting up there to see if she would scream? She fought the terror making its way toward her throat as long as she could then burst into tears and screamed with all her might. But she quickly became hoarse, and her screams seemed to go nowhere, except to echo off the walls of her prison.

Help! she cried out. Help! Please! But she had almost no voice left now.

Alone in the darkness, it became distinctly apparent to her. No one knew where she was. No one could hear her screams. When he returned, he would kill her. If he didn’t, he might make her wish she was dead. Another thought crossed her mind, too. She’d taken her insulin and hadn’t eaten since noon.

Her shaking grew worse as she felt herself slowly slipping away. Her consciousness was no longer sharp.

No, no. Stay alert. You have to figure out a way to save yourself! But her lecture was lost. She could no longer stay awake.

She was floating…higher and higher.

And no one was coming to save her.

Chapter Two

We’ve got your back. Spencer, go ahead.

Mitch Spencer heard the voice in his earphones and took a breath. Going in. Ben?

Right behind you.

Mitch adjusted the straps on his night-vision goggles while still in the dense grove behind the small house. The structure appeared uninhabited, but a neighbor had reported seeing a man enter with a girl, limp over his shoulder, just after dark. Then they’d reported seeing him leave in an old blue pickup truck. Bracing his Glock with both hands, he took a breath and mentally prepared himself for any possibility before entering.

It was time. Thankful Eli had already silently picked the lock on the door, he moved in, Ben behind him. They passed through a kitchen and dining room and took in the surroundings. Two bedrooms, a small room, filled with boxes, and a bath. All empty.

They moved into the kitchen, searching for an entry to the basement. The structure of the house suggested there was one. They found it, between the two middle rooms.

Mitch reached for the knob. It turned, and he gave it a push silently inward. With a nod toward Ben, he moved forward. His movements were stealthy as he descended the narrow steps to the basement. Halfway down, he paused, listening.

What was it he heard? He couldn’t tell.

It sounded like someone panting. Behind him, Ben shook his head. Seconds later, he moved down another few steps then a few more. The sound became louder.

He took the left, Ben, the right.

A distinctive, sweet odor met his senses. Chloroform? The room was barren, except for an iron bed shoved up against the wall in the corner. A small figure was bound to it on a bare mattress. A child? He moved cautiously toward it.

No, not a child but a young woman tied tightly on her belly, naked. Her ankles were spread apart and bound to the rails at the foot, her wrists to the head.

Found her, he said into the microphone. Leaning over her, he whispered to her gently, We’re here to rescue you, sweetheart. You’re safe now.

No response. He wasted no time but immediately began working on the ropes holding her wrists. She was shaking, and her breathing was ragged.

So that’s what he’d heard. She was soaked with perspiration, and, as he reached out to touch her arm, he realized how cold her body was. He grasped her ankle, holding her still so he could safely cut the ropes, and she jerked, letting out another uneven breath. A whimper followed.

We’ve got you, he said gently, over her head. He shifted her to lift her up. Her body trembled, and her shoulder-length straight blonde hair was plastered to her head.

Who knows what the bastard’s done to her? Ben’s whisper this time.

The speaker in his ear buzzed.

Van approaching. Take cover. Eli’s voice.

Mitch lifted her. Ben?

I heard. Cover her. I’ll get the stairs.

Quickly, Mitch set her in the corner, squatting and shielding her with his body, his Glock drawn. He heard Eli again.

Suspect now inside the house and armed. Coming in.

Mitch tensed, waiting.

Ben nodded. He’d heard, too.

Both of them waited, ready.

***

Within thirty seconds, all hell broke loose on the floor above. Deafening gunfire followed by shouts filled the air. Somewhere in the mix, Mitch heard the skid of tires on asphalt.

The rapid fire of shots didn’t last long.

Hold your fire. Captain Carter’s voice.

He and Ben waited silently.