Her Deadly End - A Murder Mystery - The Sheriff's Decision
A West Coast FBI K9 murder mystery thriller
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One chapter of this story dropped every Tuesday morning at 5AM PST
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42 chapters in 42 weeks
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HER DEADLY END: A Crime Thriller with a Twist
A brutal murder shatters the peace of Paradise Cove. As the body count rises, FBI Agent Tanya Stone and her K9 dog, Max, hunt for the twisted secret that lies buried beneath this small town. But the serial killer is lurking in plain sight, ready to strike again.
A deadly game of survival has just begun and FBI Agent Tanya Stone’s next decision could cost her life....
What you’ll find in this serialized story on Substack:
A strong-minded detective & her faithful German Shepherd K9
A cold-blooded serial killer with a haunted past
An affluent neighbourhood in a small seaside town
A closed circle of suspects. The killer could be anyone
Dysfunctional & toxic family dynamics
Betrayals, deceit, & psychological suspense
Unexpected plot twists & an explosive ending
All Rights Reserved. Copyright ©Tikiri Herath
*There is no graphic violence, heavy cursing, or explicit sex in my stories. No dog is ever harmed, but the villains always are…
Previous Chapter Recapped:
Sheriff Reginald and his deputies swarm the cafe, while Tanya remains handcuffed on the floor. That’s when she notices a strange mark on the dead man's hand. Meanwhile, Asha shows the cafe’s security video footage to Deputy Blake and the sheriff to confirm that Tanya wasn’t responsible for the deaths. The sheriff lets Tanya go, but then makes an absurd decision….
Her Deadly End - Chapter Eight
AGENT TANYA STONE
The Sheriff's Decision
“Happens all the time.”
Everyone turned to Hudson Wyatt. Tanya could see the man in the suit had clout in this town. He was a man everyone listened to.
“Is that right?” said the sheriff.
“The stats prove it,” said Wyatt. “You should read the Seattle papers, Reginald.”
“Wish I had the time.” The sheriff spat to the side. “Too busy fighting crime, Hudson.”
“Road rage hit a record high in Seattle last year. Whether we like it or not, what’s happening in the big cities is coming to small towns. People are no longer patient or courteous these days.”
“It looked to me like he was chasing her,” said Pat in a shaky voice. “She probably cut him off on the road and they ended up here to duke it out.”
“Oh, lordy, lordy.” Cora rubbed her tired face. “Poor Eveline Hart. What a horrible way to go. What’s the world coming to these days?”
The sheriff let out a heavy sigh. “I always say just let the other vehicle pass. There’s no need to get upset. You never know who’s on the road or what they’re carrying.”
Tanya looked from Wyatt, to Pat, to Cora, to Deputy Blake, and Sheriff Reginald.
Blake had recognized the strange scar on the dead man’s skin, but he hadn’t mentioned it to his boss yet. The medical examiner would notice it during the autopsy. It would be on their report, so why pretend not to know what it is?
What was he hiding?
And why was the sheriff so quick to accept such an absurd solution to a horrific crime? There was more going on in Paradise Cove than met the eye.
***
Katy pushed her face in between the Jeep’s front seats.
“Why didn’t you tell them you were FBI?”
Tanya glanced at her friend.
“I’m not on duty.”
Asha turned to her from the front passenger seat. “You drew your weapon.”
“I didn’t fire it.”
“Shouldn’t you have identified yourself?”
Tanya was silent for a few seconds. “I’d rather ask for forgiveness than permission.”
The three of them had given their statements to the deputies and were finally heading to the house where they were going to stay that week.
They had chosen Paradise Cove for their mini-vacation because Katy’s foster mother had a home in what had sounded like a quaint seaside location near Seattle. Tanya stopped at a red light, wondering if they had made a big mistake.
“They’re all lying,” she said. “This town has a secret no one is talking about.”
Asha frowned. “Like what?”
“Did you see the man in the truck had the same mark on his hand like Jodie had?”
“Never saw it.”
“Me neither,” said Katy.
“That’s because,” said Tanya, “Blake hid it. Only reason I saw it, was because I was on my stomach three feet from the corpse when he pulled off the dead man’s glove to take a closer look.”
“I’ll say this about Deputy Blake,” said Katy, poking Tanya in the ribs. “He’s one good-looking dude.”
“Seriously, Katy?” Tanya rolled her eyes. “Can we focus, please?”
“Didn’t Jodie say someone was after him?” said Katy, sounding more thoughtful. “Maybe it was Eveline Hart or that dead man.”
“Maybe it was both.” Asha nodded. “The kid could have had something they wanted. They could have fought over who was going to get to Jodie first, and that ended in a shootout.” She sighed. “It still doesn’t explain why Eveline Hart would kill herself.”
“Anything makes more sense than this road rage crap,” said Tanya, blowing a raspberry. “The sheriff’s covering up for something, or he’s looking to close a case fast for political expediency.”
“You mean, career expediency,” said Asha, shaking her head.
Tanya had left the crime scene feeling disappointed.
Sheriff Reginald had listened to the witnesses’ statements, but seemed to have already made up his mind on the cause of the incident. By the time his deputies had talked to everyone, even Cora had decided it was an extreme case of road rage.
“Eveline shot the man out of sheer anger for following her and crashing into her. Then, she shot herself once she realized what she had done,” the sheriff had said with a shrug. “He instigated it, but she took it too far. Human dynamics. It’s simple.”
“Something’s rotten in the state of Denmark,” said Asha softly to herself.
“I bet that kid knows what really led to the murder-suicide in the café.” Tanya twisted around to Katy. “Did you see where Jodie took off to?”
“He was gone by the time I went looking for him. He even took his buns.”
“I don’t blame him for running off,” said Asha. “He probably thought the cops would lock him up.”
“I thought he made up that crazy story about being followed,” said Katy, “but I’m not so sure now.”
Tanya took the turn toward Sunset Drive. It was a wide, open boulevard with beautifully manicured lawns on either side. Massive mansions were set back on their properties, some partially obscured by fir trees and orchards.
“That burn mark on Jodie’s hand,” she said, “has to mean something.”
“A cult symbol?” said Asha. “There could be one in town.”
“It could also be a sign of an organized crime gang.”
Katy peered through the window at the colonial manors they were driving by.
“Gangsters in this place? I highly doubt—”
“Look at that!” Asha leaned toward the windshield and pointed. “The big white house with the gabled roof in a cul-de-sac. That must be Eveline Hart’s home.”
“This is only a block from where we’re staying,” said Katy.
Tanya slowed to a crawl as they passed the cul-de-sac. Two officers were putting yellow tape around the structure. Other than that, the stately house looked tranquil.
The curtains were drawn and the front door was shut. It was hard to imagine what the inside looked like.
“The burning question,” said Tanya, “is who was Eveline Hart, and why did she shoot that man and kill herself?”
Asha tapped her window. “I bet the answers we’re looking for are inside that property.”
Tanya checked her GPS. They were approaching their home stay in Paradise Cove. She stopped the car in front of their destination and turned the engine off.
“Wow, that’s a big house, Katy.” Asha peered through her window. “How many people live here?”
“Only my foster mom. She used to take in lost kids until she found it was too much work. There are five bedrooms upstairs and a renovated basement suite. She said to make ourselves at home.”
Asha twisted around. “When’s she coming back?”
“Two weeks from now. She’s in Honduras, building a school for girls. Not her, obviously. She’s just there to make sure her money is going where they say it’s going.”
Katy plucked her handbag from the backseat.
“I don’t believe for a moment there’s a gang in this town. Not in my mom’s suburb.”
“Organized crime don’t exactly advertise their business,” said Tanya. “This is why I didn’t want them to know my FBI connection. If anyone is involved in a crime syndicate, and they found out who we all were—”
“Would they have shot us?” said Katy, a wry smile on her lips.
“They’d be more subtle,” said Tanya, her face serious. “They’d play along and eventually remove us in a way that won’t leave any evidence or alert the authorities.”
Asha shuddered. “That sounds sinister.”
Tanya turned to her friends.
“This vacation isn’t a good idea anymore, girls. Time to say goodbye.”
To be continued next week….
Thank you for reading. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.
Question for you: Do you think everyone, including the sheriff, the deputy, and the others are protecting someone?
*Chapters drop on Substack weekly. If the next chapter isn’t up yet, hang on. It’s coming in a few days!
NOTE: Canadian / British spelling is used here as the author is Canadian. The final completed book in bookstores will have American spelling.
Click here to read more stories from the award-winning Canadian mystery thriller author, Tikiri Herath.