Schadoh's Ramblings and Other Chaotic Mess: Excerpt Remember the Dead by H.L. LeRoy

Title: Remember the Dead
Author: H.L. LeRoy
Series: A LT. Jack Daniels/Jillian Varela Mystery (A loosely tied together series. But any of the stories can be read as a standalone.)
Genre: Thriller/Mystery
Publisher: Kindle Worlds
Release Date: Mar 2, 2015
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook
Blurb/Synopsis:
In the world of serial killer hunters, Lieutenant Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels is a legend and well known in every cop shop in America. But when one gruesomely posed body after another are discovered in the middle of Chicago, ambitious politicians and an aggressive press are threatening to derail Jack’s investigation.
And with her partner Herb on an extended second honeymoon in Mexico, it doesn’t look like help is on the horizon.
Then a friend from California, P.I. Jillian Varela, shows up on a job that parallels Jack’s case. Together they pursue the killer into a nightmare world of obsession, torture, and murder where no one may survive.

A dark follow up to the first Jack Daniels/Jillian Varela mystery, ONE EIGHT SEVEN.

Excerpt

Ashley looked in the mirror while she brushed on the finishing touches of her smoky night face. Cat eyes and high gloss nude lips. She worked a small round brush and a hair dryer through her blue streaked pixie cut. With a pair of nail scissors, she snipped away a straggle dangling on her forehead. Blowing on her black-painted nails, she spent a minute or two deciding on glitter or rhinestones for the tips.

Rhinestones.

Drenched in a fragrance that smelled like sex, she tugged on an expensive pair of tight-ass jeans and buttoned her silver see-through top. Stepping into a pair of red spikes, she turned in front of the mirror.

Hot.

She slipped on a fur lined bomber jacket and looked out the window. The cab was already waiting. The ride to Chicago from Lake Forest was going to be expensive, but she didn’t care. Daddy was going to pay for it whether he knew it or not.

“Where to?”

“Pink Paradise, but I need to stop first.” She gave him an address in Uptown.

“Your funeral,” the cabby said.

He dropped her on the corner and waited.

The wind had started whipping across the lake, specks of ice picking at her face. Going to snow, she thought. Fortunately, it didn’t take her long to find the same sketchy asshole she’d dealt with before. She bought an eight and rubbed a little on her gums, as she hurried back to the cab.

The cab hissed through the Chicago streets to West Addison where the Pink Paradise sat, gaudy and loud. A wet snow had come, still thin, it spattered the windshield. Puddles in the road reflected the blues, pinks, and purples of neon lights and oil sheen. Slush drizzled off the awning edges, sheeting into the gutter.

She paid the cover, slipped past the crowd, heading straight to the lady’s room where she did a couple of lines on the toilet tank lid.

A little more on her gums, and she took another look in the mirror.

I hope he’s here.

The dance floor writhed with bodies, the rave in full swing. While a shirtless, tatted up DJ worked a constant, steady assault of nosebleed techno, Ashley wove into the crowd.

After an hour, she broke away and headed back to the bathroom for a recharge. On the way out, she felt a light touch on the back of her neck. Turning, she slipped her arms around the man standing there, lights playing across his face.

“You came.”

“Told you I would.” He slipped a blue pill between her lips. “A little helper.”

They danced for a long time, finally taking a moment to grab a beer.

He slipped another pill in her mouth. “Let’s leave.”

Ashley swallowed. “I’m not ready.”

He frowned and reached for her arm.

H. L. (Holly) LeRoy is an award winning, American short story writer and novelist. Born in San Jose, California, LeRoy currently resides in the Sierra Nevada Mountains with his family.

When J. A. Konrath approached me with the opportunity to write in Lieutenant Jack Daniels’ world, I jumped at the chance. Since my other works are in the mystery/thriller/action/adventure genres and tell the stories of strong female protagonists confronting impossible situations, I knew it was a perfect fit.

Amazon Publishing has secured licenses from Warner Bros. Television Group's Alloy Entertainment for Gossip Girl, Pretty Little Liars, and The Vampire Diaries; Valiant Entertainment for Archer & Armstrong, Bloodshot, Harbinger, Shadowman, and X-O Manowar; J. A. Konrath's Jack Daniels series, Hugh Howey's Silo Saga; Barry Eisler's John Rain novels; Blake Crouch's Wayward Pines series; and The Foreworld Saga by Neal Stephenson, Greg Bear, Mark Teppo, Eric Bear, Joseph Brassey, Nicole Galland, and Cooper Moo. Licenses for more Worlds are on the way.

Places to find H.L.

Blog Random Thoughts

Places to find Remember the Dead

Amazon

Other Works by H.L. LeRoy

Kindle Worlds

(A LT. Jack Daniels/Jillian Varela Mystery)

One Eight Seven (1)