The Promise (Neighbor from Hell, #10)(85)

Okay, uglier.

Normally, she liked to know everything there was to know about an employer, company and potential position before she agreed to take a job, but she hadn’t been given the opportunity to conduct any research before she’d accepted this position. The only thing that she knew about this job was that it was a once in a lifetime opportunity with great pay and benefits and that it was a live-in position that required a yearlong commitment.

When the DA had approached her about this position three days ago, she’d quickly realized that they weren’t going to answer any of her questions. She had to admit that it had been a little unnerving interviewing for an unknown employer. After she’d received the phone call late last night letting her know that the job was hers if she wanted it, she’d almost turned it down. If it hadn’t been for her neighbor choosing that exact moment to put his fist through her wall, she probably wouldn’t have accepted the job. But as Big Daddy, as he liked to be called, pulled his meaty fist back, leaving a huge hole in her bedroom/living room/dining/kitchen wall, she’d decided that this live-in position, what little she knew about it, sounded perfect.

After an hour-long argument with her landlord where she’d begged to be released from her lease, she’d packed her possessions into her car and caught three hours of sleep before the messenger from the DA’s office woke her up bright and early at six this morning with the packet and details of her new employer and position. She only had about five minutes to look over the cover sheet before Big Daddy did something that upset the police, again. That was right around the time that she was escorted from the building, interviewed, and sent on her way, which in retrospect was probably a good thing since Big Daddy had set the building on fire and she couldn’t return there even if she wanted to.

She really didn’t want to.

So, now she was starting a new job off by crashing a party thrown by her new boss’s kids, and she wasn’t exactly sure how she felt about that. She really wasn’t thrilled by the idea of living with teenagers for a year. She didn’t hate kids, but she wasn’t exactly in a rush to go out and have one of her own either. Then again, spending a year under the same roof with an obviously spoiled kid might destroy any aspirations of having a family of her own one day.

After a slight pause, she realized that she was okay with that and continued on, stepping over a puddle of fresh vomit and through the large cast-iron gates welcoming anyone and everyone. She didn’t date much, didn’t care to, and if this gave her the excuse that she needed to focus on her job then that was more than fine with her, she absently decided, choosing to pretend that she didn’t see the used condom on the ground.

“Watch where you’re going!” a woman with too much makeup, not enough clothing and was obviously intoxicated, snapped as she stumbled past Kylie.

With a sigh, Kylie continued towards the large two-level brick house, wondering if she was going to end up dealing with the police twice in one day. As she stepped over one of the bodies, hopefully just passed out, lying on the front steps, she couldn’t help but wonder if this job came with hazard pay.





Tall, Dark & Furious

A Pyte/Sentinel Novel





Prologue


Massachusetts Bay Colony - Maine Territory

1665

“Where are you going, Trace?”

Trying not to panic, Trace shut the door before any sunlight could spill inside the small one-room cottage. Licking his suddenly dry lips, he turned around and held up the small leather-bound book his father had given him just this morning after he’d returned from his trip to the city.

“I was hoping to go down to the river to read, Father,” he said, forcing a smile that he hoped would convince his father that everything was fine.

Ethan sighed heavily as he sat on the room’s only bed and ran his fingers through his unruly shoulder-length hair. “Why don’t you stay here and read?”

“I didn’t want to disturb you, Father,” Trace said, wishing he’d lit a few candles so that he could see better since the dim light the small fire in the hearth gave off wasn’t enough to tell if his father was still angry.

“Trace,” his father said in a warning tone, “tell me that you’re not going to go see her, especially after what happened yesterday.”

“No, Father,” he said, lying to his father for the first time in his life, but he didn’t have a choice. If he’d listened to her in the first place, no one would have known they’d been spending time together, but he’d been too stubborn to listen and now, thanks to him she was in real trouble.

“Why do I have a feeling that you’re lying to me?” his father asked warily, getting to his feet and pulling his breeches on.

“I’m not,” Trace said weakly, shifting his gaze to the dirt floor, because looking his father in his eye while he lied made him feel sick to his stomach.

“We need to talk,” his father announced after a short pause as Trace’s eyes shot up at the all too familiar announcement.

Trace took an anxious step towards the small table as his father sat down. “But we’ve only been here four weeks, Father. You promised we’d be able to stay longer this time,” he pointed out almost desperately because he didn’t want to leave the only friend he’d ever had.