Dangerous Games

By D'Ann Burrow

Kennedy Thatcher is leaving Piney Bluff, Texas. In September, she wanted nothing more than to go back home to California, but things have changed.  
 
Two weeks ago  
 
Kennedy broke Rule #1. She used her gift to save a life. Her secret is no longer secret. Her mother once tried to war

• Language: English
• Publisher: Three Owl Press
• Release date: Mar 20, 2016
• ISBN: 9781942239123

Book preview

Prologue

Top secret. Classified.

A matter of national security.

Invisible. Untraceable. Undefeatable.

In the wrong hands, this weapon could topple governments.

Terrorists want to find the president's child? No problem.

Need to know where a reclusive billionaire likes to hide? Simple.

Want to know when the queen is totally and completely alone? Easy.

This weapon isn't a thing. It's a who.

I should know.

Because it’s me.

Chapter One

Kennedy

Rule #200 – Even the good guys can lose.

September 24

Shenendoah Sanatorium

9:15 p.m.

---

Mom. I need your help. I broke the rules. Admitting it made it real. And frightening. And made me want to vomit.

The whole flight home, I’d known Tanner wanted to talk to me. I’d been able to see just how freaked out he was. The faint sheen of sweat across his forehead hadn’t been there because the plane was too hot. If anything the little commuter jet had been just this side of Antarctica. He’d been freaked out.

I was several levels beyond freaked out, but I hadn’t been able to admit it to myself—not until now, not until she was standing right here in front of me—not buried in the grave in the cemetery where Dad used to drop roses every Monday, not gone from my world, not missing at all.

Unless she was. The woman standing, looking out the window, still hadn’t acknowledged my presence. She still hadn’t acted like she noticed anyone was in the room, at least not anyone who didn’t only exist in her mind. As her fingers curled around the window frame, the mumbled whisper of her voice carried on a conversation only she could hear.

Mom? I hated the way my voice broke. I’d had enough tears for her to last a lifetime.

Or were the tears welling up in my eyes tears for myself, a warning of what could be—what would be—if I kept this up.

Was this why Loretta sent me?

I stood in the room, watching the sunset change to purple and finally to blackness out the window. In California, we’d have a few more hours—or at least minutes—of light. But here, the trees closed in, suffocating the last rays of light that hoped to reach the ground.

Fingers of fear, doubt, and dread sucked at the innermost parts of me. The worn spot on the floor where my mom stood gave me the suspicion that no matter how long I stood in the room, she wouldn’t move.

A chill coursed through me. I thought I’d been cold on the plane, but cold didn’t even begin to describe what I felt.

I’d heard her warning ages ago. I’d done my part, followed the rules—even the ones I made up so the real one wouldn’t seem so threatening. But I understood it now. I could see just why she’d scared me with the threat, with the intensity of her warning.

She’d known this was coming and wanted to keep me from facing the same fate she had no way to prevent.

Who had she watched die?

If not a physical death, a mental one—because no part of this shell standing in the room with me was my mother.

Excuse me. The door opened with a soundless squeak. A woman in a white nurse’s uniform approached me with the same caution I suspected she’d use with my mother. You’re Kennedy? The question arced up at the end as if she were uncertain, but how many visitors did my mother get?

Yes. My voice sounded flat. Tired. My drama teacher would hate it.

It’s time for you to go. Visiting hours ended a half-hour ago. We thought we’d give you a little extra time with your mother. Her eyes softened as if she knew the answer to the next question she was about to ask. Did she respond to you at all?

No. That was the most difficult word I’d ever said.

Her jaw locked in a way that said she’d predicted that would be my answer, but she’d still wanted to ask. I’m sorry, sweetheart. I knew she didn’t talk to your aunt, but I was hoping… She gave a worried smile. Well, since you’re her daughter.

Loretta comes?

Every Wednesday. Except today. She sent a message she was out of town.

And what do they do?

She flinched, inclining her head toward my mother’s back. Pretty much what you’re doing now.

Loretta came here. Every Wednesday for a year. And stared at my mom as she stared at the window. That redefined hell on earth. What did she expect? Did she think that someday Mom would just wake up? Someday the voices would stop?

What happened to her? Why is she here?

A cloud covered the nurse’s eyes. She reached out, stroking the back of my hand. I don’t know. I’m sorry, but I don’t.

How long have you been here?

Five years.

Have you always been her nurse?

Ever since she got here.

And she’s always been the same?

It was as if the nurse didn’t have the strength to answer me. Her lips formed a thin, tight line. Yes. She nodded before looking at the door. If you’d like to talk more, I’m sure you can arrange a meeting with her doctor. But for now, I have to ask you to leave.

Leaving. That’s right. That’s why she was here. Not to pronounce a death sentence on my mom…and me.

It’s all right. I understand.

I turned away from the woman who was no longer my mother. For an instant, I understood why no one had told me she existed anymore. I understood the graveyard and the closed-casket funeral. The woman I knew—the one who baked cookies, sat in the front row of my shows, drove me to dance class, voice lessons, and rehearsals…

My mother was gone. And she wasn’t coming back.

Thank you. I forced a smile that I doubted would have even convinced one of the kindergarteners at a dress rehearsal. I walked out the door and away from my future.

---

My mother’s expression lingered in my memory—dancing over the darkened pavement, creeping into the corners of my vision, clouding my thoughts. Each second of the drive was filled with the what-if of it all. I’d saved Addy. I’d saved Stacia. I could have saved so many more—but at what cost? Saving them meant losing myself.

Loretta knew more than she’d been telling. She proved that just by what she told me before she sent me to see my mother. The time for playing around was over. I needed to talk to her.

Before I could do that, I had to find her. Apart from the light in Scarlett’s window, the rest of the house was completely dark when I pulled into the driveway. The relief I felt at being back at my aunt’s surprised me. I didn’t live here. It was just the place I’d been sent when my existence had gotten in the way of my dad doing his work. Still, this run-down house was the closest thing I’d had to a real home for a long time.

Dad wasn’t here yet. Unexpected news, but I wasn’t going to complain. Now I just needed to figure out where Loretta was hiding before he decided to make his appearance. My aunt couldn’t have gone too far, not when I had her car. Dark or not, she must be inside the house.

I jogged through the kitchen and down the too-dark hallway. Loretta always left the light on when she was in the workshop. The narrow back stairwell was too dark and even quieter. I almost turned back to leave, but something unexpected made me pause. A faint strip of light leaked from beneath the door and continued around the entire frame.

The door my aunt left locked so tightly that it resembled a bank vault wasn’t closed. I didn’t know if I should have been even more afraid or consider myself insanely lucky. Too many things had never added up. I suspected the answers were finally open to me. I pushed the door, and it swung with a creak.

My eyes scanned what wasn’t an artist’s studio.

Yes, one section of the room had shelves lined with paint. A few pottery pieces sat haphazardly on a table. The enormous jar that looked like an ode to condiments dominated an area next to the back window.

But everything else appeared to have been borrowed from a state-of-the-art police show. High-tech white boards. A map of the country larger than the walls of my room. Pictures—dozens of pictures—were pinned to a corkboard. I shuffled forward in shock, noticing index cards neatly affixed to the board next to each photograph.

Names.

Dates.

How each had died.

Oh God.

This is why Loretta pushed. This is why she left the paper at the breakfast table. This is why she kept disappearing.

When she appeared in New Orleans, I suspected there was far more to her than what I’d ever even guessed. But nothing like this. She wasn’t just another Finder like me, even if she said she couldn’t help like I could.

There had to be years’ worth of work in here. The walls were lined with file cabinet after file cabinet. This wasn’t the office of someone with a passing interest in a single case or even a part-time member of my father’s team. She wasn’t merely a replacement in my mother’s absence, someone they’d recruited until they found someone with her unique skills.

Someone like me.

Seen enough yet? Either Loretta possessed ninja skills or I’d been way too wrapped up in what I was looking at.

Yeah. I revolved in a half-circle to face her. I didn’t like the feeling of anger welling up in my chest, but I couldn’t push it back down.

Got questions? She said it with such an off-hand tone that I felt like Tanner looked when he got out of control.

Did I have questions? Does the dictionary have words? But I was suddenly exhausted. Overwhelmed with all I’d never known; I could only muster a single question. Did you know what she’s like?

Your mom? Yes. A trace of the old Loretta stood in front of me now. A softer version of secret-agent Loretta.

Then why’d you send me?

She inhaled deeply through her nose, letting the air filter out from between her puckered lips. Instead of answering right away, she took a few steps into the room before settling on a barstool behind the single table that looked like it was part of an art studio.

You knew she wouldn’t be able to help. Right?

That accusation drew an answer. She didn’t look at me. I knew.

Her fingers idly skimmed a length of red string coiled on the tabletop. Maybe she used to be an artist, or maybe she wanted to be an artist, or maybe she wished she could be an artist so she didn’t have to face this reality.

I don’t understand. No use in lying, especially when I knew we were on borrowed time.

Loretta shifted in her seat and her eyes locked on mine. You needed to see it for yourself. What your mother’s like. What you’ll be like if you do what your dad wants you to do. If you join the team, you’ll end up just like her.

I don’t have any plans to join the team.

He can be very…persuasive. She measured her words carefully, giving the last an intensity I questioned. Her lips curled in a tired smile, and her eyes took on a cloudy edge. I wondered just how many secrets she was telling, exactly what secrets she was still keeping.

Did you try to get her to stop?

When I realized what it was doing to her, yes. She chewed a piece of gum thoughtfully. Her dotty-aunt persona was gone, but so was the take-charge agent. Now she just looked tired and older than she should have since she was my mother’s little sister. You have to understand, though. Your momma…she thought she was doing the right thing. She tilted her head back toward the ceiling, and she stared up at the water-stained paint. Did she ever tell you about the time she broke her arm trying to get a stray cat out of a tree?

No.

That’s just the kind of woman she was—selfless to a fault, even if she got hurt. In a blink of an eye, reflective-Loretta disappeared. Her back stiffened as she sat up, locking eyes with me. But that doesn’t have to be you.

I didn’t have time to ask more. The sound of a car door slamming rattled the house, and I knew my time alone with Loretta was over.

Where have you been? Dad turned on me like I’d stayed out past curfew. You don’t even have to answer that. I know exactly where you’ve been. The nurse called me to tell me your mom had a visitor. It was you, wasn’t it?

My eyes shot in Loretta’s direction, but I didn’t see any hint of warning there, no sense that she didn’t want me to tell where I’d been. And even if I had, she’d kept enough secrets from me. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to help protect her. Yes, I went to see Mom.

Dad looked like I’d slapped him in the face. His cheeks reddened, and he lost any sense of his usual British restraint. He rounded on Loretta with an intensity that frightened me, but then he paused for just long enough to realize he was about to tear into his boss. And she was his boss. I was sure of it now, even if I’d never understood their dynamic before. What the hell were you thinking?

She leveled her eyes at him, glaring with an intensity that would probably make a rabid dog back down. She needed to know.

You mean you wanted to scare her?

No. Loretta shook her head. I never wanted to scare her, but I wanted to be honest. She had to see it.

To hell with honesty.

Seriously, Evan.

She didn’t need to know.

Why? I asked the question, and they turned to me like I’d just interrupted a tennis match.

Stay out of this. My dad’s voice suggested I’d better listen to him, but I was done blindly following directions from either of them.

I’m pretty sure you’re talking about me.

We’re discussing your mother.

Which directly affects me. Dad blinked back at me in shock. He’d never seen this me before. I wasn’t sure if I’d seen this me before. Maybe it was a hint of the guy I’d just helped arrest. A shiver went up my back at that unwelcome thought. Why didn’t you want me to see her?

I would think that is self-explanatory.

Because she’s nuts. That’s why? A thought crept into my mind that I couldn’t make go away. It made my skin crawl and stilled the blood in my veins. My aunt was right. Or were you thinking that I could do it too? Loretta can do it. I glanced in her direction. Mom could do it. Grandma Rosie could too. Did you think I’d be able to find people? I used the same speed and tone of voice I used with the preschoolers at the beach.

Loretta can’t find people until they’re dead.

You didn’t answer my question. And that told me all I needed to know.

Is this why he stared at me sometimes? Why he let me hear bits and pieces about his job? Why he wasn’t honest and didn’t tell my mom was insane? He’d always expected me to carry on the family business, even after knowing what would happen someday?

He was just waiting. And watching.

We’re leaving. He still didn’t answer my question, but I didn’t need him to, not anymore. Get your things.

We’re what?

Leaving. You heard me.

But you told me I was staying here for the rest of the school year. I couldn’t believe I was arguing with him about this. In August, I’d prayed today would finally happen. You had my room shipped here.

Things change. I called Grant. He’ll let you have your job back.

Who’s Grant? Just what I needed. Scarlett had entered the conversation. When had she even gotten to the house?

My old boss, I answered, annoyed that I had to mess with her and my dad at the same time.

Her boss, Dad corrected. We’re leaving in fifteen minutes. If you want to take it with you, get it now. He spoke like the decision had already been made, and I guessed in his mind, it had.

No. I stood my ground—not what my father had expected.

I don’t have time for this mess. It’s late. I’m tired. I don’t want to miss the flight. Get moving.

Knowing I probably looked like a toddler mid-temper tantrum, I stayed fixed in place, shaking my head from side to side.

Kennedy. He spoke my name as if it were a curse word.

I don’t want you to miss your flight. That was true. The faster he was out of my life, the better.

You’re coming with me.

I’m staying here, with Loretta. I didn’t turn back to look at her to see if she was okay with this new plan because right now it was the only thing holding me together.

You’re underage. You’re coming.

I’m not. I held my ground without making a move toward Loretta or away from him. He wouldn’t have looked more shocked if I’d drawn a gun on him in a back alley. His right eyebrow twitched—always a dangerous sign. I’m not going with you.

First, his eyes darted toward the corner where Scarlett had decided to lurk before he stared toward Loretta an instant longer than necessary. His fingers twitched as his hands hung at his side, the tension in his neck revealing that he was too aware we weren’t alone at the moment. I’d never had to be afraid he’d use a physical threat against me. The twitching wasn’t from trying not to hit me—more likely it was to keep himself from whipping out his phone and calling Sonya to deal with me, just like she handled anything messy. He turned his attention back to Loretta, silently staring her down and ordering her to leave and take Scarlett with her.

Loretta failed to comply.

My aunt stood stock-still. Her breathing slow and subdued, in contrast to his building and speeding in his chest so loudly I could hear him huffing all the way across the room. She cocked her head to the side, and her lips lifted in a ghost of a smile, showing she was more than a hint amused.

The air around us grew heavy and charged. Scarlett’s almost black eyes watched the silent show in front of her as if she were fixed on her favorite television show, hands crossed in front of her chest as if she was playing a game of chess, trying to decide her next move. I fought the urge to ask her what she was doing or why she was even in the room. This had nothing to do with her.

Now’s not the time for this, Evan. Loretta stood with one hand on