BLOOD TIES (Decklan Jennings Thriller Book 1), Philip Duncan [bill gates book recommendations TXT] 📗

That was fast.

He felt rested for the first time in weeks, but that didn’t make what he was about to do any easier. He still hadn’t figured out the approach he was going to take with Parker, so he figured he’d just wing it once he saw him. He figured he’d know what to do once he saw him, so he was going to let whatever happened happen. It didn’t take him long to exit the plane since there were only about ten other people on the flight with him. He headed straight for the front door, where he could head directly for his truck in the parking garage. He wanted to go home first and get a shower and change of clothes before going to see his brother.

Once back home, he went inside and grabbed a fresh pair of jeans and a white t-shirt and headed for the guest room downstairs. He still wasn’t ready to take a shower in his room yet; it was too soon. Clean, changed, and ready to confront Parker, he grabbed his truck keys and was out the door in under thirty minutes. He tried calling Parker three times, but no answer. He sent a couple of texts letting him know he was back and needed to talk, but no reply. He figured he was probably at work, so that was where he headed. He pulled into the station, parked his truck, and jumped out. He headed for Parker’s office, but before he could get past the front, the officer on duty stopped him.

“If you’re here to see the chief, he’s not in,” the young female officer said.

“Do you know when he will be here?” Decklan asked.

“No sir. We haven’t seen him in a couple of days, and no one can get hold of him. Figured he was taking some personal days.”

Decklan was thrown off. It wasn’t like his brother to just disappear without warning, especially from work. Something wasn’t right.

“Has anyone been to his house to see if he was home?” Decklan asked, thinking that was the obvious next move.

“I’m not sure. You should talk to Officer Smith. He was the last person to talk to him,” she said.

“Where is he?”

She pointed behind Decklan, so he turned around and walked toward a group of officers talking by the coffee pot.

“Which one of you is Officer Smith?” Decklan asked the group of cops directly.

“That would be me. How can I help you?” Smith replied.

“When was the last time you spoke with Chief Jennings?” Decklan asked.

“Two days ago, I believe,” Smith said.

“Did he mention anything to you about taking some days off or going on vacation or anything like that?”

“No sir, we just spoke about one of the games that was on TV the night before. That was it,” Smith replied.

Decklan could tell he wasn’t going to get any answers here, so he decided to go to Parker’s house and see if he was there.

***

He pulled up to the front of the house and parked his truck in the same spot as before he left for Russia in front of the yard. He wasn’t sure what he was getting ready to walk into, so he grabbed his 9mm out of his glove compartment and made sure one was in the chamber. He approached the front door with caution but didn’t knock or ring the doorbell. Instead, he turned the doorknob to see if it was unlocked, and it was.

Strange.

Parker was the Chief of Police. He never left his front door unlocked. Not even if it was the middle of the day. Decklan slowly allowed himself inside, making sure his gun was in the firing position. If there was anything he had learned over the years, it was you never knew what could be waiting on the other side of a door. He quietly closed the door behind him and made his way farther into the house. He knew Parker’s wife didn’t work so she should be home, unless she was in town running errands. He headed for the door that led into their garage to check if they were home. Only one car, hers. He headed for the kitchen to see if she was there, but it was empty. He felt like he was right back inside Vladimir’s house again the way he was tactically moving from room to room, not knowing what to expect. The entire main floor was empty, so he headed for the second floor of their two-story house. It didn’t have a basement like Decklan’s did. They didn’t have the money to afford a mansion on the beach…well, maybe now they did, with the two-million-dollar bribe Parker took.

The first room he checked was the master. They didn’t have kids so if anyone were upstairs that is where they would most likely be. The door was cracked so he could get a slight visual of the inside before entering. The only thing he could make was a tall shadow slowly dancing back and forth on the wall. He pushed the door open, completely unprepared for what he was about to see.

Holy shit!

CHAPTER 22

He walked over to the bedside table, where he found a folded note with his name written on the outside. It was clear to him before he opened it that it was a suicide note. What else could it be, considering Parker’s wife was hanging from the ceiling fan.

Dear Decklan,

If you are reading this then I’m dead and Parker is gone. I’m so sorry what happened to your family. I loved Marie like a sister, and I loved your two precious children like they were my own. We never had any children so I can’t imagine the pain you must be feeling to have lost them so suddenly. Parker confessed everything to me and tried to convince me to leave with him. I promise I had no idea of his involvement or else I would have come to you. No one