The Fate of Reality (Seeing Red Series Book 1), page 1
THE FATE OF REALITY
SEEING RED SERIES BOOK 1
WL KNIGHTLY
STAR KEY PRESS
CONTENTS
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WL Knightly’s Introduction
Description
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
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DESCRIPTION
Everly is a quiet town that's never needed a police detective—until now. When the job pops up, Jack Isaac decides it's time to put big-city policing behind him and go back home for a little peace. Nothing bad ever happens in Everly.
Then the murders start.
Volunteer firefighter Andy Allen has been handling a string of recent fires that seem suspicious. No one wants to believe there's an arsonist in Everly, but the tranquil town is no longer the safe haven it once was. If they're not careful, the whole place will burn down, revealing secrets better left buried.
PROLOGUE
Danny opened his eyes to see the dim lightbulb swinging far above his head. As the room began to spin, he sank deeper into the cold hard concrete where he lay. Time moved slower, too, like God had put his thumb on the world, and all reality began to blur as Danny tried to remember the past half hour.
His arm stung where he was cut and bleeding, but the blood around him that spattered his face and covered his blue t-shirt was not his alone.
His shaking, blood-soaked hands trembled with fear, power, and exhilaration for what he’d done.
Blood thickened on his fingertips—he could taste the salt and copper on his tongue—and sweat dripped pink from his brow.
When he gained enough courage to turn his head, he saw her there across the room where he’d left her. His mother lay still, quiet, and unable to judge him. She would never judge or belittle him again.
Despite the fog in his mind, he was fully aware of what he’d done. He’d finally killed her. And nothing in the world was going to change that. Not that he wanted to. But it just seemed so final. He had changed his world, and there was no going back.
He sat up and scooted against the wall. And while he stared at the bloody floor, footsteps sounded over his head.
“Vera?” called a feminine voice. “Vera, honey, are you down there?” The steps and voice came closer, and it sent Danny’s heart racing.
She was down there, alright, lying in a pool of blood with her face completely rearranged by a brick. It lay on the floor next to her in two pieces that were now soaked in her blood and brains—the rough edges had chipped against her bones.
The door opened a sliver, spilling light in from upstairs, and Danny drew his gawky fourteen-year-old limbs in tight against his chest and curled into a ball. If he curled tight enough, perhaps she wouldn’t see him there. Perhaps he could disappear.
But when the scream pierced his ears, he knew it was too late. “Danny? Oh my God, Danny! What have you done!”
The light from above shadowed her face, but not enough for him to miss the horror that crossed her expression.
Those words rang through his ears as if they had been spoken through a long tube, and the reverberation lasted well after she was gone. She had run back up the stairs as if her life depended on it.
With his chest heaving, he moved toward his mother, crouching on all fours. She had been transformed. Now it was time for her to finish the transformation and fly.
The concrete floor of the basement bit into his knees as he crawled across the room. His hands trembled thinking about that heavy brick and what he had done with it.
He had chipped away at her, just as she had chipped away at him. With the constant digs at his self-esteem, he had withstood as much as he could bear, but when the verbal turned physical, he had done what he felt he had to do. He had taken the brick from the basement floor and struck her from behind.
She had made a sound when he hit her, low and guttural, and the force quickly knocked her to the floor. But the devil didn’t die easily.
She had regained her wits and rolled over to look up at him. He’d stood there with the brick, his body thrumming like a live wire.
“You useless little bastard,” she had said. “You’ve always been a disappointment, but this is a new low, even for you.” She had touched her forehead and looked at the blood on her fingers. “Clearly, I’ve been too lenient with you. If my lessons fall on deaf ears, I’ll have to teach louder.”
He had hit her again and she’d finally looked afraid. His mother had crawled away from him then, making noises like a wounded animal.
He had never seen her like that. For once, she wasn’t in control. He was. Having the power to bring the helplessness out of her made him wonder what other emotions she had hidden beneath. Everyone was hiding something.
She had gripped her chair as she tried to get to her feet. He’d kicked it away from her, and she’d sprawled onto her back.
She smiled cruelly up at him. “You’ll pay for this—”
It was the last thing his mother ever said to him.
His third strike had cracked her skull with a sound like a gun shot. Her smile had disappeared into the sunken cavity that used to be her face.
He looked into that empty anonymous face now. Maybe someone would make sense of it. A doctor, perhaps? A mortician?
He dipped his hand in her open skull like a paintbrush and dragged the color across the floor until he had created one long wing that stretched out from her body.
Danny crawled over her, careful not to disturb her. His mother had never looked more at peace.
He recreated the wing on her other side and sat back, admiring his work until his vision grew blurry and he lost all time.
Sometime later, the door opened again. Only this time, it wasn’t his mother’s friend who came to see her—it was the police.
An officer shined his light into the room, and it hit Danny’s eyes. He winced, holding up his hand to shield himself from it. The policeman came closer, training his gun on him.
“Don’t move! Put both hands where I can see them!”
Danny did as he was instructed and was quickly taken into custody. As they led him away, he took one look back at his mother and smiled. Wherever he was going, he was sure it was much better than being with her.
Now they were both free.
CHAPTER 1
ANDY
Andy Allen pulled up at his grandmother’s house and realized it was the first time he would be there without her waiting inside to greet him with her warm and friendly smile.
Her sudden health decline had put her in a nursing home for the past month, where she had spent her final moments until her death a week earlier.
By the time they found her cancer, it had spread, and there was nothing they could do for her.
Edie Blanton had been a jewel in Everly society for years, having headed the local women’s club as well as being a member of the Everly Holiday Committee. Everyone in town knew and respected her, and she was certainly a woman who deserved the respect and love she received.
Being her only living relative made Andy her sole heir. The inheritance included her fully furnished home that was built in the seventies, her car, which needed a little work, and a substantial bank account. Not to mention everything else inside the four walls in front of him.
His grandmother’s house had always felt more like home than any other place in the world. Andy would miss her, but knowing that she was no longer in pain gave him comfort.
Before he could get out of the car, Dolores Culpepper appeared at her gate. She lived next door and had been his grandmother’s closest friend. Her floral house dress matched the roses growing in full bloom around her.
Andy could see the beauty that had once graced her face hidden in those wrinkles. It had faded but was not entirely forgotten through time. The fat diamonds on her hands showed that she was once a lady of class, just like his grandmother.
During the visits he’d paid his grandmother after moving to town, she would tell him all about Dolores and how she cheated at dominoes by fudging the scores. It used to tickle his grandmother, who didn’t care if she won or lost as long as she had someone to talk to.
“I was hoping I’d catch you,” Dolores said, hurrying to meet him at the gate. “And here you are when I was just out for my walk. Lucky me!”
“How are you today, Mrs. Culpepper?” Andy went into the gate and took out the house key. His day was full already, and he didn’t know if he had time for conversation.
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“Amen,” Andy said.
She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye with one hand and she dug a wadded-up tissue from the pocket of the house coat with the other. “She was a good lady, your grandmother. I still can’t believe she’s gone. Things certainly won’t be the same.”
Andy felt a bit uncomfortable with her emotions. “Yeah, I know. It was so sudden, but I will take that as mercy. Her condition certainly wasn’t getting any better.”
“Indeed. She could have had it so much worse if it had dragged on. I tell you, I’m really going to miss having her to lean on. She was a constant source of strength for me.”
Andy could relate. His grandmother had always remained supportive of him. She had been the only person in his life who had cared. “Me too. I loved her very much.”
Dolores’s lip quivered. “And oh, she loved you.”
Andy didn’t do well with emotions in general, and having people cry in front of him had always made him especially uncomfortable. It made him feel like he was supposed to do something to make everything better.
And that led to a feeling of helplessness that made him feel useless.
But through it all, he knew to mind his manners like his grandmother would have wanted.
“Thank you for saying so, Mrs. Culpepper.” Andy wondered if the woman was going to be under his feet or if she was just excited to see him. Maybe she was just lonely.
He knew what that felt like. Since coming to Everly just over a year ago, he hadn’t been on one date, and he spent most of his time working on his career. The rest of his free time was spent down at Big’s Place, shooting the shit with the local cops and his firemen buddies.
If he was going to make it to the top of his game, he had to know the right people. He wasn’t sure what Mrs. Culpepper could do for him.
“Call me Dolores, please, honey. No need to be so formal.”
He unlocked the door. “I’m afraid it’s just my way,” he said, noting how her hands shook as she wiped her eyes with the tissue and returned it to her pocket. Did she have a condition? Or was that just the emotions making her tremble? “My grandmother taught me right, I suppose.”
“Well, with all I heard, I’m sure you’re well-mannered. Going to a private school and all. What a fortunate young man you are. She used to just sit and rave about you and how well you did with your studies.”
Andy nodded as he went into the house, wondering just how much his grandmother had told her. “My grandmother talked about me?”
“Of course she did,” said Dolores, following him inside. “She bragged on you so much. Us girls with the Holiday Committee couldn’t get her to shut up. She loved you to pieces. And she loved giving her time just like you do. I tell you, I think you have her eyes. So full of kindness.”
“Thank you.” He had never been told that before.
“Well, I can see why she was proud.”
Andy chuckled. His grandmother had always been a proud woman about many things, but he had never known her to exaggerate so much. Not that he blamed her. “Well, I can only hope I live up to the man she told you about. It seems she may have talked me up a bit. But I guess that’s what grandmothers do.”
It seemed like he would have some pretty big expectations to fill.
Dolores sighed. “How are you liking Everly? You didn’t live here before, did you? I know when your mother died, she had hoped that you would come and live with her.”
“No, ma’am. I didn’t ever live here. I visited off and on as a kid, but I only moved back about eleven months ago now. I wanted to settle down someplace I could have a fresh start after school, and Everly has always seemed like the perfect place to live.”
“Oh, it is. We’re doing our best to keep the old town alive. Of course, we’ve got a lot of new folks coming in,” she said, shaking her head. “Not that I mind you, don’t get me wrong. It’s those delinquents that I’m talking about. All of those out-of-town low-lifers coming down here to corrupt our youth with that meth mess they put into their bodies.”
“Yes, ma’am. I’ve heard it’s gotten worse.”
She nodded. “So bad the police department has hired a new detective. I heard Sheriff Quinn talking about it when I was in town yesterday. He should arrive in town soon.”
Andy paused. “They did?”
“Yes, can you believe it? Well, you probably don’t realize, being a newcomer and all, but Everly always managed fine enough with our small department. I guess everything is changing these days.”
Andy hadn’t known about the new detective in town. But he could see that Dolores was expecting his response. “The town is growing, I suppose, so maybe it’s just a precaution.”
“Or there are things they aren’t telling us. With so many changes, it’s hard to tell who to trust anymore. Well, at least you have family here, so it’s different with you. You’re practically one of us already, so you won’t have any trouble fitting in, but I’m not sure how well a new detective will be welcomed. At least that’s how I feel. Some folks want to keep the town as it’s always been. Others want to watch it grow so big it’s unrecognizable. I guess I fall somewhere in the middle.”
From what Andy had seen since he got to town, she didn’t have too much to worry about. Everly had a long time before it became too much like a big city. “Well, everyone here has treated me well enough. As for the town growing, I’m sure it only seems like it. With so many of the older generation leaving us, new people will have to come in and take their places.”
“I know. It is inevitable. It’s really the crime rate that has me up at night. Did you hear that they put in a second tattoo parlor downtown? They even have a neon sign hanging out front like it’s some kind of brothel.”
With this remark, Andy knew for sure she was overreacting. “I heard about that. Did something happen there?”
He wondered if he had missed something else. He usually liked to stay on top of things.
“Nothing has happened yet,” she said. “But you mark my words. It will.”
“Well, it’s hard to tell.”
“Edie told me you’re in training,” she said, changing the subject. “You want to be a fireman?”
“Yes, ma’am. I’ve only got a month of training left. I’m hoping to secure a permanent position with the fire department.”
“Oh, so you know Chief Pellerin,” she said.
He thought about telling her he’d never heard of him just to get a reaction but decided against it. “Yes, I work with him now. Of course, it’s only on a volunteer basis until I earn my final certifications, but he keeps me busy.”
“I’ve known him for years,” she said. “In fact, I know just about everyone around here. If you ever want to know anything about anyone, just ask me.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. But I’ve been getting to know the people of Everly fairly well. Being a volunteer, I’m always called on to help someone with something.”
“Edie had told me you loved to help people when you moved here. But I have to say. I’m a little surprised we didn’t meet before the funeral. You must stay busy. Especially with those recent fires.”
“I try.”
“It’s such a shame about the Grady family, don’t you think? You did work that fire, didn’t you?”
