Author: Jennifer Chase
Publisher: Bookouture
Pages: 354
Genre: Crime Fiction/Thriller
The cold night breeze slams the barn door shut with a sickening crash. The girl curled in the corner wakes with a start. Her gold butterfly necklace catches the pale moonlight as she clutches it tight, thinking of her family. Will she ever escape? Or is this the last face she’ll ever see?
Detective Katie Scott stares in horror at what she and her service dog Cisco have discovered: seven shallow graves, the bodies of young women each wrapped carefully in a blanket and buried in makeshift coffins. Miles of abandoned farmland stretch out from the treeline behind her. Has Katie uncovered the horrifying graveyard of a monster who has been stealing Pine Valley’s daughters for years?
Katie quickly identifies one of the victims as Abigail Andrews, a beautiful young woman who disappeared fifteen years ago. Katie is heartbroken that she’ll have to tell Abigail’s mother her darling girl is gone.
When Katie is ambushed working late at the scene, fired upon by an unknown assailant, she knows she must be close to finding the killer. But the shooter vanishes into thin air. And when a new young woman is taken, dark haired and dark eyed like the others, Katie realizes her time is running out. Can she stay alive long enough to track down this twisted murderer before another young life is stolen too soon?
“Fast paced, characters intelligent and had each others back. The plot was a bit harrowing, but from what plot entailed I was confident one of the main protagonists, Katie had the situation under control. At least the best of her capabilities as the situation warranted. This ebook was fresh, tasteful and powerful. It was a boon to read about a female with military experience who maintained a level head and who put her knowledge to practice.” ~Amazon
The First Girl is available at Amazon & Other Retailers.
FIFTEEN YEARS LATER
Tuesday 0945 hours
Detective Katie Scott drove with purpose as she steered the police sedan. She merged onto a country road off the main highway leading out of the Pine Valley area to meet with the family of a missing cold-case victim, Abigail Andrews. She glanced at her partner, Detective Sean McGaven, and smiled as he busily scoured his tablet looking for more information surrounding the case. She loved the way he was so thorough before they talked to anyone.
The landscape quickly changed to the dense forest that Pine Valley was known for. The morning was overcast with clouds obscuring the sun and a blustery wind blew. The view began to darken as they weaved along the country road where in addition to the dreary weather the tall pine trees acted as a giant canopy. The automatic headlights switched on, casting shadows among the dense trees.
“Anything?” Katie asked McGaven.
“Nothing new,” said McGaven. “Hopefully, Mrs. Andrews will be able to give us more insight into the time her daughter disappeared. Maybe she’s remembered something.”
Katie had read the missing person’s report several times. It wasn’t as detail-oriented as she would have liked, but there was the basic information and leads had been followed up. Apparently, Abigail had left her house with her dog and said she was going to see a friend. It was unclear where she went or who the friend was until her car had been found a week later parked in a rural area.
Katie couldn’t get Abigail’s face out of her mind. The photo in the file showed a beautiful young woman with long dark hair and dark eyes. Her smile was slight and there seemed to be a sadness about her.
“The file said that Abigail was falling in with some bad influences. Like substance use?” Katie asked.
“Yeah, but the two friends considered the bad influences were ruled out when the original investigation began.”
“Still,” she said, “there may be other friends her family didn’t know about and she was going to meet up with them. And people are more likely to talk about things when enough time has passed.”
“True. We’ll see if we can track them down. If they kept doing bad things, they might not be around anymore either.”
Katie frowned. “We need to check out where her car was found and triangulate the area to see what pops.”
“Don’t worry, we will. A little bit longer isn’t going to make any difference.” He smiled at his determined partner. “Wait,” said McGaven. He turned up the scanner to hear the dispatcher. They usually had it turned down or off because they weren’t on patrol.
“Motorist reported a woman on the south side of the Pine Valley Bridge. Appears to be a jumper,” said dispatch.
“We’re close,” said Katie.
“Dispatch, this is Detective McGaven and I’m less than three minutes from that location. We’re on our way. Request assistance.”
“Ten-four. Backup on the way.”
Katie pressed the accelerator harder, and they headed for the bridge. “Maybe a kid or a prank.”
“Maybe, but we can’t take any chances.” McGaven’s face was solemn as he watched the road in anticipation.
As they jetted around the sharp turns in between the thick tree line, the sky seemed to lighten up ahead. They were just seconds from the historical Pine Valley Bridge, which connected Sequoia and Pine Valley counties. The bridge was sturdy, constructed with concrete supports with large rocks anchoring it, not like a county passing. It was almost a hundred years old but had been renovated twice. The bridge traffic was generally light, so they were lucky the concerned motorist had been passing at the time.
“We’re almost there,” Katie said.
“There,” said McGaven.
They could see a woman standing on the bridge on the left side—she was still, with her arms at her sides and her head looking straight ahead. She wore a pale yellow, full-length dress and had long dark hair loose and blowing behind her. The breeze rumpled the dress. She was barefoot, her shoes lying on the ground neatly placed next to each other. She looked more like a subject in an expressionist painting than a woman in distress.
Katie pulled to the side of the road just before the bridge entrance. “I don’t want to spook her,” she said as she cut the engine.
“How do you want to proceed?”
She eyed her partner and decided it was best for her to confront the woman—McGaven was tall—over six-foot, six-inches—and might seem intimidating.
Both detectives got out of the car.
“Keep your cell on after my call so I can hear the conversation,” McGaven said as he called his partner’s phone.
Katie nodded, answering the call and keeping it open. She carried it in her jacket pocket. “Can you hear me?” she said.
“Yep.”
“How long before backup arrives?”
“They said about fifteen or eighteen minutes. Hurry,” he stressed, feeling his partner’s concerns and hoping for the best. “I’ll see if I can get a unit to stop any traffic from the other side.”
Katie gave McGaven a quick look before she turned and faced the bridge. The woman was still standing on the ledge and seemed to be unaware of their presence. Dread filled Katie. She had never been a crisis negotiator, but they couldn’t wait for backup. They needed to get this woman off the bridge in order to obtain the help she obviously so desperately needed.
Katie felt her pulse quicken as she walked toward the woman. The closer she got, the more she realized that the woman was young, about her age. It struck a chord with her. She remembered what it was like for her when she received the news that her parents had died in a car accident. We are all faced with tragedies at some point in our lives, but sometimes people don’t know how to reach out. Maybe this was the case for this young woman.
As Katie neared, she saw that the woman’s legs were shaking, and her toes gripped the edge of the bridge. Katie kept her distance. Not quite knowing what to do or say, she said, “I’m Katie. What’s your name?”
The woman didn’t move or respond.
Katie could hear the water rushing from below.
“I’m a detective with the Pine Valley Sheriff’s Department.” Katie thought she sounded lame, but she wanted to try to build trust by telling the woman the truth and giving her support. “My partner and I were on our way to interview someone.” Katie took a deep breath. “Can you tell me your name?”
For the first time, the woman turned her head toward Katie. Her light-colored eyes were puffy, obviously from crying.
“I’m here to listen. Why don’t you come down and we can talk?”
“You’re a cop,” said the woman.
“Yes.”
“You’ll just arrest me.” Her voice lowered to barely a whisper.
“No, I won’t. I’m here to help you.” She paused a moment, not quite knowing what to say. “Is there someone I can call for you?”
The woman shook her head.
“Do you live around here?”
She nodded.
“Is it far?” Katie didn’t see any car or a way the woman had come to the bridge.
The woman turned her attention back to the deep ravine, ignoring Katie’s question.
Katie took two steps closer.
“It’s best you leave,” said the woman. Her voice was calm and even now.
“I can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
“I’ve sworn to protect this community—protect all citizens and to obey the law.”
“Just walk away.” Her voice began to crack. “Please…”
“I can’t do that,” said Katie and she took another step forward. “What’s your name?” She glanced behind her to see that McGaven had moved closer to the bridge. “Please tell me your name.”
“Lara.”
Katie was relieved. “Lara… I’m Katie. Why don’t you come down and talk? I will do everything I can to help you…”
“No one can help.”
“Lara, I’m here to listen.”
The woman began to cry.
“It’s okay. Whatever it is, we’ll work it out—together.” Katie took another couple of steps.
“No…”
“Lara, please come down so we can talk.”
“I can’t…”
Katie estimated her distance and how fast she could grab Lara to take her down safely. She had to do something to disarm the escalating situation.
Lara leaned slightly forward and almost lost her balance.
Katie, with quick thinking and fast reflexes, took the opportunity and lunged toward Lara, grabbing her around the waist and pulling both of them safely to the ground.
Instead of Lara fighting her, the woman broke down and cried. Katie sat with her, comforting her until she stopped.
McGaven had run down the bridge to meet them. “You okay?” he managed to say, breathless.
“Yes, we’re fine.” Katie helped Lara up, still holding her.
McGaven stopped and stared in disbelief. “Lara?” he said. “I can’t believe… it’s…”
Katie watched her partner’s reaction, intrigued by his response.
Slowly the woman turned her gaze and looked at McGaven, glancing at his badge and gun. She seemed to search his face for a few moments. “Sean?” she said.
“It is you, Lara,” he said.
Katie watched the recognition spark in their eyes. “You know each other?” What a surprise.
“Uh, yeah,” said McGaven gathering his thoughts. “We grew up together. I haven’t seen Lara in years. I thought you’d moved away a long time ago.”
Lara suddenly moved toward McGaven and hugged him tightly. “Please, Sean… please help me.”
About Jennifer Chase
Jennifer Chase is a multi award-winning and USA Today Best Selling crime fiction author, as well as a consulting criminologist. Jennifer holds a bachelor degree in police forensics and a master’s degree in criminology & criminal justice. These academic pursuits developed out of her curiosity about the criminal mind as well as from her own experience with a violent psychopath, providing Jennifer with deep personal investment in every story she tells. In addition, she holds certifications in serial crime and criminal profiling. Her latest book is The First Girl.
Website & Social Media:
Website -> https://authorjenniferchase.com/
Twitter -> https://twitter.com/jchasenovelist
Facebook -> https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJenniferChase
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Goodreads:->www.goodreads.com/author/show/2780337.Jennifer_Chase
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