Killer Christmas Tips (23 page)

“Yes. Through the dog door.”

“
What
? You’re kidding!”

“Nope. While I kept Rin Tin Tin busy with a steak, Arnie climbed through, with Lassie. All the infrared eyes saw were the hotspots of two creatures on all fours, in the kitchen. Arnie’s improv is phenomenal! I tell you, he missed his calling as an actor.”

My laughter has me doubling over.

“From the kitchen, Arnie used a remote signal to transfer the feed from Carl’s snow globe to that of another showing the room empty. It played on a loop until he was done with his reconnaissance. He was ice cold when he came out of there because he had to crank up the air conditioning in order to bring down the room's temperature. That way, the sensors wouldn’t pick up his body heat.” He shakes his head in wonder. “Even Arnie’s impressed with the globe’s technology. Talk about a hyper-sensitive surveillance tool! It can hear a whisper from up to five thousand feet away, and is programmed to be voice-sensitive. And besides its hi-def webcam, it’s equipped with a 360-degree infrared eye. If I had hid in the house, he would’ve known it. And if you weren’t crying in your sleep every evening, he’d know that, too.”

“I was certainly doing that. I’m sure that gave him a cheap thrill.” I close my eyes in disgust. “And you didn’t disarm the snow globe because that would have tipped off the Quorum that we were on to them.”

“Exactly. Our only alternative was to leave it in place. When the storage unit blew, we took the opportunity to put me in deep cover. It also took the heat off Valentina. With her handler gone, Ryan wanted to see if she’d still be a willing double.”

I frown. “So, what’s the verdict? Has he heard from her since she blew town?”

Jack shakes his head. “That could mean a few things. Either she hightailed out of here before Carl caught on, or she didn’t get far enough to get away, and he’s caught up to her.”

I hesitate, but one of us has to say it. “Or she was acting as a triple agent.”

For the longest time he says nothing. I know the last thing he wants to accept is that she betrayed him twice.

“Jack, let’s face it. She almost got you blown up, 
and
 she left the note about the decoy at John Wayne Airport!”

“The misinformation may have been what Carl wanted her to leave behind. Maybe she prepared the second package with the right intel, in order to exchange it after she knew he was no longer watching her.”

“You want desperately to believe that, don’t you?”

He doesn’t answer at first. Finally he lets loose with a deep sigh. “I guess we’ll never know now.”

He nudges me over onto my side. In this position, his arms hold mine to my breasts, and his body cups around me. We’re like two spoons in a drawer. Soon I feel his member stiffen along the firm curve of my ass. I pray his desire is stoked by his love of me, as opposed to some woebegone memory of her.

To ensure all of him is here with me, I parry his thrusts with an abandonment that promises pain and rapture and sorrow, all at once and forever, even after he’s long spent.

It’s not cruel or unusual, but fateful and intentional.

It’s called love.

Afterward, he whispers, “The day of the funeral, Ryan gave me the Secret Santa gift you left for me: the tiny gold key in the heart box. Knowing how you feel about me was what got me through this mission, Donna.”

I can’t tell him my only solace from his death is knowing he wanted to marry me.

Not until he proposes again.

When he does, I’ll say yes, but only if Valentina no longer has a hold on his heart, too.

I wonder what he’d think if he knew she doesn’t pine for him, but for Carl? I guess I’ll never know, since it’s not my place to tell him. It’s hers. 

I hope she’ll never get that chance, if only because it means he’ll never see her again.

“Who wants to decorate the tree?” Jack asks the kids, once they are spent from piling on the father they love and missed so much.

“Finally!” Jeff yells over Trisha’s squeals.

They run to the hall closet holding the boxes with our ornaments.

Mary stays put. It’s as if she won’t let go of Jack.

I know how she feels.

When finally she pulls back, she warns him, “Don’t ever leave us again.”

She and I exchange teary smiles. I could not have said it better. We both know this.

While Sinatra sings Christmas carols over the audio system, Jack and I weave light strands through the tree and Mary, Jeff and Trisha sort through their favorite ornaments. Soon all of us are running back and forth, hooking them on the tree.

Finally, Jack takes the angel topper and slides it over the crowning branch.

It’s easy to talk the children into an early bedtime tonight.

After placing their gifts under the tree, Jack and I fall into bed, too. But the last thing we’re doing tonight is sleeping.

Before I finally doze off, I say one more prayer. I ask God to keep us safe.

To answer all our prayers for peace on Earth, and good will toward men.

Next Up!

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I owe a lot to the following people, whose love and support gives me the courage to write, every day:

Karin Tabke, who first fell in love with this book, and pushed me (quite adamantly; what are friends for?) to make it a priority; Andy Brown, who is a go-to guru for anything technical and metaphysical. Andy, thanks making the virtual a reality; Rita Abrams, Kendra Williams, Pam Welsh, Elisa Turner, Janell Parque, Susan DiMuzio, Dianne Wallace, Jeanette Conkling, Kimberly Turner and Tom Johnson, who have sharper eyes than mine; Austin Brown and Anna Brown, who are my emotional touchstones, in so many ways; Eddie Concha, Andree Belle, Darien and Don Coleman, Linda May and Ben Brown, and Mario Martinez and Patricia Steadman, who are always there to encourage, nurture and feed me.

And always last but never least, Martin Brown: you complete me.

Dear readers: If you liked the story and Donna, I’d be honored to get a review from you! We authors live by them, and they are always appreciated.

Thank you,

—Josie Brown

HOW TO REACH JOSIE

www.JosieBrown.com

www.AuthorProvocateur.com

www.HousewifeAssassinsHandbook.com

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NOVELS IN THE

HOUSEWIFE ASSASSIN SERIES

The Housewife Assassin’s
Handbook

(Book 1)

Every desperate housewife wants an alias. Donna Stone has one … and it happens to be government-sanctioned. But Donna earned it the hard way. Her husband was killed the day she delivered their third child. To avenge her husband's murder, Donna leads a secret life: as an assassin. But espionage makes for strange bedfellows, and brings new meaning to that old adage, "Honey, I'm home..."

The Housewife Assassin’s
 

Guide to Gracious Killing
 

(Book 2)

A nuclear arms summit, hosted by a politically connected billionaire industrialist, provides the perfect opportunity for a rogue operative to assassinate the newly elected Russian president, on American soil. Donna Stone’s mission: seek and exterminate the shooter before all hell – and World War III – breaks out. Also on Donna’s to-do list: file for divorce. Throw in a couple of killer play dates and a few naughty neighbors, and you’ve got a whole lot of fun.
 

The Housewife Assassin’s
 

Killer Christmas Tips

(Book 3)

’Tis the season for murder, mayhem and mistletoe! There will be no peace on Earth if Donna and Jack don’t find a shipping container filled with heat-seeking missiles. Forget Santa! Terror is coming to town…
 

The Housewife Assassin’s
 

Relationship Survival Guide

(Book 4)