Random Acts of Deceit (Holly Anna Paladin Mysteries Book 2) by Christy Barritt

Author:Christy Barritt
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: River Heights
Published: 2015-06-02T04:00:00+00:00

***

I was back in the van ten minutes later. Jamie didn’t seem to mind the time to herself. She was still singing along to Lecrae and hardly seemed to notice my arrival.

“Everything good?” she finally asked, turning the radio down.

“Just work stuff. Riot stuff. Politics stuff. You know.” I raised my phone again to view the map. “But enough of that. Let’s keep going.”

Fifteen minutes later, we turned into a neighborhood on the east side of Cincinnati. A few lefts and rights later, we stopped in front of a small house in a revitalized neighborhood. There were no cars out front, which seemed to indicate no one was home.

The house was plain with white wood siding and no ornamental features like shutters, eaves, or even a covered porch. The flower beds were bare, as well as the windows, which had no curtains.

It was Warble Wing Street. Benjamin’s house.

“You sure someone lives here?” Jamie asked, staring at the house with doubt pooling in her eyes.

I shrugged. “He said he just moved here from Louisville.”

“Louisville.” Her voice rose in pitch. “Isn’t that where Chase lived before he came here?”

I nodded, and Jamie gave me a knowing look. “I’ve considered that also.”

Suddenly, Jamie cut the engine and opened the door. “Let’s go.”

Alarm rushed through me. “Let’s go? Go where? We were just driving past.”

“We’re not going to get any answers just driving past. We need to investigate.”

Dread pooled in my stomach. Jamie was right. Driving past wouldn’t do any good. But the pressure I felt when I thought about what was at stake nearly paralyzed me. I mean, what if Benjamin came home? What if he caught us here? What would we say then?

“Consider it a random act of kindness,” Jamie said as I scrambled to catch up with her. She was halfway across a green, weed-infested yard.

“How does that help?”

“When you think you’re doing something to help someone out, you’re okay with it. Remember those random acts of kindness you did that nearly got you killed a month or so ago? All you need is the right reasoning, and you’ll find your motivation.”

“I have the motivation. I just fear the consequences.” Lord, I can’t handle any more loss in my life, I prayed quietly.

The verse from Isaiah came back to mind. “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”

“We’ll be careful.”

Before I could say anything else, Jamie marched into the backyard. I quickly followed. It was just as plain as the front, with no shed, swing set, or patio chair, even. There was an old deck leading to the back door, but the structure was green and warped and had nails popped up in various places. Jamie charged straight to the back door and peered inside.

“What do you see?” I asked, tiptoeing through the prickly grass to reach her.

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