The Ward Sisters

By Vicki Lee Zell

When something happens to you or to someone you love that is life-threatening, what would you do? Doreen is going out on a limb for Darlene to prove that her sister is not the killer. Darlene is apprehended for the murder of Dr. Jameson, psychology professor, and released to the calpable hands of Dr. Alex Thornway, Chief psychologist at Civic Hospital. Darlene uncovers a past of emotional baggage that Alex Thornway is not aware of, and during her lockup up on the third floor 'psychiatric wing', Darlene encounters a disgruntled nurse, and what happens next... unlocks truths far back from the past. Meanwhile, Doreen journeys on a self-discovery of unraveling truths uncovering about family. So, is blood thicker than water or merely just a myth? How far would you go to get at the truth? Doreen Ward is about to find that out whit one last piece of the puzzle to go. So does the piece fit? Is... Darlene Ward a murderer or is Doreen the one who is manipulative? Will Doreen fool them all? Will Alex Thornway stepup and stop the madness? Will Chief Clarkson of the Middleton PD save the day? So many questions. So many murders. Discover the answers to solve the mind-bending suspense.

• Language: English
• Publisher: vlzbooks
• Release date: May 16, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201024642

Vicki Lee Zell

Hello Reader, and welcome to my page. I don't know about you, but I love a good mystery. A well told story should take us on a journey packed with excitement page after page and not weigh us down. I like books that dive into the storyline. I want to know what's coming, what's next, not every color of every character's whatever. I try leaving as much as I can to the reader's imagination. Like when you talk to someone on the telephone who you've never met. Their voice alone gets you wondering all about the person. Their hair color, eye color, facial expressions, the way walk. If everytime you talked to someone over the phone and they described themselves to you, you'd never get to the good stuff. That's kind of how my stories go. I am telling you a story to keep you in the dark until the very end, and then surprising you with a WTF kind of attitude. I want to shock you, hold you close, wrap your imagaination to get you to have an imagination. 

Book preview

As he made his way down Columbus Avenue in the city of Middleton, Doctor Jameson suspected she was hiding in the shadows, waiting patiently before making her move. The restaurant: his destination, wasn't much further. Doctor Jameson was wishing now if he had phoned for a taxi, but it was a warm September evening, and the walk would do him good. He was just a block from his home and could turn back. But despite his uneasy feeling, he pressed on. The disturbing quiet of the usually busy city was what bothered him. He felt like the last survivor on Earth until a noise sounded from somewhere behind him. Turning to the night close at his heels, he saw a tin can roll from out of the shadows along the sidewalk. The hairs on the back of his neck raised and took notice. It had to be her. Doctor Jameson was sure she was there, hiding in the shadows, waiting to strike.

Concerned for his life, Doctor Jameson ran an entire block. Fifty-six years of age, not as agile as he once was, Doctor Jameson had to stop to catch his breath. His heart raced out of control, so he leaned forward and placed his hands above his kneecaps, with elbows locked. The sound of dogs barking in the distance felt comforting. It helped slow his heart to its normal rhythm. Standing straight, Doctor Jameson continued his way. He reached the courthouse steps and stopped. He felt foolish for letting his mind get the better of him. He was supposed to be the rational one who remained calm in a crisis. His profession demanded this of him. How would it look for a professor of psychology to be so irrational?

A noise sounded close by, and Doctor Jameson's heart jumped to his throat. He turned to the noise and saw a woman under a streetlight rummaging one of the trash cans in the park across the street. The streetlight flickered off then back on, and Doctor Jameson wondered whether he should go and offer this woman a few dollars so she might have a hot meal. As he was about to cross the street, she appeared from the shadows, heading toward him. Doctor Jameson stumbled, falling face-first to the ground. His arms shot out to stop his fall. The soft flesh of his palms tore from the rough pavement of the sidewalk. Succumbing to his pain, Doctor Jameson scrambled to get to his feet, but she was upon him, kicking him, punching him with brute force. During this madness, Doctor Jameson wasn’t clear if he turned on his own or she turned him.

You! Doctor Jameson gasped like a man who tasted death.

The streetlamp reflected a mask of light from off the steel blade across her unmistaken eyes, fluorescent green eyes Doctor Jameson knew too well. Mesmerized by these eyes, Doctor Jameson lay frozen with fear as the steel blade entered his body until he was dead.

The NIGHTMARE

Always begins in the dark.

Like routine clockwork, Doreen finds herself in a darkened hallway, always waiting for that first flash of light. The sickening odor, like spilled bottles of alcohol, fills her nostrils. Her sixth sense tells her she’s in a hospital, and the nurse in the hallway is the nurse who vanishes. She comes to know the nightmare like the back of her hand. She knows she’ll find the nurse inside a room behind a set of swinging doors. Inside the room, filled with hospital equipment, is another nurse and a man wearing a white smock in a dark suit. The light through the windows of the swinging doors casts a yellow glow over the top of a black and white tiled floor. What Doreen doesn't know, what she can't seem to remember, she's barefoot. Not until she steps into the yellow light does she feel the cold tiles beneath her. She gazes down to see she is standing on a black and white tile flooring, then a rumble of thunder followed by a crack of lightning sounds in the distance.

She stares through the left swinging door window and sees the two nurses alongside a hospital gurney. Two legs protrude from behind a partially drawn curtain. She has no clue about the woman's identity on the gurney but knows it's a woman. Like herself, the woman is barefoot. The nurses stand face-to-face, conversing with one another. The nurse facing her is an older woman with careworn features. Trying to decipher what words are coming from these woman's lips, the light inside the room flickers out. Trapped within the dark, now cornering her, Doreen presses her face to the windowpane of the left swinging door and feels the scream that is crawling up the back of her throat, wanting out.

Presto. Like magic, the light in the room flickers on, and the man in the dark suit wearing the white smock holds a syringe in his right hand and a vial of liquid in his left. He inserts the needle into the vial to extract the liquid filling the syringe, then nods to the nurse from the hallway, who disappeared. The nurse steps to the foot of the gurney and takes hold of the woman's ankles, who lies atop the gurney while the man slips behind the curtain. The woman on the gurney thrashes, moaning, sounding terrified as the man inserts the needle that pierces the woman's flesh. The needle drives straight to the bone forcing fluid through the woman's veins. Screams engulf the room pushing back the silence into a dark corner where it hides. Doreen sinks her fingernails in the palms of her hands to hold back the scream crawling up the back of her throat. The light in the room flickers as flashes of blinding light mixed with waves of thunder echo loud. The distant echo of music trails loud, and Patsy Cline sings If Only I Could Stay Asleep. Patsy's voice is the last thing Doreen hears before she wakes.

Something has changed. The flickering light, lights, and Doreen sees six bright, shining eyes staring at her, wanting to consume her. Doreen's knees buckle from under her, and she finds herself collapsing onto the black-n-white tile flooring. A voice whispers, they're coming, run!

Fearing the voice may be a sign of madness she may have inherited from her mother; Doreen finds the strength to push herself to stand and places her left hand against the wall. She begins to make her way along that darkened corridor. There is no thunder. No lightning. There is only her fear over what it is that lies ahead of her, in the dark, waiting. And then, like pulling a rabbit out of the hat, the moon appears from behind a dark cloud, creating a beam of light that filters through a nearby window, revealing a door. It's a door Doreen has never seen before. Doreen prays for this to be a way out, so she moves anxiously toward that door. A whisper of air crosses over the back of her neck. Then, twirling, frightened, she finds herself face-to-face with herself. Not any mirror image. Her true self. The scream at the back of her throat rushes up and out, like spewing vomit.

Doreen? sounds a voice far in the distance. Wake up.

Opening her eyes, Doreen sees her sister, Darlene, sitting at her bedside. Doreen knows the nightmare is over but not for good. No, never for good. The nightmare had first frightened Doreen when she was nine, the fifteen, and eighteen. The dream continues to terrorize and haunt her relentlessly though longing for something. Doreen found a door. Hopefully, this door is a way home.

Was I screaming, again? Doreen knew the answer.

Loud enough to wake Marie, I'm afraid, Darlene said.

Marie? Doreen said, unfamiliar with that name.

Didn't I tell you, Darlene said as she moved across the room to the vanity dresser? I met her the other day in the lobby. We were getting our mail, so I struck up a conversation with her, and she told me she shares an apartment on the first floor with her sister. Darlene stared at her reflection in the vanity mirror. Visible, dark circles lay under her eyes. It'd been weeks since she'd had a whole night's sleep. Ever since the automobile accident, Darlene couldn't seem to find closure.

Are you okay, Darlene? Doreen asked Darlene, knowing her sister's well-being was a sore topic since the tragic loss of their adoptive parents, George, and Nancy.

Darlene saw Doreen's reflection in the mirror and told Doreen that she was okay. Doreen sat up, placing her left hand to her throat, informing Darlene she was fine; it was merely a scratchy throat, no further need for any worry. Then, Darlene turned her back to the mirror and faced Doreen.

What you need is a glass of wine, Darlene said.

Doreen gave Darlene a disagreeable look believing Darlene's suggestion to be lame; what coming from an alcoholic. Some may not call an alcoholic an alcoholic. Still, a dog is a dog, a cat is a cat, and Darlene Ward, well, we'll say that she's a recovering alcoholic. One could say that was what started it all. That still could be arguable. If Doctor Jameson never crossed the twins' path, he might still be alive. Who can ever, really say? If Nancy had gotten along better with Darlene, she and George might still be alive. But the police swore George and Nancy's deaths were an unfortunate accident. While driving southbound, along a steepened hillside road, the brakes of the vehicle George and Nancy were in failed. The police said they believe George tried everything, from pulling the emergency brake cable to shifting the car in park, causing George to lose control. Forensic specialists discovered Nancy could not get her seatbelt to come loose. Nancy pulled, tugged, and pounded the release button. Finally, it did loosen, but too late because the car had severed a guardrail, plunged an embankment, flipped several times, and came to a crash landing. George and Nancy died on impact.

The day prior, Nancy and Darlene had had a terrible argument. Nancy despised the boy Darlene was seeing. Tony Ramos. Darlene was dating Tony behind Nancy's back. Nancy had discovered that Tony spent his youth in and out of foster homes and reform schools from researching the boy. Darlene was a magnet for these types, especially knowing how it upset Nancy. If only Nancy hadn't gone to the attic for that extra suitcase. Nancy discovered Darlene hiding Tony; something about a convenience store robbery Tony swore he knew nothing. Nancy had found them, buck naked, doing the nasty, and she blew a gasket. Like some raving lunatic, her screams shattered the rooftops of all the homes on the block. If only Nancy tried to understand, then maybe Darlene would never have spoken cruel words, which we all use whenever trapped. Offensive words, the sort that pierces the heart and glances back, twofold, when thrown back n forth. If Nancy had only been more understanding, then perhaps the guilt, the drinking, and the murders.

Darlene enjoyed tipping back a few beers with the boys, but she drank too much. She graduated to the hard stuff. Jack Daniels. Wicked whiskey Nancy would scream when George showed home drunk. Darlene's drinking had gotten far out of hand, and Doreen feared the consequences if her sister didn't soon get a handle on herself. As it was, Darlene was jeopardizing her job at the beauty salon; a job Darlene was fortunate to get after having quit high school in the eleventh grade.

Alice Matthews, the salon's proprietor, took a shining to Darlene. Alice promised to consider making Darlene a partner if Darlene swore to buckle down and work hard. The deaths of their adoptive parents, George, and Nancy, happened during Darlene's preparation for the State Boards. Darlene went left when she should have gone right. Doreen held on until near exhaustion, but the sorrow and confusion were unbearable, along with dealing with her sister's compulsive drinking on top of the horrible accident.

Alice Matthews recommended that Doreen seek professional help. If not for Darlene, for herself. Doreen took Alice's advice and sought the guidance of Doctor Jameson, professor of psychology, over at Middleton University, where Doreen majored in Art and Literature. Doreen heard Doctor Jameson had a list of patients he saw on a professional basis but was still setting aside time to help some university students. After listening to Doreen's dilemma, Doctor Jameson suggests Doreen brings Darlene to see him, making it clear it was Darlene's decision. Doctor Jameson also suggested Darlene might better herself by checking herself in AA.

Aware Doreen was up to something, Darlene, nevertheless, agreed to see the good doctor if just to get Doreen off her back. So together, the twins met with Doctor Jameson twice a week, at his home, off-campus. Darlene began easing up on her drinking. Everything was moving smoothly until Doctor Jameson brought up the subject of AA. Darlene became enraged, to where she began accusing Doreen of conspiring with Doctor Jameson, saying Doreen wanted her locked away. Darlene refused to attend the sessions. Doctor Jameson told Doreen she was a well-adjusted young woman and would worry if Doreen did not feel pain over her parents' deaths.

Doctor Jameson told Doreen that the confusion between twins was quite a normal process. However, the good doctor had no idea, really, just how confused the twins were. It was Nancy's fault. She was the culprit, always dressing them exactly alike and calling Doreen Darlene and Darlene Doreen. It wasn't until they were older, they develop personalities of their very own, lessening their confusion.

Darlene questioned her birth, insistent upon knowing about their birth mother. Nancy swore she knew nothing about but promised to do everything within her power. Of course, Nancy had no intentions of doing any such thing. Doreen and Darlene would not have known if it hadn't been for George spilling such truth.

Months passed, and Darlene never brought up the subject of their birth mother again. Finally, Nancy figured she was in the clear. Off the hook as seeing how Darlene's interest turned to boys. Darlene was a reckless girl. Darlene loved miniskirts and halter tops, whatever form of provocative clothing to drive the boy’s crazy. Could have been a hooker in a past life, Nancy said, never taking to Darlene the way she took to Doreen. Nancy tried bonding with Darlene. She tried teaching Darlene the craft of cooking, foolishly believing she could mold Darlene to be the next Betty Crocker.

George placed Darlene on a pedestal. He always praised Darlene as his wildflower. George favored Darlene the way Nancy preferred Doreen. George and Nancy had intense arguments when George came home drunk. George's visits were short and unsavory, and often more than not, George would disappear for weeks. Nancy covered these absences, saying that George's job kept George traveling for prolonged periods. Nancy had all the correct answers.

Opposite Darlene, you could take Doreen home to meet your parents. More your jeans and sweatshirt type who on occasion wore dresses. Nancy's pet. Little angel. Doreen and Darlene had green eyes that were bright and noticeable. Nancy said they inherited their eyes from their great-grandmother, which they learned in later years was a fallacy. Although their eyes held attractively, quality men find appealing their existence separated them from other girls. They come to realize these differences early on.

ONE

Less than a month after moving to the high-rise, Doreen met a young man at the city library. Todd Eldredge. Todd wasn't what you would call handsome but did have a kind face and a warm smile. Todd had finished his junior year at a college upstate and decided to take some time off to seek out what other possibilities the world might have to offer. Todd spent eighteen years in Victor Heights, inside a nestled little village outside Jonesburg. In this place, nothing much occurred until what tied Todd there suddenly vanished, unexpectedly. Victor Heights no longer held those glory days of childhood fantasies. With one suitcase and his ten-speed bicycle securely tied to the roof of the red Volkswagen, Todd headed for nowhere, ending up at the Outland Motel south of Middleton. During his first week's stay, he ventured to the city, where he met Doreen sitting alone at one of the tables in the city library.

Hello. I'm Todd, Todd said, introducing himself to Doreen, who sat with a book covering her face. I'm new in town, and I was wondering if you could tell me a good place to eat? Todd tried his best at getting Doreen's attention when a raspy sounding voice from somewhere hollered, You there, young man. There is to be no talking in the library. Todd saw an older woman with scowling eyes heading his way. Doreen slumped further in her chair, raising the book to cover her face so the librarian wouldn't see her grinning from ear to ear. I'm sorry, Todd apologized, sounding insincere. The librarian stood to be sure Todd was sorry and kept turning during her departure, bowing her head, glaring at Todd over the top of her reading glasses. I hope that wasn't your mom, Todd said, taking a seat at the table directly across from Doreen.

She does that to everyone, Doreen said, lowering the book.

Todd had never seen eyes as green as Doreen's. I didn't catch your name...? Todd said, mesmerized by Doreen’s eyes.

Doreen whispered. Doreen.

So, what does one do for fun, Doreen?

Doreen wasn't sure how to answer this question, knowing Darlene would have no problem because Darlene related to men like one of the boys. Knowing this, Doreen was not about to tell Todd she had a sister. Something about Todd was sad-like.

Todd and Doreen met at the city library every afternoon, supporting a platonic relationship. They talked about art and architecture. Todd was a born comedian, expressing dreams of building the next Tower of Pizza, which made Doreen blush. A month later, Todd and Doreen's friendship remained safe. Darlene suspected something so secretly followed Doreen to a café in Middleton's downtown district where she concealed herself behind the store window of Mama's Candies. Darlene could see Doreen sitting at a table near the café's picture window with a young man from across the street. Darlene could hardly believe her eyes. Doreen had a secret rendezvous with a handsome devil.

Something was wrong. The lovebirds looked to be disagreeing. Doreen stood and made her way out of the café. Todd sat looking dumbfounded. Moments later, Todd threw money on the table for the coffee neither he nor Doreen drank. Darlene hurried out of the candy store, thinking she would give Todd a piece of her mind, and it was then Darlene got one of her brainstorms.

Darlene believed men pay little attention to women other than having breasts and a warm place to hide. Being she had the ball in her court (so-to-speak), Darlene knew passing herself off as Doreen would be a piece of cake. The hard part would be entering the tavern Todd ducked into across the street.

Making her way across the street, reluctant yet determined, Darlene stepped through the door of the tavern, having to take a moment to adjust her eyes to the haze of the dark barroom. A couple sat at the bar. There were no other patrons but for Todd in a booth at the back of the barroom. The man sitting on the stool turned and gave Darlene a wink. The man's wrinkled face and yellow-stained teeth made Darlene look away. The woman alongside the man smacked the man upside his head, turning the man back around. Darlene swallowed at seeing the line of liquor bottles on the bar's back shelf. The bottle of Jack stuck out like a sore thumb. Nancy's voice echoed subconsciously in Darlene’s thoughts. Wicked Whiskey.

A voice called Doreen, and Darlene turned, half-expecting to see Doreen, but then realized Todd was calling to her, believing she was Doreen. Now having won the first round, Darlene had to persuade Todd to leave the tavern before she succumbed to one drink, which she knew would not be her last.

Let's get out of here, Darlene told Todd, arriving at the booth. Todd looked up with a smile holding a beer, never giving thought to Darlene’s apparel. If he had, he would have realized Darlene was not Doreen and may not have agreed with such a swirl of excitement in excepting Darlene's proposal.

We can go to the motel if you'd like, Todd said gleefully.

Todd’s heart ached for Rachael. She died unexpectedly from complications during a routine appendectomy. They were to marry after their senior year. If Darlene had known, Darlene still would not have cared. Darlene spent the night with Todd at the Outland Motel. It turned out that she spent quite a few nights. Thirty if one’s counting. Never had any man been so tender. The man of her dreams. A Knight in Shining Armor.

It turned out Darlene was not the only one experiencing satisfaction. Todd was drawn to Darlene like he never believed possible, and he couldn't help but wonder about the girl from the library who was frigid but now was sultry and tempting. Todd believed after Rachael had died that his life was over, but he had her, Doreen, so he thought.

Nothing was ever said about that day at the cafe. Darlene never mentioned it, and Doreen never told. The tides turned. Doreen had now noticed a change in Darlene, believing the change had to do with Tony Ramos. Darlene knew she had to tell Todd and Doreen if there was a lasting relationship between them. Only how could she tell either of them of her deception?

One late afternoon a knock at the door changed everything.

Darlene retired to her room to contemplate how to tell Doreen Todd asked her to go with him, that Todd wanted her to live with him off-campus. Doreen was in the living room when she heard the knock and called for Darlene to answer the door, but Darlene was buried in sleep. The knocking continued, and Darlene heard the knocking and Doreen calling her. Still, both these sounds sounded far in the distance of her subconscious. Irritated from the constant banging on the door, Doreen jumped up off the couch and headed for the door to tell who was there, to go away. Opening the door, Doreen lost her voice when she saw Todd.

Surprise! Todd smiled. Doreen stood looking as if she'd seen a ghost.

Have you been stalking me? Doreen managed to speak.

No, it's just you left in a hurry this morning, and I wanted to ask you... Todd stood stuttering, confused; knowing it was wrong, he followed her but was desperate to answer his proposal.

Darlene had