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  h o m e c o m i n g

  (a chloe fine psychological suspense—book 5)

  b l a k e p i e r c e

  Blake Pierce

  Blake Pierce is author of the bestselling RILEY PAGE mystery series, which includes fifteen books (and counting). Blake Pierce is also the author of the MACKENZIE WHITE mystery series, comprising thirteen books (and counting); of the AVERY BLACK mystery series, comprising six books; of the KERI LOCKE mystery series, comprising five books; of the MAKING OF RILEY PAIGE mystery series, comprising five books (and counting); of the KATE WISE mystery series, comprising six books (and counting); of the CHLOE FINE psychological suspense mystery, comprising six books (and counting); and of the JESSE HUNT psychological suspense thriller series, comprising five books (and counting).

  ONCE GONE (a Riley Paige Mystery--Book #1), BEFORE HE KILLS (A Mackenzie White Mystery—Book 1), CAUSE TO KILL (An Avery Black Mystery—Book 1), A TRACE OF DEATH (A Keri Locke Mystery—Book 1), and WATCHING (The Making of Riley Paige—Book 1) are each available as a free download on Kobo!

  An avid reader and lifelong fan of the mystery and thriller genres, Blake loves to hear from you, so please feel free to visit www.blakepierceauthor.com to learn more and stay in touch.

  Copyright © 2019 by Blake Pierce. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior permission of the author. This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictionally. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Jacket image Copyright eldar nurkovic, used under license from Shutterstock.com.

  BOOKS BY BLAKE PIERCE

  A JESSIE HUNT PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE SERIES

  THE PERFECT WIFE (Book #1)

  THE PERFECT BLOCK (Book #2)

  THE PERFECT HOUSE (Book #3)

  THE PERFECT SMILE (Book #4)

  THE PERFECT LIE (Book #5)

  CHLOE FINE PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE SERIES

  NEXT DOOR (Book #1)

  A NEIGHBOR’S LIE (Book #2)

  CUL DE SAC (Book #3)

  SILENT NEIGHBOR (Book #4)

  HOMECOMING (Book #5)

  TINTED WINDOWS (Book #6)

  KATE WISE MYSTERY SERIES

  IF SHE KNEW (Book #1)

  IF SHE SAW (Book #2)

  IF SHE RAN (Book #3)

  IF SHE HID (Book #4)

  IF SHE FLED (Book #5)

  IF SHE FEARED (Book #6)

  THE MAKING OF RILEY PAIGE SERIES

  WATCHING (Book #1)

  WAITING (Book #2)

  LURING (Book #3)

  TAKING (Book #4)

  STALKING (Book #5)

  RILEY PAIGE MYSTERY SERIES

  ONCE GONE (Book #1)

  ONCE TAKEN (Book #2)

  ONCE CRAVED (Book #3)

  ONCE LURED (Book #4)

  ONCE HUNTED (Book #5)

  ONCE PINED (Book #6)

  ONCE FORSAKEN (Book #7)

  ONCE COLD (Book #8)

  ONCE STALKED (Book #9)

  ONCE LOST (Book #10)

  ONCE BURIED (Book #11)

  ONCE BOUND (Book #12)

  ONCE TRAPPED (Book #13)

  ONCE DORMANT (Book #14)

  ONCE SHUNNED (Book #15)

  ONCE MISSED (Book #16)

  MACKENZIE WHITE MYSTERY SERIES

  BEFORE HE KILLS (Book #1)

  BEFORE HE SEES (Book #2)

  BEFORE HE COVETS (Book #3)

  BEFORE HE TAKES (Book #4)

  BEFORE HE NEEDS (Book #5)

  BEFORE HE FEELS (Book #6)

  BEFORE HE SINS (Book #7)

  BEFORE HE HUNTS (Book #8)

  BEFORE HE PREYS (Book #9)

  BEFORE HE LONGS (Book #10)

  BEFORE HE LAPSES (Book #11)

  BEFORE HE ENVIES (Book #12)

  BEFORE HE STALKS (Book #13)

  AVERY BLACK MYSTERY SERIES

  CAUSE TO KILL (Book #1)

  CAUSE TO RUN (Book #2)

  CAUSE TO HIDE (Book #3)

  CAUSE TO FEAR (Book #4)

  CAUSE TO SAVE (Book #5)

  CAUSE TO DREAD (Book #6)

  KERI LOCKE MYSTERY SERIES

  A TRACE OF DEATH (Book #1)

  A TRACE OF MUDER (Book #2)

  A TRACE OF VICE (Book #3)

  A TRACE OF CRIME (Book #4)

  A TRACE OF HOPE (Book #5)

  CONTENTS

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT

  CHAPTER TWENTY NINE

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  CHAPTER THIRTY ONE

  CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

  CHAPTER THIRTY THREE

  CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR

  CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE

  CHAPTER THIRTY SIX

  PROLOGUE

  Sherry Luntz wasn’t much for sentiment, but she was one for celebration. It was why she was slightly breaking the speed limit on her way home from work. She had two steaks in one bag in the passenger seat and a bottle of red wine in another. Tonight was her anniversary; she’d been married to Bo Luntz for twenty-one years now and this was the first anniversary they’d be sharing without their son in the house. She’d hoped not having Luke live with them any longer would have spiced things up in their marriage, but it had not. If anything, it seemed to have drawn a wedge between her and Bo.

  It had been two weeks since they’d last slept together, and that had been a very quick non-event in the morning before work. But dammit…it was her anniversary and she was going to get some tonight. If he didn’t come for her, she had ordered an especially slutty little thing online last week that she was going to use to essentially attack him.

  She arrived home at 5:25, about five minutes earlier than she usually arrived home from work. Bo’s truck was in the driveway, which meant he was already home, too. This was nothing new, as he usually arrived home before she did.

  As she parked the car and got out, it occurred to her that Bo might not even realize today was their anniversary. He was pretty good with remembering special dates, but he’d seemed off lately. Ever since Luke had left for college, Bo seemed distant and simply not himself.

  Still…if he somehow forgot that this was their anniversary, she was going to be pissed. But because she also wanted to jump his bones quite badly, she figured she could wait until tomorrow to be mad.

  She went inside and found the house quiet. Entering the conjoined living room and kitchen area, she saw that Bo was not there. This was odd because almost every afternoon, he was either at the kitchen table answering last-minute emails from work, or sitting on the couch catching up on the day’s news.

  She was confused at first but then a smile touched her lips. Perhaps he not only knew it was their anniversary but was just as excited as she was about it. She set the steaks and wine on the kitchen counter and slowly made her way up the staircase that was situated between the living room and kitchen. She knew Bo was not the type of man to use rose petals or soft music to seduce her. Neither of them were particularly romantic.

  And Sherry was fine with that. Honestly, she’d be just as happy if he jumped out at her from behind the bedroom door and took her right then and there against the wall. The mere thought of this got her excited, causing her to speed up as she neared the top of the stairs.

  “Bo?” she asked, putting a bit of playfulness into her voice.

  She passed the bathroom and came to their bedroom door. It was closed and she tried to remember if she had closed it upon leaving that morning. Too excited to even think about it clearly, she opened the door, fully expecting to have him grab her or, if she was really lucky, for him to be spread out on the bed naked and waiting.

  She got neither of those things. She frowned and turned back to the hallway. Where the hell is he?

  It then dawned on her that she had texted him to let him know she was bringing steaks home. She’d almost ended the text with “for our anniversary” but had decided against it, hoping he remembered on his own. Given that he knew she was bringing steaks, he was probably out on the patio, firing up the grill.

  A little let down by not getting a surprise in the bedroom, Sher ry walked back downstairs. She nearly went ahead and started getting together the spices and seasoning for the steaks but decided she’d rather see Bo first. Maybe she’d give him a juicy kiss to plant the seeds for what she expected later in the night.

  She opened the patio door and stepped outside. She was closing the door behind her when she saw Bo. And at first, it made no sense.

  He was lying on the patio, facing the door. His eyes were wide and unblinking and there was something dark sticking out of his mouth—something soft and round. She tried to make sense of what was in his mouth but that’s when she realized that there was a pool of blood around his head. It was a very dark shade of red and it was still wet.

  “Bo…?”

  Of course, Bo did not respond.

  Sherry felt a scream crawling up out of her throat. When it finally came out, she realized that she could smell lighter fluid and warming charcoal. Bo had come out to start the grill. Suddenly, the smell of the charcoal was the only thing she was aware of as she fell to her knees, screaming in agonized wails next to her dead husband.

  CHAPTER ONE

  “This is Danielle…do your thing at the beep.”

  Chloe ended the call and set her cell phone down on the bar top. She looked out the window of the bar she had randomly selected. She was drinking alone on a Thursday afternoon, just two days after closing her last case. She was still sore from the outcome, but that was the last thing on her mind. Staring out the window at the late afternoon hours washing golden sunlight over the streets of DC, Chloe was beginning to worry about Danielle.

  She hadn’t spoken to her sister in two days. She knew that two days was really nothing to get concerned about but the way things had gone between them lately, she could not help but worry. Besides, it wasn’t just that Danielle had apparently turned her phone off; Chloe had gone by her apartment as well and no one had answered.

  Chloe drained her second beer of the afternoon and looked at the clock on her phone. It was 5:17—a full half hour after the last time she’d checked. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt such worry, such a need to constantly keep up with the time.

  She was vaguely aware of the bartender approaching her. He nodded to her empty glass and said: “Another?”

  She almost said yes. Chloe did not get drunk often but she wondered if she’d stop worrying if she just kept drinking and drinking. Maybe she’d get so drunk she’d take a cab home, pass out, and then wake up tomorrow to realize that she had been worried for nothing.

  But this is not like her. This is not like the new Danielle I have been getting to know.

  “No thanks,” she said. “Just my tab.”

  He went to the register to retrieve it as Chloe picked her phone back up. Her call history was proof of just how much she’d been worrying—especially this afternoon. She’d even gone so far as to call the strip club where Danielle worked as a bartender. And it was then when she had truly started to worry. Danielle’s manager had informed her that Danielle had called in sick two days ago, reporting mono or some sort of sore throat.

  But if that was the case, she was not holing up at home. And she was not answering her phone. It didn’t make much sense to turn off your phone when you were suffering from an illness, now did it?

  The bartender handed her the bill and she slid her credit card over. As she signed the receipt, she wondered if she should file a missing person’s report. It would be dumb; if someone filed one for a similar situation and she had the run of it, she’d likely roll her eyes and ignore it. Besides…because of Danielle’s history, a missing person’s claim was the last thing she needed. Based on Danielle’s history, it wouldn’t be much of a stretch to assume she had decided to just pack up and move somewhere else.

  No, not this new Danielle…

  Chloe left the bar more frustrated than before. She tried to decide on one particular emotion—worry or frustration—but found they actually worked irritatingly well together. As she started walking toward her apartment, she tried to convince herself that she was being stupid. She hated that she was so convinced that something was wrong. She had never been the worrying type, always looking for some logical reason not to worry in any given circumstance. She was sure that as soon as she stopped obsessing over this, Danielle would call and tell her that she’d just skipped town to see some of her old friends up in Maryland or something.

  Just as this flimsy reassurance crossed her mind, her phone rang.

  He heart leaped at once. She was so absolutely certain it was Danielle that she didn’t even bother checking the caller display. She even had to catch herself from speaking her sister’s name as she answered it.

  “Hello?”

  “Agent Fine…hey,” said a male voice. It took her a moment to place it and when she did she felt bad for being so disappointed. It was Kyle Moulton. Any other time, she might have been pleased to hear from him, but having been so eager to hear from her sister, it was almost a non-event to hear from him.

  “Hi, Moulton.”

  “Sorry to call out of nowhere but I had some downtime. They usually let me make calls around this time, about twice a week, and I thought I’d check in to see how you were doing.”

  “I’m good.” She paused here, cringing at her own lie and how utterly fictitious her words sounded. “You know what?” she said. “I’m actually struggling right now.”

  “Work?”

  “No. Personal stuff.”

  “Ah, I see. Jeez, Fine. Last time we talked, that personal crap was eating at you, too. Things not getting any better?”

  “For someone locked up and unable to support me emotionally, these are some pretty pressing questions you’re asking.”

  He chuckled, though there wasn’t much humor in it. “I know. Sorry. But hey, there are wheelings and dealings going on behind the scenes…all legal. Looks like my sentence might be shortened significantly. Though any chance of me coming back to work with the bureau seems very small.”

  “Well, here’s hoping.”

  He was quiet for a minute and when he did start speaking again, he seemed very somber. “Hey, look…I just wanted to say hi. I didn’t realize all of this personal stuff was still eating at you. I can call back some other time.”

  “No, you’re fine. It’s just…it’s been a rough day.”

  She nearly told him about her suspicions concerning Danielle, thinking he might be able to offer some valuable advice. But she decided that it was a bit too personal—and that it showed a slightly paranoid side of her that she was not ready for Moulton to see.

  “So…can I take it there’s been no resolution with your dad, your sister, and the diary?”

  “No…it’s sort of…”

  She stopped here—not just talking, but walking as well. Her apartment was just one block away now, but she had forgotten all about it.

  “Fine?”

  “Yeah…”

  I didn’t even think about Dad. I haven’t spoken to him in a while…certainly not over the last few days…

  “Moulton…you’ve helped me maybe stumble onto something here. I need to go.”

  “Hey, I’m just glad to have helped,” he said with a bit of cheer. “Bye, Fine.”

  Chloe ended the call and then pulled up her father’s number right away. She placed the phone to her ear and heard only a beat of silence, followed by his voicemail greeting. She stood there for a moment, trying to make a decision—trying not to overthink things and assume the worst.

  But honestly, none of this was adding up. Given how badly her father seemed to want to make amends, there was no reason at all for him to avoid her calls. Sure, it was a stretch to assume that he, too, had skipped town or gone missing, but the fact that she was getting the same response from Danielle…it was too much to ignore.

  Chloe pocketed her phone and sprinted the rest of the way to her apartment. Her worry was now morphing into fear and she suddenly sensed that every passing minute could potentially make the mystery even worse.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Exactly sixteen minutes passed between Chloe receiving the call from Moulton and the moment she parked in front of her father’s apartment. His car was there, which was a good sign, she supposed. But it did very little to ease the flutter of panic that seemed to be growing minute by minute. She ran up the stairs and knocked on the door with urgency.