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By Lucy Appadoo
Putting aside the bowl, Bella swung open the door and angled her head at the unexpected visitor. “Detective? This is a surprise. Come on in.”
Marco smiled. “Sorry to bother you, but I was checking in, making sure you’re okay after the incident at your friend’s house.”
He walked inside and Bella ushered over to her couch. She sat beside him with space between them. His eyes roamed the living area, staring at the patio outside with the glass double doors giving a view of the backyard. Bella savoured this time of year when she could open up the doors and let a breeze come into the house during the spring season. It gave the house an open-plan and spacious ambience.
“You have a beautiful house. I especially like the patio outside. Great for the spring season, and today’s an absolutely gorgeous day.” His eyes fixed on her for a moment, but Bella turned away, her face blushing. The tingles in her fingers and chest almost overwhelmed her as she waited for Marco to say more. “How have you been?”
Bella turned back towards him as he shifted closer towards her on the couch. Her breath shallowed. “I’ve been busy with a few new clients at the practice. After that social media post about my credibility, I’d lost a few of them. Luckily, I haven’t had any new posts slander my name.”
He nodded. “That’s good to hear.” He gazed past her. “I thought I’d let you know that we’re following up on leads with Bridget’s murder.”
“Anything you can share?”
Marco shook his head. “Sorry. Unless it’s relevant to a court case or an arrest, I can’t say anything else at this stage. The person we’re looking at is obviously smart and well-organised, staging the scene like a personal vendetta. With uncontrolled rage. Would you know of anyone who would target Bridget?”
“No, no-one I know.” Bella rose. “I was making myself a cup of tea. Would you like one?”
Marco turned away for a moment. “Sure. I mean, I might have a few more questions.”
Bella headed to the kitchen and took out a second mug. Her hands shook as she took out the milk from the fridge, sensing Marco’s strong presence in the living room. She glanced over at him. He was perusing her bookshelf. The moment of inattention made her almost drop her teaspoon, but she managed to grab it mid-air. Once finished, she carried the two mugs of tea on a tray with a small plate of Kingston biscuits and set it on the coffee table.
Marco turned towards her. “You have loads of interesting books here. The treatment of clients with personality disorders. The co-dependency of relationships. The anxious mind, and a lot about holistic health too. You’re obviously spiritual, aren’t you?”
Bella sat back on the couch and sipped her tea. “I like to do spiritual things, meditate, energy work, read up on Buddhist philosophy. It’s got me through a lot of things.”
Marco’s gaze held. He sat down and gripped his mug. “I take it you’ve been through a lot.”
Bella crossed and uncrossed her legs. “What makes you say that, detective?”
Haunted by the Past
A serial killer waiting to take everything. It’s time for Bella to pay—with her life.
Life hasn’t been particularly kind to Bella, who has turned her turbulent past of abuse into a dedicated career in psychology. Despite her counselling service to the city of Williamstown, her work may have led something very ominous to her door.
After the horrific death of an old acquaintance, Bella begins to feel the tell-tale prickle of eyes upon her, and unwittingly steps into the crosshairs of someone downright dark and deadly.
Marco enters her life as the dedicated detective who will solve the mysterious identity of the stalker and keep Bella safe. But his conviction is more than duty; it’s budding forbidden love.
Now entangled in the investigation of not only a stalker, but several murders and a growing threat to the community, Bella enters in league with her love interest, Marco in his attempt to unravel the truth behind a force truly evil.
Clues lead Marco straight into Bella’s past, a past that is getting the people around her killed. As the messages, threats, and bodies begin to stack up, Bella finds herself cornered into a violent endgame as the shadows of Bella’s past intend to do far more than haunt her.
If you like heart-pounding suspense, sensual romance, and dark villains, you’ll enjoy Haunted By The Past, the first book in the Friends In Crisis Series.
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