Bloody Ties (Serenity's Plain Secrets Book 8)

  © 2020 Karen Ann Hopkins

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN: 979-8-674-82097-0 (paperback)

  Books by Karen Ann Hopkins

  Serenity’s Plain Secrets

  in reading order

  LAMB TO THE SLAUGHTER

  WHISPERS FROM THE DEAD

  SECRETS IN THE GRAVE

  HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT

  PAPER ROSES

  EVIL IN MY TOWN

  UNHOLY GROUND

  BLOODY TIES

  THE WIDOW (coming soon!)

  FORBIDDEN WAYS (a romantic companion novel)

  SWEET REGRETS (a romantic companion novel)

  Wings of War

  in reading order

  EMBERS

  GAIA

  TEMPEST

  ETERNITY

  The Temptation Novels

  in reading order

  TEMPTATION

  BELONGING

  FOREVER

  DECEPTION

  This one is dedicated to my ex-Amish friend, Opal! You’re a constant inspiration for more stories and you’re the incubator goddess. I cherish our friendship and look forward to many exciting years to come in our peafowl business and other crazy adventures.

  Acknowledgments

  Many thanks go out to Heather Miller for her focused editing and proofreading skills. Jenny Zemanek of Seedlings Design created another beautiful cover, and EbookPbook prepared the formatting.

  Preface

  April 8th

  Indianapolis

  Thick clouds pressed down from the ominous-looking sky as Ryan Donovan glanced over his shoulder, searching for any sign of movement. He caught a sharp whiff of rain and judged that the storm would hit in a matter of minutes. The alley was dark and eerily quiet, except for the muffled gasps of the man whose face he held pressed against the wet pavement. Another guy was sprawled on the ground a few feet away, already dead. A deep red puddle of blood surrounded that man’s ruined head. The man’s vacant eyes stared at the off-duty cop, seeming to watch Ryan’s every move. A third man was slumped over the steering wheel with an equal amount of blood and brain matter littering his hair.

  Ryan inhaled a gulp of air and thought quickly. The passenger door of the black SUV was swung wide open, and a duffle bag filled with cash sat brazenly on the front seat. Several cereal boxes riddled the ground next to the vehicle. One had popped open during the scuffle and some of the light brownish colored powder had spilled out. It wasn’t the best quality of heroin but it didn’t need to be. The sheer number of boxes in the backseat equaled millions of dollars in street sales.

  The sound of sirens wailing in the distance grew louder. Ryan only had seconds to make up his mind. Sure, he hadn’t exactly walked onto the scene by accident. He’d received a tip, and followed it through to this moment in time where he found himself in the vacant alley, kneeling beside a dying man. Ryan had watched the drug deal unfold, knew the players, and the danger involved in being there. He wasn’t on the clock, and he’d acted alone. Luckily for him, Ryan was a highly accurate shooter and didn’t need back up for this insane endeavor. Being in law enforcement for over ten years, he knew the ins and outs of the criminal activities in his city like the back of his hand. The element of surprise was also in his favor. The drug dealers never saw it coming. They were the soldiers of two nefarious armies that operated not only in the shadows of seedy street corners during the dead of night, but in daylight hours at restaurants, sporting events, schoolyards, and even fancy tree-lined suburbs. Their bosses lived far away in mansions on the west or east coasts, on yachts, or in impregnable compounds across the southern border. And yet here they were, easily making loads of money in small cities and suburban centers across the good old United States of America. No one seemed to care about the people whose lives were destroyed because of this shady underbelly of society. Occasionally, the department made arrests, but those times were like dropping single grains of sand into a huge bucket. The drugs kept flowing and people continued to die. It was a vicious cycle that would never end. Greed and the desire to make an easy buck were alive and well in the Midwest. There would never be a shortage of poor souls wanting to escape from their rotten lives, and they were willing to pay a pretty penny to do so.

  To say Ryan was disillusioned was putting it mildly. He’d worked the beat for years before he’d finally made detective. The pay sucked and the disrespect from mostly everyone, except other cops, was aggravating.

  This was a chance to drastically change his circumstances. If he played his cards right, he might just get away with it.

  A memory rose up in his mind, making his hand holding the gun tremble a little.

  Serenity Adams, his former partner, sat next to him in the cruiser as it moved slowly down the crowded street. A bottle flew out of nowhere, striking the windshield. The crack was long and wicked looking, but the glass didn’t break.

  “Why the fuck are we here?” Ryan’s voice cracked. His flushed face stared straight ahead.

  Serenity sighed loudly. “We’re here to help people and protect the innocent. You know that.”

  “Dammit, Serenity. They don’t want our help.”

  Serenity’s chuckle was low and short lived. “Oh, they’ll want us when someone burglarizes their home or hurts their loved one. Human beings are fickle creatures. We’re the only thing holding complete chaos at bay. The day we stop doing our job, we’re all done for. As long as we stay good cops, everything will be all right.”

  Ryan shook his head vigorously to clear the vision and muttered, “I’m sorry, Serenity. Sometimes you just can’t win. If that’s the case, you might as well join the bastards.”

  He slammed the man’s face onto the pavement and jumped to his feet. Once his mind was made up, it was easy for Ryan to pull the trigger. The gunshot crack blasted through the alleyway, and the last man alive finally stopped moving. At that very same moment, the sky opened up and pelting, cold rain started to fall. Ryan grabbed the duffle bag and ran. He didn’t look back, and he didn’t contemplate what he’d just done.

  Ryan’s only thought was that he had to get the hell out of Indy in a damn hurry. He needed a place to chill for a while—somewhere that no one would dream of looking for him. He’d thought through his options in detail that very morning and he kept coming up with the same question.

  What better place to hide than an Amish community?

  1

  Serenity

  May 8th

  Blood Rock, Indiana

  Nancy’s Diner was busier than usual. It was lunchtime on a Friday, so not really surprising. Nearly every booth and table were full, and the sound of too many lively conversations and the clinking of utensils on dinnerware assailed my senses. I took a slow swig of my cola and leaned back. CJ sat next to me. Her curly brown hair bounced on her shoulders as she enthusiastically talked about her upcoming wedding. I kind of zoned out as she recited all the little details. I wasn’t a wedding person. Hell, I’d barely gotten through my own, and that was with my now husband, Daniel, making all the arrangements. A sideways glance CJ’s way confirmed what I’d first thought when she’d first walked through the diner’s doors. She looked more carefree than I’d seen her in ages. It was good she was happy again, but the abrupt turnaround of her fortune, when Joshua Miller had decided to go English to be with her, instead of the other way around, wasn’t really on my mind at the moment. Elayne Weaver was.

  My gaze strayed to the brunette sitting across the table from us. Elayne grew up Amish, bu
t you’d never know it by the looks of her now. Not only was she runway model tall and slender, but her head was adorned with a thick mane of dark, long hair that she constantly flipped back. She had high cheekbones and wide spaced eyes that held an almost dreamy, bedroom quality that men couldn’t resist. The fact that she was the town’s assistant district attorney and a very smart woman was just icing on her already perfect cake.

  The way Elayne’s gaze drifted my way and narrowed for an instant before returning to CJ let me know that the woman had other things on her mind. I was pretty certain one of those things was a good-looking police officer I’d just hired. The situation was complicated and a bit uncomfortable. My former partner, Ryan Donavan, used to date CJ. They’d been a couple for about two years, until he’d majorly screwed up and cheated on her. CJ was about as down-to-earth and reasonable as they came. She’d moved on and was even friendly with the man who had done her dirty. Now that she was marrying Joshua, there weren’t any worries about jealousy or resentment on her part. She’d even given Elayne the green light to pursue her ex so no one’s feelings would be hurt. Still, I wasn’t too pleased with Elayne’s interest in Ryan. There was more going on than I already knew. Something was definitely up with him, and I just couldn’t shake the bad feeling that had come over me from the first day he’d arrived in Blood Rock. I hadn’t discussed my reservations with anyone, even Daniel. It was just a gut feeling that something unsavory was on the wind. I really hoped that I was wrong. Things had been fairly quiet in Blood Rock lately, and I was actually enjoying the more mundane tasks of law enforcement. After the last year I’d had, I was happy with the relative break. I might be pretty good at solving crimes, but I’d rather not have any more murders in my town. Especially since Daniel and I were talking about starting a family.

  “What do you think, Serenity?”

  CJ’s voice registered in my distracted mind and her round face came sharply back into focus. I took another sip of my cola and swallowed. “Ah, what was that?”

  Elayne made a huffing sound. “What is with you today? You’ve been in another world ever since I sat down.”

  CJ leaned in closer. Her smile turned into a frown and she lowered her voice. “Is something going on?”

  Just what I didn’t need—being put on the spot about strange feelings I was having that made no sense whatsoever. “No, not really. It’s just been a busy week.” In hopes of deflecting my friends’ intense curiosity, I added, “I’ve hired two new officers in the past couple of weeks. That’s a first in Blood Rock history. Ever since the school shooting, the state has been more open with sharing their budget to help our little town out. It’s been a lot of paperwork and virtual meetings to get the funding.”

  “Wait, you hired someone else? I thought Ryan was your only new recruit,” CJ said. She propped her chin on her hand and stared with wide eyes. I was glad she’d finally finished discussing her wedding, but wished she wasn’t so laser focused on me. How much was safe to say?

  “Yeah, the other newbie is Jerome Wilson. He’s young, but with four years of criminal science and a history of community service, I think he’s a huge asset to the department.” I took a bite of my burger, hardly tasting it.

  Elayne’s brows arched as she tilted her head. “I wasn’t aware the county budget allowed for two new officers. When did that happen?”

  The assistant DA was sharp as a tack. It was foolish to think I’d be able to slide the information by her without questions. “The state raised our budget. A lot has happened in this town over the past year and a half. You can safely say we’re on their radar.”

  Elayne’s lips pursed. “Are you aware of what’s going on in Indianapolis?”

  My stomach twisted.

  CJ sat up straighter as she looked between Elayne and me. “What’s happening in Indy?”

  Elayne answered her. “There’s been several RICO arrests over the winter. Indianapolis is beginning to clean house.”

  CJ looked at me with a scrunched, confused face.

  “Organized crime,” I said simply, answering her unspoken question.

  “Wait, you mean like the mafia?” CJ’s voice rose. It was funny how she quickly looked around to make sure no one was listening.

  I nodded once. “It’s not just the mafia we’re talking about. There are other groups that operate illegal enterprises like gambling, drug and sex trafficking, prostitution, extortion—the list goes on and on. Mobsters are still alive and well in Indy.”

  “I had no idea they were there in the first place.” CJ frowned; all of her earlier cheerfulness gone.

  Elayne crossed her arms on the table, leaning in. “Oh, the city has quite a dark history in that department. The Labella family established themselves in the early nineteen hundreds as a force to be reckoned with. They had strong connections to other crime families, especially in Chicago. Murder, racketeering, smuggling, and the sex trade were all part of their repertoire.”

  I sipped my cola and gazed out the window. The sun shined, flowers bloomed, and leafy canopies draped over Main Street from the large oak trees in front of the diner. The fountain in front of the court house, which was right across the street, fell so dramatically, I could almost hear the sound of the splashing water. The sidewalk was busy with townspeople going about their daily business. It was the perfect afternoon. So why did I feel so melancholy? The lunchtime conversation definitely wasn’t helping my mood.

  “How come you know so much about this stuff?” CJ asked Elayne.

  Elayne shrugged a little. “I took an entire class on organized crime in America when I was in law school. It’s quite fascinating, really. Think about how much discipline it takes to keep an illegal business running. Sure, there are casualties, but for the most part, these organizations—usually family based—survive for generations. In many instances, they’re run just like a legitimate business. There’s a boss—who’s basically a general manager, an underboss, and different levels of soldiers. The strict hierarchical structure keeps everyone in line—for the most part anyway. There’s bound to be some internal unrest, and that’s where the feds have opportunities to nab the crime family’s higher officials.”

  CJ turned to me. “How do they operate in modern society? I watched the Godfather movie, and I can see how they got away with it back then. Nowadays, with social media and the internet, it seems they’d be snitched on easily. Nothing is secret anymore.”

  “One of my favorite movies,” Elayne commented. The corner of her mouth lifted when her gaze met mine.

  Sighing, I tugged my ponytail tighter. “Don’t be naïve, CJ. There’s still lots of secrets out there, and people who are motivated to keep them. As far as operations go, the modern Mafia and other criminal syndicates, like cartels, facilitate business through smaller groups. They network with motorcycle gangs, inner city gangs, and even backwoods’ clans to distribute their products, which these days, are mostly heroin and cocaine. Although, the sex trade is on the rise.” I paused, collecting my thoughts and swallowing the lump that formed in my throat. “The two girls that were kidnapped in Poplar Springs ended up with people with ties to the Indianapolis mob. The investigation is still ongoing, but arrests of lower level players have been made in the case.”

  “If you don’t cut off the head, it will never end.” Elayne spoke in an unemotional way.

  “True,” I admitted.

  “I don’t see what any of this has to do with Blood Rock,” CJ said.

  “It doesn’t.” Elayne’s smile reminded me of a satisfied cat. “Just an observation that it might have been a good time for Ryan Donavan to get out of Indy. I’ve heard the environment in the city is becoming a bit heated. Too many cops have ties to the mob, and the justice department is getting serious about thinning out their ranks.”

  My full attention settled on Elayne. She never ceased to surprise me. Her looks were a distraction that obviously gave her sno
oping opportunities that most people didn’t have. She also had more stealth than I’d given her credit for. She smiled back at me sweetly and I grunted.

  Glancing back at CJ’s worried face, I tried to assure her everything was fine. “No worries. The beauty of living in a small town is that some bad things will never take root here.”

  “Heaven knows, we’ve already had our share of mayhem in Blood Rock,” Elayne said.

  I wasn’t sure if she was agreeing or arguing with me, but it didn’t matter. My gaze went to the front door as Ryan walked in. His sharp eyes searched the diner until he found me.

  Speak of the devil…

  I grabbed my purse off the seat and quickly slid out of the booth. “I have to go,” I rushed out. Seeing CJ’s face droop, I added, “I’ll call you tonight and we can talk more about your wedding plans. Say hi to Joshua and the kids for me.” Her expression perked up, but I didn’t give her time to respond. Elayne had already looked over her shoulder and spotted Ryan. When she turned back around, her mouth was slanted in a tight smirk. “I’ll stop by your office before the end of the week to discuss the newest prosecution cases in the county.”

  Elayne nodded, not losing the amused look. “Of course. Say hi to Ryan for me.”

  I hurried away with my lips pressed together. Elayne Weaver had proven herself a solid ally and friend, but there were times when I wanted to strangle her. And this was one of those moments.

  As if things weren’t complicated enough, having her hovering around in the shadows was not what I needed right now.

  Stopping at the counter, I caught Nancy’s eye. She owned the establishment and even though she had some age on her, she was still a feisty woman. Without having to ask her, she poured coffee into a to-go cup, and then picked out a few brownies from the glass case. After she dropped the deserts into a bag, she handed it to me, along with the coffee.