Left to Lapse (An Adele Sharp Mystery—Book Seven) by Blake Pierce (book club suggestions txt) 📗

he was moving slowly, encumbered by his injuries, andAdele glimpsed the syringe. The reading light from the old man showed thesyringe next to Adele’s neck. A needle was jabbing toward her. She could feelit scrape against her shoulder, just missing.

She didn’t know what sort of toxin he’d used. But it hadkilled three people. Just an inch away. A fraction of an inch. If she wasn’tcareful, she’d be next. What could she do, though? Her hands were tied up. Theywere locked in their struggle. The needle was in his grip, more deadly than hergun in such close proximity.

And suddenly, the train emerged from the weather tunnel andcame to a final, scraping halt. It was a climactic moment of motion. Everythingwent still. Light suddenly flooded through the train again. Another voiceannounced something over the black speakers above the windows. But this time,Adele couldn’t hear what it was saying, as she was too focused on the needle,now against her neck. She could feel it pressing, feel it practically nipagainst her skin. The needle suddenly jabbed in, hard, and she cursed.

She’d released her grip on his forearm. But intentionally.

The needle wasn’t the threat. It was the contents insidethe shot itself. And while the needle was in her neck. He hadn’t yet pushed theplunger. She grabbed the edge of the shot, pressing her thumb directly betweenthe plunger and the stem of the shot.

The valet cursed, trying to inject the toxin, but failing.With the needle in her neck, as close to death as she’d ever been, Adele firedher gun.

Once, twice.

Still aiming at the ceiling. Still without any sort oftrajectory on the killer himself.

But she didn’t need it to be. The gun was next to his ear.It fired, and Adele jerked her head back as she did, aware of just how loud thething could be in close quarters.

The valet suddenly shouted in pain—the flash of the muzzle,the horrific blast directly next to his left ear. He screamed, and suddenly,his hand went limp. Adele yanked the plunger from his grip, and pulled theneedle from her neck.

She lashed out with the butt of the gun, slamming it intothe bridge of the valet’s nose. He took a couple of stumbling steps back; blooderupted from his nose and poured down his lips.

For a moment, he stood there, and they were no longer inthe dark. The train was at a full stop. And the valet stood in front of thesnack cart he’d used as a battering ram, one hand clutched to his ear, theother shaking and trembling where he’d dropped the syringe. Blood flowed freelydown his nose. He stared at Adele, wide-eyed, stammering, and shook his head. “Idon’t, I didn’t—”

And then Agent John Renee tackled him full force frombehind. The valet’s head snapped back, and he was sent crashing to the groundwith all of John’s muscular frame behind him, bringing him to a thumping haltagainst the floor of the train car.

John looked up, holding the man down, still bleeding fromthe gash in his forehead and the injury to his forearm. Gasping heavily, helooked at Adele. “I got it,” he said. “You’re safe, I got it.”

Adele resisted a strange, inexplicable urge to grin. “Yeah,you did it,” she said.

She could still feel the pain in her neck where the needlehad jammed. She gripped the syringe she’d ripped from his hand. Her other handwent slowly limp, and she placed her weapon back in its holster. She glanced up,spotting two bullet holes, which had punctured the ceiling of the train car,allowing more light to flood through even such small gaps.

“Good job,” she said to John.

And this time, still bleeding, and yet not seeming to care,John returned her grin, flashing teeth. He glanced down at the valet andsnapped, “Stop it. You’re done. Just stop.”

And the young valet stopped struggling, and he began tocry, shaking against the ground and cursing at Adele, at John, and anyone wholooked in his direction.

CHAPTER THIRTY ONE

Adeleregarded the train which had come to a complete halt beneath the shelter of thestation at last. Shaken passengers disembarked, some of them glancing around asif shell-shocked, others—especially the ones who’d been in the first-classcompartment—leaning on each other, or conversing in hushed whispers. Ticketcollectors and attendants hastily guided the passengers to other trains tocomplete their trips.

Adeleturned and exited the station, feeling a lightness to her step that hadn’t beenthere before. By an SUV, John and Leoni were talking to an officer, using theItalian to translate the Frenchman to the German. Adele just glimpsed thehunched silhouette of the young valet in the back of the SUV.

Shewinced, reaching up and probing at her neck where he’d jabbed his needle. Soclose to death—there would have been nothing the others could do. They stilldidn’t completely know the origin of the toxin, but they’d found another bottleof the substance in the valet’s personal effects.

Ithadn’t taken long to convince John to release the relief conductor. As he’dleft, he’d promised the tall Frenchman he’d be hearing from his lawyers. ToAdele’s surprise, John had actually attempted an apology—but it hadn’t beenwell received.

Now,outside the German station, beneath the winking sun and folds of cloud, Adelemoved across the sidewalk to the parking lot and approached the SUV with thesuspect inside.

Asshe neared, she could still feel the lightness in her footsteps. For somereason, this troubled her.

Shefrowned, trying to place the sensation… Then she realized: what had been thesource of the horrible foreboding? She’d felt certain this case would endterribly. Not so much a sixth sense, but a feeling. She didn’t know whatto make of it. The killer was in custody—no doubt about that. Three livesclaimed, a tragedy, but not unusual in her line of work.

Adelepicked up the pace, reaching the SUV.

Shecould her John muttering to Leoni beneath his breath, “Let him take the guy.Why should we? They’re the ones who wanted to handle the case, aren’t they?”

Leonireluctantly translated in German, using more diplomatic language. The Germanofficer in question sighed and shrugged.

Leonispotted Adele and his countenance brightened. She gave a little wave, but thenmoved around the other side of the SUV, past the darkened glass. The silhouettewithin the vehicle