Day 2 of Sydney Rye Kindle World Week
The new Sydney Rye Kindle World launches on Thursday, March 17. As an extended St. Paddy’s Day present from me to you, valued readers, Written Words presents excerpts from each of the seven novellas in the project. Today’s installment is from Walk Softly, Danger, where Sydney’s and Blue’s path crosses that of Denver PI Reed Ferguson.
He sighed. “And then she is gone.”
I hesitated, choosing my words carefully. “Is it possible she ran away?”
“No.” He fixed those hard eyes on me again. “That is what police say, that she left. They file report, ask a few questions at the club, but nothing else. But I ask questions, too.”
“And?”
He threw me a sad smile. “The girls Yana works with, they won’t talk to police. They’re scared. But they talk to me, a little.”
I noticed a woman with short black hair loitering near the street corner. She was also watching JD’s. I eyed her for a second, then said, “What’d the girls say?”
He leaned in and lowered his voice. “Yana is not the only one who has disappeared.”
I turned back to him. He had my attention. “They told you that?”
“One girl did.”
“What’s her name?”
“Lexi.”
“Last name?”
“I do not know.” He gestured across the street again. “She works there. You can talk to her. Talk to the boss.”
“Who’s that?”
“Spencer Gage.”
“How do you know that?”
“Yana told me. One time when I picked her up, I saw him with some of the girls. Yana said they don’t like him.”
“Why?”
“He can get angry with them. He wants…things…from them. If they don’t give in to him, he will hurt them. They are scared of him.”
“You think he knows something about Yana?”
“I don’t know.”
“How many others have gone missing?”
He shrugged. “A few.”
I stared at JD’s and mulled over what Zubov had told me. It wasn’t much to go on.
“You think it’s nothing, right?” His voice shook as he pointed at JD’s again. “A little sex is all. But they take some of the women. They disappear.”
“Who’s taking them?”
He shook his head. “I do not know, but I will pay you to find out.”
“Hmm,” I said.
Just then, a black SUV rolled up to the curb in front of JD’s, and a man in dark slacks, a white shirt and long dark hair got out of the back seat.
“That’s Gage,” Zubov said.
The woman on the corner took a few steps toward Gage, then stopped and sauntered back to the corner. I kept binoculars in the backseat, and I pulled them out and trained them on her. I guessed she was in her late twenties or early thirties, and she wore jeans and a gray jacket. But what struck me was her left eye. In the fading light it was difficult to tell, but it looked like there was some scarring around it, as if she’d been on the losing end of a vicious fight.
“My money is good,” Zubov interrupted me. “I want you to find out what happened to my daughter.”
This didn’t look promising. But Zubov seemed so sincere…and heartbroken. I got out of the 4-Runner. “Wait here.”
Zubov thanked me profusely. I started across the street, wondering what I was getting myself into.
What’s Walk Softly, Danger all about?
Two forms of justice collide in Colorado.
Denver PI, Reed Ferguson, accepts a missing persons case that thrusts him into a world of strippers and night clubs. In the midst of a den of iniquity, he comes across Sydney Rye and her dog, Blue, who have perfected their own art form of vigilante justice.
Can they work together to find the truth, or will a killer end up calling the shots?
About the Author
Renée Pawlish is the award-winning author of the bestselling Reed Ferguson mystery series, the Dewey Webb mystery series, horror bestseller Nephilim Genesis of Evil, as well as young adult, middle-grade and nonfiction books. She has been called “a promising new voice to the comic murder mystery genre” and “a powerful storyteller.” Nephilim Genesis of Evil has been compared to Stephen King and Frank Peretti.
Renée was born in California, but has lived most of her life in Colorado, the setting of many of her books.
Visit her:
What are Kindle Worlds?
Kindle Worlds is an Amazon initiative that allows authors to publish stories set in another author’s fictional universe. The Sydney Rye Kindle World is based on the characters and situations created by bestselling author Emily Kimelman.
The Sydney Rye series of vigilante mysteries feature a strong female lead and her rescue dog, Blue. It is recommended for the 18+ who enjoy some violence, a dash of sex and don’t mind a little salty language. Not to mention an awesome, rollicking good mystery with tons of action that will keep you reading late into the night!
Jennifer Harlow earned a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Virginia. She has been a bookseller, radio DJ, lab assistant, and government investigator. She lives in Atlanta and is hard at work on her next book.
Eliza Carlisle has the unwanted talent of attracting trouble, in all its forms. That couldn’t be truer than when she moves into the most bizarre apartment building on the planet. Weekly required dinners with the landlord and assigned chores are bad enough, but the rules don’t end there. Top most on the list of requirements is NO physical violence against the others residents.
The tree lined streets with the eclectic combination of homes, bars, restaurants and shops give a unique backdrop for the diverse mix of people. Not diverse in the sense of different ethnicities. It has that, like every part of New York, but diverse in a broader sense.
life-altering secret.
