They Sought Vengeance, page 29
“She is.”
“What kind of case?” Kenzie asked, trying to rescue Zachary.
Zachary rubbed his forehead. He was starting to get a headache. “Her daughter. She died suddenly and Jennifer wants it investigated.”
“Oh, dear,” Kenzie shook her head at this. “How old was she?”
“A teenager. I’m not sure how old. Do you remember a Kristin Jones?”
“No.” Kenzie’s forehead creased as she thought about it. “I don’t remember the name and haven’t had any teenage girls through recently. Are you sure she went through the Roxboro medical examiner’s office?”
“No. She didn’t say. It might have been one of the bigger hospitals.”
“Yeah. Probably.”
Having Kenzie as a contact in the local medical examiner’s office was handy, but Zachary was not disappointed that Jennifer’s daughter hadn’t been autopsied by Kenzie or Dr. Wiltshire. He didn’t want to challenge another one of their cases quite so soon.
“By ‘died suddenly,’ do you mean she committed suicide?” Kenzie asked.
“No. Jennifer said it was in the middle of a medical procedure.”
“Oh.” Kenzie nodded. “Well, that does happen,” she admitted. “Sometimes there are unexpected complications.”
“I don’t know the details yet. We’re going to get together tomorrow, and then I’ll know more.”
“Don’t raise her hopes,” Kenzie warned. “If it was in the middle of a medical procedure, the cause of death could be unknown, but they’re usually pretty thorough investigating cases of potential doctor error.”
“I’ll tell her that.”
“What was she like?” Tyrrell asked. “Back when you knew her?”
Even though he remembered Jennifer being nice to him, Zachary wasn’t looking forward to meeting and reconnecting with her, especially under such tragic circumstances. It would not be a joyful reunion. And he wanted the past to remain in the past. His chest tightened and his heart beat painfully hard just thinking about it. How would he feel the next day when he had to face her in person?
“I don’t know,” Zachary told Tyrrell testily. “I don’t remember.”
Tyrrell sat back in his chair, looking at Zachary speculatively. “Okay, bro… sorry…”
“Zachary said that she was kind,” Kenzie told him. “But it was a long time ago. She looked at Zachary. “A lo-o-ong time ago,” she drew the word out, teasing him.
“I’m not that much older than you.” Zachary shook his head and picked up his crust of garlic bread. He appreciated her trying to shift the conversation away from him, but wasn’t in the mood for teasing and joking.
“He must be at least ten years older than you,” Tyrrell studied Kenzie. “I mean… look at him. And look at you.”
Kenzie’s red lips curved into a smile.
Zachary was no catch physically. He’d lived a hard life and had plenty of scars to show it. And while he’d put on weight and looked pretty good now, he was usually underweight during a depressive cycle and looked worn and gaunt. Right now, he was on the upswing, the hollows in his cheeks filled in and his eyes not sunken.
But Kenzie definitely looked better.
“Only three years,” Kenzie laughed. “He’s no cradle robber.”
+++
Later, Tyrrell had gone home and Zachary was sitting in bed, watching Kenzie spread moisturizing cream on her face. One of those things that kept her looking young and fresh, he supposed. It had never occurred to him that he should take better care of his skin. There were much higher-level things he had to be concerned with. His mental health. Not taking on cases involving dangerous people. Getting enough sleep and, before his last med change, forcing himself to eat enough despite the nausea caused by his prescriptions.
“Are you okay?” Kenzie asked, looking at him.
He tore his eyes away from her, realizing she probably thought he was staring at her, when he was actually lost inside his own head. “Yeah, I’m good. Sorry.”
She continued dotting the moisturizer on her face and rubbing it in. “It’s just that… you’ve seemed distracted. A bit… out of sorts, maybe. You’re usually relaxed when Tyrrell is here. But you seemed like you had something else on your mind today.”
“Just thinking about this new case.”
She looked at him, waiting for more information.
“There’s not anything to tell yet.” Zachary looked down at his phone to check for messages or emails. “I won’t know anything until I’ve had a chance to meet with her.”
“But you’re not looking forward to it, are you?”
“No.”
“I thought you would be excited about seeing an old friend. It would be different if she were someone who didn’t treat you very well. I can see you putting her off and saying you have too much on your plate. But if she was good to you…”
Zachary tried to think of the best way to explain it. He knew he should be happy to see Jennifer.
“She was good. But with the rest of the stuff going on around then… it was a pretty dark time. I don’t want to think about it, and I can’t separate Jennifer out and only think about her. It’s all woven together.”
Kenzie screwed the lid onto her face cream and put it on her side table.
“Sure, I can understand that. Sorry for pressing you. I’m not trying to be intrusive.”
“It’s okay.” He scrolled down the endless timeline on one of the social media apps, not looking at her. “I know it sounds backward. That meeting someone who was nice would bring back bad feelings and memories. But that’s the way it is. I’ve tried to leave all of that behind me. I don’t want it coming back up.”
She knew only too well how he had repressed other memories. But they hadn’t stayed where he had buried them. But they had come bubbling back up again, and he’d had to deal with them instead of being able to compartmentalize and push them down again. He still wasn’t finished dealing with them. It had been over a year and had been the subject of many therapy sessions.
“You’re strong enough to deal with it,” Kenzie assured him. “Maybe you weren’t when you were a teenager, but you’ve grown a lot since then. You’ve learned a lot about yourself and dealt with a lot of hard stuff. You can deal with this too.”
“I’d rather not.”
Kenzie chuckled. “I’m sure you would. But we don’t always get the luxury of choice.”
She’d been dealing with traumatic stuff lately too, and he was proud of her for it. He put his hand down in the space between them, and Kenzie interlaced her fingers with his and held his hand firmly.
“For tonight, let’s focus on the present.”
Zachary wholeheartedly agreed.
She Was Their Target, Book #15 of the Zachary Goldman Mysteries series by P.D. Workman can be purchased at pdworkman.com
ALSO BY P.D. WORKMAN
FIND MORE BOOKS AT PDWORKMAN.COM
MYSTERY/SUSPENSE:
Zachary Goldman Mysteries
Private Investigator
She Wore Mourning
His Hands Were Quiet
She Was Dying Anyway
He Was Walking Alone
They Thought He was Safe
He Was Not There
Her Work Was Everything
She Told a Lie
He Never Forgot
She Was At Risk
He Drowned in Memory
Their Walls Were Empty
They Came for Him
They Sought Vengeance
She Was Their Target (Coming Soon)
His Fear Was Real (Coming Soon)
Kenzie Kirsch Medical Thrillers
Unlawful Harvest
Doctored Death
Dosed to Death
Gentle Angel
Rushin' Death
Posed for Death
Death of a Corpse
Endowed with Death (Coming Soon)
Shattered to Death (Coming Soon)
Captured in Death (Coming Soon)
Auntie Clem’s Bakery
Culinary & Pet Cozy Mysteries
Gluten-Free Murder
Dairy-Free Death
Allergen-Free Assignation
Witch-Free Halloween (Halloween Short)
Dog-Free Dinner (Christmas Short)
Stirring Up Murder
Brewing Death
Coup de Glace
Sour Cherry Turnover
Apple-achian Treasure
Vegan Baked Alaska
Muffins Masks Murder
Tai Chi and Chai Tea
Santa Shortbread
Cold as Ice Cream
Changing Fortune Cookies
Hot on the Trail Mix
Fateful Plateful
Cut Out Cookie
On the Slab Pie
Wedding Cake Crush
A Waffle Death
Murder Meringue Pie (Coming Soon)
A Fowl Play on Christmas Day (Christmas crossover story)
Recipes from Auntie Clem's Bakery
Reg Rawlins, Psychic Detective
Paranormal Mystery & Adventure
What the Cat Knew
A Psychic with Catitude
A Catastrophic Theft
Night of Nine Tails
Telepathy of Gardens
Delusions of the Past
Fairy Blade Unmade
Web of Nightmares
A Whisker's Breadth
Skunk Man Swamp
Magic Ain't A Game
Without Foresight
Careful of Thy Wishes
Time to Your Elf
Undiscovered Tomb
Missing Powers
Thrice Spared
Cloaked Campaign
Sleepwalker's Sanctuary (Coming Soon)
Cat Tales in the Swamp (Short Story)
Tainted Truffle Treachery (Coming Soon)
A Fowl Play on Christmas Day (Christmas crossover story)
Lunar Lies (Coming Soon)
Parks Pat Mysteries
Police Procedural Set in Canada
Out with the Sunset
Long Climb to the Top
Dark Water Under the Bridge
Immersed in the View
Skimming Over the Lake
Hazard of the Hills
Knows the Hills
Spanning the Creek
Sanctuary in the Stream
High-Tech Crime Solvers Series
Virtually Harmless
Cowritten with D. D. VanDyke
California Corwin P. I. Mystery Series
The Girl in the Morgue
Stand Alone Suspense Novels
Looking Over Your Shoulder
Lion Within
Pursued by the Past
In the Tick of Time
Loose the Dogs
YOUNG ADULT FICTION:
Medical Kidnap Files:
YA Suspense
Mito
EDS
Proxy
Toxo
Pain
Fail
Between the Cracks:
Gritty Contemporary YA Family Saga
Ruby
June and Justin
Michelle
Chloe
Ronnie
June, Into the Light
Tamara’s Teardrops:
Gritty Contemporary YA
Tattooed Teardrops
Two Teardrops
Tortured Teardrops
Vanishing Teardrops
Breaking the Pattern:
Gritty Contemporary YA
Henry
Sandy
Bobby
Stand Alone Young Adult:
Stand Alone
Don’t Forget Steven
Those Who Believe
Cynthia has a Secret
Questing for a Dream
Darkness before the Dream (prequel story)
Once Brothers
Intersexion
Making Her Mark
Endless Change
Gem, Himself, Alone
AND MORE AT PDWORKMAN.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
P.D. Workman is a USA Today Bestselling author, winner of several awards from Library Services for Youth in Custody and the InD’tale Magazine’s Crowned Heart award, and has published over 100 mystery/suspense/thriller and young adult books, including stand alones and these series: Auntie Clem's Bakery cozy mysteries, Reg Rawlins Psychic Investigator paranormal mysteries, Zachary Goldman Mysteries (PI), Kenzie Kirsch Medical Thrillers, Parks Pat Mysteries (police procedural), and YA series: Tamara's Teardrops, Between the Cracks, and Breaking the Pattern.
Workman loves writing about the underdog, who the reader may love or hate. She has been praised for her realistic details, deep characterization, and sensitive handling of the serious social issues that appear in all of her stories, from light cozy mysteries through to darker, grittier young adult and mystery/suspense books.
P. D. Workman, does not shy from probing the deep psychological scars of childhood trauma, mental illness, and addiction. Also characteristic of this author, these extremely sensitive issues are explored with extensive empathy, described with incredible clarity, and portrayed with profound insight.
—KIM, GOODREADS REVIEWER
Some of Workman's titles have been translated into Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, and Italian.
Workman began writing at an early age and is a prolific reader as well as writer. She is also passionate about teaching and learning, expresses her creativity through art and cooking, and loves exploring the Calgary parks and green spaces where the Parks Pat Mysteries are set. She was a legal assistant for many years and has done extensive charitable work.
Workman was born and raised in Alberta, Canada, and is married with one adult son.
Please visit P.D. Workman at pdworkman.com to see what else she is working on, to join her mailing list, and to link to her social networks.
If you enjoyed this book, please take the time to recommend it to other purchasers with a review or star rating and share it with your friends!
P.D. Workman, They Sought Vengeance
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“What kind of case?” Kenzie asked, trying to rescue Zachary.
Zachary rubbed his forehead. He was starting to get a headache. “Her daughter. She died suddenly and Jennifer wants it investigated.”
“Oh, dear,” Kenzie shook her head at this. “How old was she?”
“A teenager. I’m not sure how old. Do you remember a Kristin Jones?”
“No.” Kenzie’s forehead creased as she thought about it. “I don’t remember the name and haven’t had any teenage girls through recently. Are you sure she went through the Roxboro medical examiner’s office?”
“No. She didn’t say. It might have been one of the bigger hospitals.”
“Yeah. Probably.”
Having Kenzie as a contact in the local medical examiner’s office was handy, but Zachary was not disappointed that Jennifer’s daughter hadn’t been autopsied by Kenzie or Dr. Wiltshire. He didn’t want to challenge another one of their cases quite so soon.
“By ‘died suddenly,’ do you mean she committed suicide?” Kenzie asked.
“No. Jennifer said it was in the middle of a medical procedure.”
“Oh.” Kenzie nodded. “Well, that does happen,” she admitted. “Sometimes there are unexpected complications.”
“I don’t know the details yet. We’re going to get together tomorrow, and then I’ll know more.”
“Don’t raise her hopes,” Kenzie warned. “If it was in the middle of a medical procedure, the cause of death could be unknown, but they’re usually pretty thorough investigating cases of potential doctor error.”
“I’ll tell her that.”
“What was she like?” Tyrrell asked. “Back when you knew her?”
Even though he remembered Jennifer being nice to him, Zachary wasn’t looking forward to meeting and reconnecting with her, especially under such tragic circumstances. It would not be a joyful reunion. And he wanted the past to remain in the past. His chest tightened and his heart beat painfully hard just thinking about it. How would he feel the next day when he had to face her in person?
“I don’t know,” Zachary told Tyrrell testily. “I don’t remember.”
Tyrrell sat back in his chair, looking at Zachary speculatively. “Okay, bro… sorry…”
“Zachary said that she was kind,” Kenzie told him. “But it was a long time ago. She looked at Zachary. “A lo-o-ong time ago,” she drew the word out, teasing him.
“I’m not that much older than you.” Zachary shook his head and picked up his crust of garlic bread. He appreciated her trying to shift the conversation away from him, but wasn’t in the mood for teasing and joking.
“He must be at least ten years older than you,” Tyrrell studied Kenzie. “I mean… look at him. And look at you.”
Kenzie’s red lips curved into a smile.
Zachary was no catch physically. He’d lived a hard life and had plenty of scars to show it. And while he’d put on weight and looked pretty good now, he was usually underweight during a depressive cycle and looked worn and gaunt. Right now, he was on the upswing, the hollows in his cheeks filled in and his eyes not sunken.
But Kenzie definitely looked better.
“Only three years,” Kenzie laughed. “He’s no cradle robber.”
+++
Later, Tyrrell had gone home and Zachary was sitting in bed, watching Kenzie spread moisturizing cream on her face. One of those things that kept her looking young and fresh, he supposed. It had never occurred to him that he should take better care of his skin. There were much higher-level things he had to be concerned with. His mental health. Not taking on cases involving dangerous people. Getting enough sleep and, before his last med change, forcing himself to eat enough despite the nausea caused by his prescriptions.
“Are you okay?” Kenzie asked, looking at him.
He tore his eyes away from her, realizing she probably thought he was staring at her, when he was actually lost inside his own head. “Yeah, I’m good. Sorry.”
She continued dotting the moisturizer on her face and rubbing it in. “It’s just that… you’ve seemed distracted. A bit… out of sorts, maybe. You’re usually relaxed when Tyrrell is here. But you seemed like you had something else on your mind today.”
“Just thinking about this new case.”
She looked at him, waiting for more information.
“There’s not anything to tell yet.” Zachary looked down at his phone to check for messages or emails. “I won’t know anything until I’ve had a chance to meet with her.”
“But you’re not looking forward to it, are you?”
“No.”
“I thought you would be excited about seeing an old friend. It would be different if she were someone who didn’t treat you very well. I can see you putting her off and saying you have too much on your plate. But if she was good to you…”
Zachary tried to think of the best way to explain it. He knew he should be happy to see Jennifer.
“She was good. But with the rest of the stuff going on around then… it was a pretty dark time. I don’t want to think about it, and I can’t separate Jennifer out and only think about her. It’s all woven together.”
Kenzie screwed the lid onto her face cream and put it on her side table.
“Sure, I can understand that. Sorry for pressing you. I’m not trying to be intrusive.”
“It’s okay.” He scrolled down the endless timeline on one of the social media apps, not looking at her. “I know it sounds backward. That meeting someone who was nice would bring back bad feelings and memories. But that’s the way it is. I’ve tried to leave all of that behind me. I don’t want it coming back up.”
She knew only too well how he had repressed other memories. But they hadn’t stayed where he had buried them. But they had come bubbling back up again, and he’d had to deal with them instead of being able to compartmentalize and push them down again. He still wasn’t finished dealing with them. It had been over a year and had been the subject of many therapy sessions.
“You’re strong enough to deal with it,” Kenzie assured him. “Maybe you weren’t when you were a teenager, but you’ve grown a lot since then. You’ve learned a lot about yourself and dealt with a lot of hard stuff. You can deal with this too.”
“I’d rather not.”
Kenzie chuckled. “I’m sure you would. But we don’t always get the luxury of choice.”
She’d been dealing with traumatic stuff lately too, and he was proud of her for it. He put his hand down in the space between them, and Kenzie interlaced her fingers with his and held his hand firmly.
“For tonight, let’s focus on the present.”
Zachary wholeheartedly agreed.
She Was Their Target, Book #15 of the Zachary Goldman Mysteries series by P.D. Workman can be purchased at pdworkman.com
ALSO BY P.D. WORKMAN
FIND MORE BOOKS AT PDWORKMAN.COM
MYSTERY/SUSPENSE:
Zachary Goldman Mysteries
Private Investigator
She Wore Mourning
His Hands Were Quiet
She Was Dying Anyway
He Was Walking Alone
They Thought He was Safe
He Was Not There
Her Work Was Everything
She Told a Lie
He Never Forgot
She Was At Risk
He Drowned in Memory
Their Walls Were Empty
They Came for Him
They Sought Vengeance
She Was Their Target (Coming Soon)
His Fear Was Real (Coming Soon)
Kenzie Kirsch Medical Thrillers
Unlawful Harvest
Doctored Death
Dosed to Death
Gentle Angel
Rushin' Death
Posed for Death
Death of a Corpse
Endowed with Death (Coming Soon)
Shattered to Death (Coming Soon)
Captured in Death (Coming Soon)
Auntie Clem’s Bakery
Culinary & Pet Cozy Mysteries
Gluten-Free Murder
Dairy-Free Death
Allergen-Free Assignation
Witch-Free Halloween (Halloween Short)
Dog-Free Dinner (Christmas Short)
Stirring Up Murder
Brewing Death
Coup de Glace
Sour Cherry Turnover
Apple-achian Treasure
Vegan Baked Alaska
Muffins Masks Murder
Tai Chi and Chai Tea
Santa Shortbread
Cold as Ice Cream
Changing Fortune Cookies
Hot on the Trail Mix
Fateful Plateful
Cut Out Cookie
On the Slab Pie
Wedding Cake Crush
A Waffle Death
Murder Meringue Pie (Coming Soon)
A Fowl Play on Christmas Day (Christmas crossover story)
Recipes from Auntie Clem's Bakery
Reg Rawlins, Psychic Detective
Paranormal Mystery & Adventure
What the Cat Knew
A Psychic with Catitude
A Catastrophic Theft
Night of Nine Tails
Telepathy of Gardens
Delusions of the Past
Fairy Blade Unmade
Web of Nightmares
A Whisker's Breadth
Skunk Man Swamp
Magic Ain't A Game
Without Foresight
Careful of Thy Wishes
Time to Your Elf
Undiscovered Tomb
Missing Powers
Thrice Spared
Cloaked Campaign
Sleepwalker's Sanctuary (Coming Soon)
Cat Tales in the Swamp (Short Story)
Tainted Truffle Treachery (Coming Soon)
A Fowl Play on Christmas Day (Christmas crossover story)
Lunar Lies (Coming Soon)
Parks Pat Mysteries
Police Procedural Set in Canada
Out with the Sunset
Long Climb to the Top
Dark Water Under the Bridge
Immersed in the View
Skimming Over the Lake
Hazard of the Hills
Knows the Hills
Spanning the Creek
Sanctuary in the Stream
High-Tech Crime Solvers Series
Virtually Harmless
Cowritten with D. D. VanDyke
California Corwin P. I. Mystery Series
The Girl in the Morgue
Stand Alone Suspense Novels
Looking Over Your Shoulder
Lion Within
Pursued by the Past
In the Tick of Time
Loose the Dogs
YOUNG ADULT FICTION:
Medical Kidnap Files:
YA Suspense
Mito
EDS
Proxy
Toxo
Pain
Fail
Between the Cracks:
Gritty Contemporary YA Family Saga
Ruby
June and Justin
Michelle
Chloe
Ronnie
June, Into the Light
Tamara’s Teardrops:
Gritty Contemporary YA
Tattooed Teardrops
Two Teardrops
Tortured Teardrops
Vanishing Teardrops
Breaking the Pattern:
Gritty Contemporary YA
Henry
Sandy
Bobby
Stand Alone Young Adult:
Stand Alone
Don’t Forget Steven
Those Who Believe
Cynthia has a Secret
Questing for a Dream
Darkness before the Dream (prequel story)
Once Brothers
Intersexion
Making Her Mark
Endless Change
Gem, Himself, Alone
AND MORE AT PDWORKMAN.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
P.D. Workman is a USA Today Bestselling author, winner of several awards from Library Services for Youth in Custody and the InD’tale Magazine’s Crowned Heart award, and has published over 100 mystery/suspense/thriller and young adult books, including stand alones and these series: Auntie Clem's Bakery cozy mysteries, Reg Rawlins Psychic Investigator paranormal mysteries, Zachary Goldman Mysteries (PI), Kenzie Kirsch Medical Thrillers, Parks Pat Mysteries (police procedural), and YA series: Tamara's Teardrops, Between the Cracks, and Breaking the Pattern.
Workman loves writing about the underdog, who the reader may love or hate. She has been praised for her realistic details, deep characterization, and sensitive handling of the serious social issues that appear in all of her stories, from light cozy mysteries through to darker, grittier young adult and mystery/suspense books.
P. D. Workman, does not shy from probing the deep psychological scars of childhood trauma, mental illness, and addiction. Also characteristic of this author, these extremely sensitive issues are explored with extensive empathy, described with incredible clarity, and portrayed with profound insight.
—KIM, GOODREADS REVIEWER
Some of Workman's titles have been translated into Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, and Italian.
Workman began writing at an early age and is a prolific reader as well as writer. She is also passionate about teaching and learning, expresses her creativity through art and cooking, and loves exploring the Calgary parks and green spaces where the Parks Pat Mysteries are set. She was a legal assistant for many years and has done extensive charitable work.
Workman was born and raised in Alberta, Canada, and is married with one adult son.
Please visit P.D. Workman at pdworkman.com to see what else she is working on, to join her mailing list, and to link to her social networks.
If you enjoyed this book, please take the time to recommend it to other purchasers with a review or star rating and share it with your friends!
P.D. Workman, They Sought Vengeance
