AGENT UNDERCOVER
DEA agent Tyler Griffin must stop a drug cartel thats using an Idaho Christmas tree farm to smuggle narcotics across the Canadian border. But to do his job, Tyler needs the cooperation of farm owner and widowed mother Heather Larson-Randallwhose informant brother died on Tylers watch. Tyler knows a crucial piece of evidence is hidden somewhere on the property. But getting the protective mother to trust him is the hardest part of his mission. As threats against Heather mount, he vows to keep her and her child safe...and clear the farm of danger before Christmas.
Northern Border Patrol: Keeping the US-Canadian border safe..
You really do believe my brother was murdered? Heather asked.
Tyler nodded. I do. Whatever information he had found about the drug mastermind cost him his life.
And now put her and her son in danger.
She shook her head. No, you cost him his life. You pushed him to do something he wasnt trained to do.
The sharp tip of her barb hit him squarely in the gut. A fact I will have to live with, Tyler stated with more regret than she could possibly know. Believe me, I wish I had done things differently.
Tyler had been doing his job. A job that wasnt finished. If I am going to bring his murderers to justice, I need to find the notebook he told me he had.
She held his gaze. Thats why you broke into the house.
I didnt break in. As I said, your brother gave me a key. Hed said if anything happened to him that Id find what I needed here at the farm.
Well, something had happened. Something terrible. And he wasnt going to let anything happen to Heather and her boy.
TERRI REEDs romance and romantic suspense novels have appeared on Publishers Weekly top twenty-five and Nielsen BookScans top one hundred lists and have been featured in USA TODAY, Christian Fiction Magazine and RT Book Reviews. Her books have finaled in the Romance Writers of America RITA® Award contest, the National Readers Choice Award contest and three times in the American Christian Fiction Writers Carol Award contest. Contact Terri at terrireed.com or PO Box 19555, Portland, OR 97224.
Murder Under the Mistletoe
Terri Reed
www.millsandboon.co.uk
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Every good and perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,
who does not change like shifting shadows.
James 1:17
This book is dedicated to my family for all the support
and love you give me every day. God blessed me greatly with a wonderful husband and two fabulous kids.
Contents
Cover
Back Cover Text
Introduction
About the Author
Title Page
Bible Verse
Dedication
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
THIRTEEN
FOURTEEN
FIFTEEN
Dear Reader
Extract
Copyright
ONE
Good night, sweet boy. Heather Larson-Randall leaned in to kiss her six-year-old sons forehead.
Night, Mommy. Colin snuggled deeper beneath the thick comforter. He lay in the twin-size bed in the room that once had been Heathers.
Gone were the decorations of her adolescenceposters of the latest celebrity heartthrob and her 4-H ribbons and trophies. It had taken the past three days to transform the room in a superhero motif that would have made Ken, her late husband, proud.
A cold draft skated across the back of her neck. The late November night had grown chilly, but at least the northern Idaho rain had abated for now. The weatherman had predicted a drop in temperature over the next few days. Fitting for this years Thanksgiving. She just needed to get through the day for Colins sake. Then she could concentrate on Christmas.
Hopefully celebrating the birth of Jesus would take her mind off her brothers tragic death.
She also hoped they had snow by Christmas morning. Colin loved the snow. And, as always, her lifes priority was Colin.
She moved to the bedroom door. The creak of the old farmhouses hardwood floor beneath her feet followed each of her steps, echoing the hollow, lonely beat of her heart.
Mommy?
Pausing in the doorway with her hand hovering over the light switch, she smiled patiently at her son. Colin looked so much like Ken with his dark brown hair falling over one eye and his dimpled chin. She ached with love for her son and regret that hed never know his father. Yes, sweetie?
Her late parents had taught her that replacing the word what with the more positive yes when talking to children created a strong, effective bond. The proof was in how close her family had been.
Colins big blue-green eyes stared at her intently. Do you think Uncle Seth is with Daddy and Grandma and Grandpa?
The innocent question speared through her like a hot poker. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep the tears of grief at bay. Five years ago, just before Colins first birthday, her husband had been killed while serving his country in Afghanistan, leaving Heather to raise their son alone. Shed made sure every day that Colin knew his father had loved him. Adding to her grief, her parents had been killed in a freak car accident when Colin was four.
Now, two years later and five days ago, shed lost her younger brother, Seth, to what appeared to be a cocaine overdose.
She struggled to comprehend how Seth had fallen back into using drugs after being clean the past couple of years. Hed had so much going for him. A fiancée he adored, half the tree farm and a bright future. She didnt know what had sent him running back to the abyss.
Placing one hand on her chest, she leaned against the doorjamb, needing the strength of her childhood home to keep her upright when the grief pressing down on her threatened to send her to the floor in a heap. Yes, dear. Im sure they are all together.
A familiar tide of anger washed over her. Anger at God for allowing the tragedies that had left her and Colin alone in the world. On the heels of the anger came a flood of guilt for blaming God. Sometimes it was hard to cling to her faith when the world tried to knock her down.
The cell phone in the pocket of her plush robe buzzed.
Ill come back to check on you in a bit, she told Colin, then flipped off the light and stepped into the dimly lit hallway to answer the phone.
Hello?
Your brothers death isnt what it seems, a rough, low voice said into her ear, sending a chill down her spine. Leave the farm. Its not safe.
Her breath hitched; her mind reeled. What? Who is this?
The line beeped, then went silent.
A tremor from deep inside worked its way out of her.
Leave the farm. Its not safe.
She put a hand on the wall to steady herself, feeling the familiar fuzzy velvet texture of the flock wallpaper. This couldnt be happening, not now with Seths death hanging over her like a cloud of doom.
His death had been ruled an accidental overdose.
Even if she wanted to leave the farm, she and Colin had nowhere to go. The day she had learned of Seths death, shed given up her job and the apartment in Washington State to move back to Idaho.
Now the Christmas tree farm was her and Colins only home. Their livelihood. Without the farm she wasnt sure what would happen to them.
Seeds of fear burrowed in her chest and took root. She quickly made her way downstairs, checking that the doors were securely locked. She peered out the front picture window. The full moon, big and round and shining brightly, bathed the sea of Douglas fir, grand fir and noble fir trees stretching over forty acres of land on the tree farm that had been in her family for three generations.
Long shadows obscured the front drive. The other work buildings on the farm were dark, as well. The small cabins that provided lodging for the seasonal employees couldnt be seen through the thick grove of trees, creating a sense of isolation that had never bothered her when she was growing up here.
But shed never had a menacing phone call before now.
Suddenly movement on the fringe between the trees and the wide expanse of lawn caught her eye. Then the shadow shifted and disappeared. Had she really seen something out there? Or was fear making her paranoid?
She yanked the curtains closed. Surely she was imagining things. Satisfied the house was locked up tight, she hurried back upstairs to the master bedroom that had once belonged to her parents and her grandparents before them. Though shed replaced her parents belongings with her own, she still considered the room theirs.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, she called the local sheriffs office and told the answering sergeant about the disturbing call. She couldnt be sure shed seen anything in the shadows of the trees, so she kept that to herself. Because there was no immediate threat, the sergeant promised to send a deputy over in the morning.
Not at all reassured, she hung up and crawled into bed. She held her phone to her chest. Right now she wished shed given in to Colins pleas for a dog. Tomorrow she would go to the local animal shelter and find a nice big canine with a loud bark.
She leaned back against the pillows, her gaze landing on the picture of her parents hanging on the opposite wall. Her mother had been so beautiful and her father so handsome. But more important, theyd been great parents to her and Seth, providing a stable home and love. Lots of love.
The very things she wanted to give Colin.
Somehow none of that had been enough to keep Seth from turning to drugs. She didnt know what had driven him to seek the high of narcotics when he was younger. Or more recently. The not knowing ate at her. Hed refused to talk about the dark days of his addiction. Heather had hoped one day hed realize she loved him no matter what.
Maybe if shed stayed closer to home rather than leaving for college, Seth wouldnt have turned into a junkie. Maybe if shed begged, Ken would have left the army. Maybe if shed been with her parents that night, they wouldnt have died in that accident. Maybe, maybe, maybe.
She turned off the light and lay in the dark. She wanted to pray for God to protect them and lessen the burden of guilt she carried. But her prayers for Kens safety had gone unanswered. Why would God listen to her now?
Her eyelids grew heavy. Her head bobbed as sleeps greedy hands pulled her into slumber.
A soft thud jolted her fully awake. Her heart nearly exploded with fright. She bolted from the bed and strained to listen.
Nothing.
Maybe it had been Colin getting up to use the bathroom. Yes, that had to be it. She sucked in air and slowly released her breath, working to calm her frantic pulse. She glanced at the clock. Shed slept for three hours.
After pulling on her robe, she padded quietly down the hall to check on her son. The bathroom was dark and empty. She moved on to his room. The moons glow streamed through the open curtains, revealing Colin fast asleep. She closed the door and waited. The house was silent now, yet the hairs on her nape rose and chills prickled her skin.
Cautiously, she moved to the top of the stairs and stared into darkness.
Was someone in the house?
Another noise jolted through her, making her tremble. She needed to call for help. As quietly as she could, she raced back to her bedroom and swiped the phone off the bed, then hurried into the hall and stood guard in front of Colins door. She dialed and when the sergeant answered, she whispered, This is Heather Randall again. Theres someone in my house!
Are you sure? the man asked. Have you seen an intruder?
No, I heard a noise.
He sighed. Sit tight. Ill send one of the deputies out.
Sit tight? It would take at least thirty minutes for a deputy to reach the farm from Bonners Ferry, the nearest town. Was she supposed to wait and see if the intruder decided to come upstairs? Then what? She had no weapon, no way to defend herself or Colin. She thanked the deputy anyway and hung up.
She couldnt sit there like some insipid victim. She crept slowly down the staircase, careful to avoid the spots that would creak. She knew every inch of this house, knew every board that would betray her presence, every piece of furniture to navigate around in the inky blackness. She made her way to the kitchen.