Good and Faithful Friend - Jeremy McHarry - E-Book

Good and Faithful Friend E-Book

Jeremy McHarry

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  • Herausgeber: Bentockiz
  • Kategorie: Krimi
  • Sprache: Englisch
  • Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023
Beschreibung

Instinctively, I turned towards the stairs and practically fell down them in my haste to get to her, but carefully kept a firm grip on my shotgun. I couldn’t have cared less which of the two men survived the confrontation, but I wasn’t about to let her get hurt I’d almost made it to her when the sound of a soft thud reached my ears. Although I hadn’t ever encountered one in real life, I’d watched enough action-adventure movies to recognize a silencer when I heard one. Definitely not welcome news.

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Title Page

Good and Faithful Friend

Turning Point

Jeremy McHarry

Good and Faithful Friend / 13th of series: Turning Point / By Jeremy McHarry

Published 2023 by Bentockiz

e-book Imprint: Uniochlors

e-book Registration: Stockholm, Sweden

e-book ISBN: 9789198834291

e-book editing: Athens, Greece

Cover Images created via AI art generators

Table of Contents

Title Page

Introduction

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Introduction

Through books we come into contact with everything important that has happened in the past, analyzing also current events and putting our thoughts together to predict the future. The book is a window to the world, acquiring valuable knowledge and sparking our vivid imagination. It is a means of entertainment and is generally seen as a best friend, or as a slave that carries together all valuable information for us. The book is a friend who stays together without demands, a friend you call upon at every moment and abandon when you want.

It accompanies us in the hours of boredom and loneliness, while at the same time it entertains us. In general, a book does not ask anything from us, while it waits patiently on a dusty shelf to give us its information, to get us out of dead ends and to travel us to magical worlds.

This may be the travel mission of our books. Abstract narration, weird or unconscious thoughts difficult to be understood, but always genuine and full of life experiences, these are stories of life that can’t be overlooked easily.

Chapter One

Once again, I threw the wrong card. I just couldn’t seem to concentrate and, as much as I hated to admit it, I knew it was because I had no idea where Ricky was or what he was doing.

What exactly did constitute boys’ night out for Ricky’s friends?

“Is anything wrong, Mary?” Rachel asked in concern as we tallied up the points and Ashley jotted down the totals.

“Everything’s great,” I replied with feigned cheerfulness. “Why?”

“You just seem so...quiet.”

“I’m not much of a talker.”

I shrugged and tossed some popcorn in my mouth.

“Anybody need a refill?” Rachel asked, getting up off the floor and heading for the kitchen. “I could sure use some more ginger ale.”

“You shouldn’t be drinking all that sugar,” Denise called after her. “You don’t want to get pregnancy diabetes.”

Rachel returned carrying a bowl of ice and an unopened liter bottle of ginger ale.

“No nagging tonight, Nurse Killjoy,” Rachel pouted. “I get enough of that from Christopher.”

“So, where did Dr. Krohl say he was taking the guys?” I asked with forced casualness.

“Someplace...um...guy-ish,” Ashley replied vaguely. “Mark spends way too much time hovering over me like an old mother hen. He needs some ‘guy time’.”

“Same here,” Rachel laughed as she shuffled the cards. “Christopher seems to think I can’t take care of myself.”

“I imagine it’s much worse now that you’re pregnant,” Ashley commiserated. “I shudder to think how protective Mark’s going to be when we start a family. I might never get to leave the apartment again.”

“You two just don’t know when you’ve got it good,” Denise accused. “I’d give anything for what you have...over-protectiveness and all.”

“I’m sorry, Denise,” Ashley said. “You’re right. I wouldn’t trade Mark for anything. It just gets a bit frustrating at times...”

“It’s okay,” she sighed. “I’m oh for two in the male department. Two attempts at a serious relationship and they both failed miserably. First Daniel—although using the words ‘Daniel’ and ‘serious’ in the same area code is totally stupid which is why I dumped him—then Aaron...” she shook her head in resignation. “I guess I’m just not the type to inspire life-long devotion and commitment.”

“Who are Daniel and Aaron?” I asked, curious in spite of myself.

“Daniel is one of Mark’s old college friends,” Denise explained. “We had a thing for a while. He drove up here from Austin as often as he could, and it lasted a few months, but Daniel is an immature jerk—kinda like my brother, Ricky—so...”

“Ricky’s not a jerk,” I objected vehemently before I could stop myself. “He’s sweet and nice and...and...” I trailed off in shock at what I’d just done.

All three turned to stare at me.

“So it’s true,” Denise said in wide-eyed wonder, “you really are in love with Ricky...”

“No...no...we...I...” I stuttered then fell silent closing my eyes and berating my stupidity.

I’d practically begged Ricky not to say anything about us being serious and definitely not anything about all the marriage talk, and then I go and practically announce it to the world.

Dummy...idiot...moron...

“It’s all right,” Rachel said gently, laying her hand on my arm for a moment. “Whatever relationship you and Ricky have is none of our business, but...”

Rachel hesitated and Ashley took over for her.

“We’re here to help, Mary,” Ashley said quickly. “That’s what we do for each other. Rachel helped me accept my horrid childhood, the fact that things happened to me that I couldn’t control, which was something I had to do before I could accept Mark’s proposal, and...”

“And by helping Ashley,” Rachel picked up where Ashley left off, “I helped myself recover from my own childhood trauma...things I’d hidden so deeply inside of me that I hadn’t even realized they were affecting me during my whole first marriage. Christopher helped and had to endure a lot of my bad-tempered outbursts, but I needed Ashley, too. Sometimes you need someone you can talk to who can actually relate.”

“What kinds of childhood issues?” I asked almost reluctantly.

“I was sexually abused by my stepfather,” Ashley offered without hesitation. “Mark was the first person I told of my own free will, and he helped me like Dr. Krohl helped Rachel, but Rachel is the reason I’m finally able to marry Mark and not cringe at the thought of our wedding night.”

“And my stepfather was a psychopath who controlled my mother and me through physical and mental abuse,” Rachel said. “I might be the one with the official letters after my name, but Ashley helped me at least as much as I helped her...if not more.”

“Wow,” Denise exhaled loudly, “that’s...that’s...incredible. I didn’t know any of that.”

“It’s not something you spring on people for no reason,” Ashley admitted.

“But you both have a reason,” I said quietly. “Don’t you?”

“You do?” Denise asked in surprise. “What’s going...oh my gosh! That’s why you weren’t going to invite me. Something’s going on with Mary, isn’t it? And you didn’t want me to know...”

“Denise,” Ashley began in warning.

“It’s okay, Ashley,” I sighed in resignation as I stood, “I knew something was up...and you’re right, I do have things in my past that I...well...let’s just say we all have our skeletons. I simply prefer to leave mine firmly locked up in my closet.”

“You don’t have to do this alone, Mary,” Rachel stood and faced me.

“I know,” I half-smiled, “I have Ricky.”

“We could help if you’d just...”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said as I turned to Denise. “I seem to have developed a slight headache. Would you mind if we left early?”

As I followed Mark into the nightclub, I wondered what the heck was going on. Mark was hardly the nightclub type. From church services to a bar...definitely weird.

Once inside, a barely-dressed, gum-smacking ‘hostess’ led the way to an already occupied table in one of the darkest corners of the room.

“Good evening, Ricky,” Dr. Krohl stood and shook my hand.

“Hi,” I replied cautiously.

Although Mark appeared to be good friends with Dr. Krohl despite the age difference, I’d personally never had much to do with him. Being buds with a shrink struck me as the height of stupidity. The thought of subjecting myself to somebody analyzing and judging me in a social setting didn’t appeal.