High Risk by G.K. Parks (thriller book recommendations txt) 📗
- Author: G.K. Parks
Book online «High Risk by G.K. Parks (thriller book recommendations txt) 📗». Author G.K. Parks
High Risk
A Detective Liv DeMarco Thriller
G.K. Parks
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and other concepts are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, places, establishments, events, and locations is entirely coincidental.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without express written permission from the author.
Copyright © 2021 G.K. Parks
A Modus Operandi imprint
All rights reserved.
Print ISBN: 978-1-942710-25-7
Full-length Novels in the Alexis Parker Series:
Likely Suspects
The Warhol Incident
Mimicry of Banshees
Suspicion of Murder
Racing Through Darkness
Camels and Corpses
Lack of Jurisdiction
Dying for a Fix
Intended Target
Muffled Echoes
Crisis of Conscience
Misplaced Trust
Whitewashed Lies
On Tilt
Purview of Flashbulbs
The Long Game
Burning Embers
Thick Fog
Warning Signs
Julian Mercer Novels
Condemned
Betrayal
Subversion
Reparation
Retaliation
Hunting Grounds
Liv DeMarco Novels
Dangerous Stakes
Operation Stakeout
Unforeseen Danger
Deadly Dealings
High Risk
Fatal Mistake
Lucien Cross Stories
Fallen Angel
For my mom and dad
Table of Contents
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-one
Twenty-two
Twenty-three
Twenty-four
Twenty-five
Twenty-six
Twenty-seven
Twenty-eight
Twenty-nine
Thirty
Thirty-one
Thirty-two
Thirty-three
Thirty-four
Thirty-five
Thirty-six
Thirty-seven
Thirty-eight
Thirty-nine
Forty
Forty-one
Forty-two
Note from the Author
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
One
“We need to go.” Carter tugged the balaclava off and stuffed it inside the bag. He peered out the rear window at Star Cleaners. What had they done? He swallowed, eyeing the shattered front door. “Come on. Let’s get the hell out of here.”
“Not yet. We have to wait for him.” Diego exhaled and squeezed the steering wheel, sensing waves of anxiety rolling off the man beside him.
Carter’s eyes darted back and forth. He could hear sirens. They were getting closer. He checked the mirrors. Were those flashing lights? He thought he saw a reflection on the slick streets. “The cops are coming. Don’t you hear that?”
“Hear what?” Diego eyed him curiously. “You feeling okay?”
“No.” Carter ran a hand down his face and bit his lip. “No one was supposed to be inside. He said no one would be there. It’s a dry cleaner’s. Why would anyone be there at this time of night?”
Diego swallowed. So the noise he heard had been gunfire. “Calm down.” He kept one eye trained on the side mirror. “What happened?”
“He’s fucking insane. That’s what happened.” Carter reached into his pocket with shaking hands and pulled out a pre-rolled joint. He held it between his lips while he searched for his lighter. “Diego, man, I’m telling you this was a bad idea. This guy…” He shook his head. “How well do you know him? Shit.”
“What?”
“He killed him. Shot him right in the head. Didn’t even think twice about it.” Locating the lighter, Carter held it to the end of the joint just as the back door opened.
“Put that out,” the third man said, tossing a heavy bag across the seats before climbing in beside it. “We don’t need to risk leaving evidence behind.” He tapped Diego on the shoulder. “Drive.”
Diego put the car in gear, glancing at Carter from the corner of his eye, but the man in the passenger seat didn’t say or do anything. The unlit joint remained hanging from between his lips while he stared straight ahead, as if he were too afraid to turn around and face the man in the back seat.
After a few blocks, the man in the back tapped Diego again. “Pull over up ahead. There aren’t any cameras in that alley. We need to ditch the car. Things didn’t go as planned. It’s too hot to drive around in this, unless we want to get caught.”
“No one wants that.” Diego checked the mirrors, but the streets were empty. He stopped in the alley and turned off the engine. “Did we at least get what we were after?”
Carter fidgeted in the seat, anxious to run. The bag at his feet contained only cash. That hadn’t been the goal, but Diego wasn’t going to argue about receiving a bonus.
The man in the back seat smiled. “We got them.” He reached forward and tapped Carter on the shoulder. “Hey, you all right?”
Carter flinched at his touch. “Uh-huh.”
“You ain’t acting right. Turn around and look at me.”
After sucking in another breath, Carter turned in his seat. “What?”
The man studied his face and searched his eyes. “You ever kill anyone before?”
“I didn’t kill that guy. You did.”
The man snickered and shoved the gun into Carter’s hand. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that. It was your intel, remember?” Then he gave his nervous accomplice two friendly taps on the cheek. “Don’t worry so much. He was a security guard. He had it coming. And if I hadn’t intervened, that’d be you lying dead on the floor.”
“Security?” Diego asked. “Why would a dry cleaner’s hire a guard?”
“Who knows? But someone should have found that out when conducting the research. It would have been nice to know what we were walking into. Maybe things wouldn’t have had to get loud and messy. If you don’t like killing, try to do better next time.” The man stared into Carter’s eyes. “You got it?”
“Ye-yeah.” Carter swallowed.
The man smiled at him. “Good.” He tugged the mask off his face and smoothed his staticky hair as best he could. “Let’s wipe the car and torch it. It’ll delay the cops when they come looking, and you know they’ll come looking.”
Because you left a body behind, Carter thought.
“Gas can’s in the trunk,” Diego said. “I’ll find us something else.”
“No,” the man in the back seat said, “the police would expect that once they find the car. Let’s take the subway instead.” He checked his watch. “The trains are running, and the station’s not far from here.”
“Maybe we should split up,” Carter suggested, fingering the strap on the duffel at his feet.
The third man eyed Carter. Normally, they’d split up and meet back at the apartment later, but he couldn’t be sure what the Nervous Nelly might do. “No. We’re in this. We stick together until we see it through.” He tossed a rag into the front seat. “Start
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