Dead to Rights Read online

  T.K. Eldridge

  Dead to Rights

  A Partners in Crime Supernatural Mystery

  First published by Graffridge Publishing 2021

  Copyright © 2021 by T.K. Eldridge

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

  This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

  T.K. Eldridge asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

  T.K. Eldridge has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party Internet Websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such Websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

  Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book and on its cover are trade names, service marks, trademarks and registered trademarks of their respective owners. The publishers and the book are not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. None of the companies referenced within the book have endorsed the book.

  Editing by Donna A. Martz of Martzproofing.com

  Cover by Lizzie Dunlap of Pixiecovers.com

  First edition

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  To my family, both by blood and birth, and by choice.

  Without you, these books would never have happened.

  Thank you.

  “Sooner or later everyone sits down to a banquet of consequences.”

  - Robert Louis Stevenson

  Chapter One

  Melly Warren was dead, that much she knew. How she’d died, well, that she didn’t remember. The why? Oh, she knew that. Sort of. It was because she’d said the wrong thing or done something he didn’t approve of – and he’d finally had enough. At least, that’s what she suspected. Her husband, Trey, or Congressman-elect Channing Alistair Warren III had very exacting standards for how a wife should look, act, behave, and so on. Melly rarely managed to meet all of those standards on a good day. It looked like today had not been a particularly good day at all.

  The others on this side told her to go talk to this guy, Mike Donovan. Said he could help. She hoped he really could because her babies didn’t have her to protect them anymore. Teenagers never met anyone’s standards, and Channing and Liz had no idea how dangerous their father truly could be. Melly needed Mike to help before the twins learned that the monster wasn’t under the bed – he was in the master bedroom.

  Chapter Two

  Jamie answered the knock at his door and was met with a bag of take-out food to the chest and the smiling face of his friend, Joey Mahoney.

  “You’ve been avoiding me,” Joey said as he stepped inside. “No invites to come hang out, no showing up at my door with take-out to harass me for information. I mean, where’s the love? What the hell, man?”

  “I know you follow the news,” Jamie said. “So you know damned well what’s been keeping me busy. That whole almost dying – again – to solve a case thing?”

  “Bah, you didn’t almost die. They shot up your brand new house and pissed you off. That was their mistake, and we both know it. Piss you off and that’s pouring fuel on the fire of your already pig-headed Celtic determination to solve the case.”

  “You still know me too well,” Jamie said and gripped Joey’s wrist as Joey grabbed his. “I’m glad you’re here. It’s been too long. How’s Dai?”

  They unpacked Thai food and settled down to eat. “Dai’s good. He’s a brilliant asset in the PI business. His intellect, combined with his connections? That’s gold right there,” Joey said. His partner, Dai – Daffyd Llewellyn - had recently retired from government intelligence and now worked with Joey in his new private investigation business. Joey and Jamie had been partners for a brief time after Mike’s murder while Joey’s partner, Paulie Giannetti had been busy with other things. Namely, organized crime and Mike’s widow – not necessarily in that order. The two of them had uncovered a few bad cops and that earned them some negative attention. It got to be too much for Joey, and he quit the force and opened his own PI business.

  “You know, you could come work with me. You’ve already invested enough to be a partner,” Joey said.

  “What about Jack, though? She’s good people and I can’t leave her stranded. I won’t do that to her,” Jamie said.

  “Bring her with you. We’ve got more work than we can handle. I’ve had to turn away cases for the past two weeks. I hired more staff, some just for the office work, so Dai and I could focus on the investigative tasks.” They ate in silence for a few minutes, then Joey spoke again. “How about this? You can do side jobs while still with the Harbor police, as long as there’s no conflict of interest, right?”

  “Right,” Jamie said.

  “You two work a case for me and see if you like it? I’ll pay you both, bring you on as part time staff. You work it when you have time around your regular policing and see what you think.”

  Jamie thought for a moment. Things at the station had been not great since Mike’s murder and all of the negative stuff solving it had uncovered. The only one at the station still behind him, besides Jack, was Sergeant Lincoln Tremont and Sarge was coming up on retirement soon.

  “I’d have to talk to Jack about all of this. If she’s not in, then I’m not either. Not right now, anyway. Agreed?”

  “Agreed. Now, tell me all the gossip,” Joey said.

  Jamie laughed and started to fill him in on the latest at the Harbor Police Department.

  * * *

  Jack enjoyed having her place all to herself once more. Avery’s tiny house at the far end of her back yard kept them close enough to be involved in each other’s lives but gave them both the privacy they craved. Her son was a lot like her, Jack knew, and when they were deep into their work, they needed the solitude. Avery’s summer was filled with plans to spend weekends with his friends, but during the week he worked as a freelance editor for a couple of local authors as well as a writer for the city paper.

  Jack’s home office was also her guest room when needed – but now she enjoyed having the Murphy bed hidden in its cabinet and her desk set up for ultimate productivity. This, of course, included the mini one-cup brewer on the cabinet behind her. It kept the coffee fresh and kept her from procrastinating with multiple walks into the kitchen for a refill.

  Sarge had given them a couple of days off after the last case, but Jack couldn’t not work for more than a day. Lately, she’d found she could get a lot more done at home, or at Jamie’s office at his house, than she could at the station. Things there were getting less and less comfortable for Jamie, and to some degree for herself. Word had been passed around from her old New York City precinct to the guys at Harbor, Massachusetts that Jacqueline Forbes was crazy and shouldn’t be carrying a gun or wearing a badge. General consensus seemed to think that Jack and Jamie deserved each other. The crazy NY cop and the guy who snitched on his fellow cops.

  Jack didn’t know how to be anything but a cop, so she didn’t see any other real options. The cop in her never shut off. She was always paying attention and on alert – and that skill had saved her life more than once. Jack knew that detective work was five percent law, ten percent clues, and eight-five percent gut instinct. Jami
e worked the same way, which is why they were such a fantastic team. Unfortunately, another large part of policing resided in politics. Inter-office politics and city-wide politics all impacted the job to one degree or another. Considering their last case had ended the governor’s time in office prematurely – and cancelled his dreams of a senate seat – neither the office level or city level politicians were what you might call ‘happy’ with Jack and Jamie.

  Done with the paperwork, Jack decided to take the rest of the evening off and settle in front of the TV with a glass of wine and a bowl of popcorn. Time to forget work and politics for a while.

  Chapter Three

  Mike sat on the second floor balcony of Jamie’s place, staring out at the midnight sea. The tide was high, so the slap of the waves could be heard more clearly from his position across the street from the beach. Melly Warren paced the balcony beside him.

  “I am really worried about my kids, Mr. Donovan. Please help me?” Melly asked.

  “I get it. I left my kids behind, too. But you’re the wife of a politician and the last time I got Jamie and Jack involved in a case, the politics almost got them killed,” Mike replied.

  “Trey is a congressman-elect. He’s not even sworn in yet. I’m sure he’s the one that killed me. He threatened it so often, it was just a matter of time.”

  “Look, Mrs. Warren,” Mike started.

  “Please, just call me Melly,” Melly interrupted.

  “Okay, look, Melly,” Mike said. “You don’t even remember how you died yet. You don’t know where your body is or where your death happened. Give it a day or so and things will start to come back to you. When that happens, we’ll revisit the idea of me passing the case on to Jack and Jamie. Okay?”

  “I’ve already been over here for four days, right? Maybe five?”

  “Being a ghost isn’t an exact science, Melly. I’m still learning stuff and I’ve been here almost a year now. When – or if – you ever remember more details, we’ll talk.”

  Jamie walked out onto the balcony from his bedroom and looked at Mike. “Who are you arguing with?”

  “No one,” Mike said.

  Jamie arched a brow and gave him a look. “Didn’t Noah tell you to introduce us to Melly? Why are you holding back?”

  Mike grumbled and reached out a hand, and there she was. A pretty brunette with soft brown eyes and cupid bow lips stood beside Mike, clad a simple silk sheath dress in dark gold. She wore a gold and diamond necklace, matching earrings, bracelet, a diamond wedding band, and a slender gold watch for accessories. On her feet, strappy gold Louboutin shoes with the tell-tale red soles. Her hair seemed long but had been pulled up in a loose bun with soft tendrils that brushed her cheeks.

  “Melly, I presume?” Jamie asked.

  “Thank you, Mr. Donovan,” Melly said to Mike, then turned to Jamie. “I’m Amelia Warren, but my friends call me Melly. Please, I’d like you to call me Melly.”

  “Well, Melly, I’m Jameson Kennedy, but my friends call me Jamie. I’m glad I finally get to meet you.”

  “Not my idea,” Mike grumbled. “Her husband is Congressman-elect Channing Alistair Warren III, also known as Trey. She has twin teenagers, Channing and Elizabeth – and she’s worried about the kids.”

  “Why are you worried about the children?” Jamie asked Melly.

  “Because I’m pretty sure their father killed me and he’s a monster. I protected them from the worst of it, and now I’m not there to keep that shield up for them.”

  Jamie looked at Mike, and Mike filled him in. “She doesn’t know where her body is or remember her death. Not where, or when, or anything. We figure she’s been on this side for at least four days, maybe longer.”

  “And there’s been nothing in the news about the Congressman suffering a loss, or having his wife missing, so that’s a red flag,” Jamie said.

  “Maybe she’s in a coma in the hospital or something?” Mike said.

  “That would’ve been in the news, too,” Jamie replied. “Okay, first thing tomorrow, I’ll do some digging. Jack should be here around breakfast and we can get started. Don’t wander too far, Melly. I’ll need Mike to get us to see you to answer questions.”

  “Against my better judgement,” Mike said. “You two blame me for this, I’m going to remind you that I didn’t want to do this.”

  “Fine, Mike. You’re blameless. Now please keep it down? I’m going to get some sleep,” Jamie said.

  “Thank you, Jamie,” Melly said as he stepped inside.

  * * *

  Jack showed up at Jamie’s place the next morning with fresh blueberry muffins she’d baked before coming over.

  “I figured you’d have the coffee already, so I baked. I know, don’t get used to it. I finished all my paperwork and had time on my hands,” Jack said.

  “Are they any good?” Jamie asked as he eyed the container warily.

  “I ate one already, and left some for Avery, so if they’re not edible, you’ll be the only one complaining.”

  “Come on into the office. We’ve got a mystery,” Jamie said as he picked a muffin out of the container.

  “Mike finally introduced you to the new ghost?”

  “Yeah. And, as we’ve discovered is a common problem this early on, she has no clue when or where she got killed. The only thing we know for sure is that she’s not conscious. I’m assuming she’s dead, but it could be a coma. Did you know that was a thing?”

  “Jamie, I didn’t know ghosts were a thing until Ellis,” Jack said as she put her bag down in the office. “But it makes sense, in a way. Unconscious and trapped – or dead – could put the soul or consciousness or whatever you want to call it in a state of limbo.”

  Ellis Calder had been one of Jack’s criminal informants, or CIs, when she worked in New York City. Ellis had tried to speed up the take down of a drug lord and ended up dying in Jack’s arms. Her ghost showed up and made Jack’s life a living hell for a while. Eventually, Ellis followed Jack to Harbor, Massachusetts and met Mike – and had a change of heart. It had only been a few days since Ellis had crossed over and found her peace. Somehow, in her crossing, she gave Jack the ability to occasionally see ghosts other than Ellis, so now Jack could see Mike. It certainly made things easier for Jack to be able to see him herself and not have to get everything translated and relayed through Jamie.

  Jamie sat back with his coffee and looked at Jack for a minute, doing his best to assess her current state of mind. “How are you doing? I mean, truth time.”

  Jack leaned back and took a sip of her own coffee. “Truth time, huh? Well, I love my house and having Avery close, so that’s all good. I’m not really comfortable in the precinct yet, and the leaks from my old precinct calling guys in this one to tell them I’m unstable isn’t helping the situation. Doesn’t matter, though. I’m a cop to my bones. I don’t think I could do anything else other than solve cases.”

  “What if you could solve cases and never have to deal with precinct bullshit again?”

  “You found a magic wand or something?” Jack replied.

  “Or something. Remember Joey Mahoney?”

  “Yeah, the guy you partnered with after Mike. Didn’t he quit and open a PI firm?” Jack paused. “Ohhh.”

  “Yeah, Joey came by and asked me if I was ready to give up the PD and join the PI firm. I told him I wouldn’t leave you hanging. He suggested we work a case for him on the side and see if we like it. We get paid for doing a side job and see how the system works.”

  “Can we work as PIs and police?”

  “Well, we’d have to file for a license, but it’s no different than working security on off hours.”

  “How much for the license?” Jack asked.

  “Don’t worry about that, it’s covered. Joey wants us to work for him, he covers the license costs, etc. Because we’re already law enforcement, we don’t need to take a class, but we do have to pass a written test. We can take it online at any time, but Joey advised us to read the book first,
then take the test. It’s mostly so we understand the difference between PD and PI. What we can and cannot do.”

  “What’s the case, do you know?”

  “Not yet. He knew just having a case out there was enough to tempt me. And, to be frank, I’m really fucking tired of being looked at as if I were the criminal instead of Paul Giannetti or Katie Donovan. Just because the crimes were committed by a cop and a cop’s wife, doesn’t mean they get a free pass. The only reason it’s bearable at all right now is because Sarge is backing us. That’s not going to be for much longer, though. He’s due to retire in the next year or so. Sooner if he can manage it.”

  “Gods, if not for Sarge I would’ve packed up and applied somewhere else after the first week,” Jack said. “Okay, let’s do this. Let’s give this PI thing a try and see how it goes.”

  “Let’s download the book and read it tonight, then we can come together here tomorrow morning and take the test. I’ll call Joey to get us registered and paid up,” Jamie said. “For now, let’s see what we can do about Melly Warren.”

  “Have you let Sarge know what we’re doing? With the case and the possible PI gig?” Jack asked.

  “Not until I know if we even have a case,” Jamie said. “If we think we do, then I’ll call him.”

  Chapter Four

  They’d both taken the private investigator’s exam and Jack was still teasing Jamie with her near-perfect score compared to his almost-near-perfect score. She’d earned a ninety-eight and he’d ended up with a ninety-four out of a possible one hundred on the exam. Now it was up to Joey to get their licenses and identification sometime in the next week, and then they could get started on the case. Both Jack and Jamie had also had to pick a secondary weapon to use as their police-issued weapon could not be used for PI case work. They had spent the last three hours at the range, making sure they were both comfortable with their new weapons. Even though Jack had gone with an identical Glock to the one she carried for work, each individual gun had its own quirks and she wanted to make sure she was comfortable with the new one. Jamie had gone for a .45 instead of the 9mm and was singing its praises as they loaded their gear and themselves into his SUV.