6,99 €
Mehr erfahren.
- Herausgeber: Books on Demand
- Kategorie: Krimi
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020
'The ties of friendship and family are tested one final time in this capstone entry into the Stolen Lives trilogy. As the newly established family finally begins to develop a sense of normalcy, the turbulent past of both Linda and the Conley clan come to light all at once, colliding to create a stage for drama, mystery, and deepened friendship. Follow the tale through the Scottish Highlands, the streets of Mexico, and the beautiful Hamptons as characters old and new battle with difficult decisions to right old wrongs and strengthen new ties. ' Nicholas Modlin In this final entry, the enduring powers of love and forgiveness, when tested against the toughest of times, prove to generate the most exciting and heartwarming fireworks show of all!
Das E-Book können Sie in Legimi-Apps oder einer beliebigen App lesen, die das folgende Format unterstützen:
Seitenzahl: 236
Ähnliche
For Nicholas
Introduction
A frosty cold north wind sneaks furtively through the narrow streets of the Scottish village and drives people back into their warm houses. Those who can afford it stay inside where it’s warm all day long, enjoying the crackling fire in the fireplace, reading exciting stories about distant lands, cooking delicacies and dreaming of the wide world. White sand beaches, warm sand between their toes and well-mixed cocktails at the pool bars. Vacations that only a few can afford, but everyone knows about from movies and travel advertisements. Seductive pictures, day in, day out.
The wooden door of the rustic warehouse opens and a tall, stocky man, weather-beaten and dressed in practical clothes, struggles against the wind and closes the door behind him. With a grim look on his face, he puts both his hands in his jacket pockets and walks with heavy steps toward the freestanding stone house, takes two large pieces of wood from the pile next to the grand staircase and opens the door to the warmth. Without removing his shoes, he shuffles through the spacious entrance to the cozy living room. The cheerfully dancing fire casts a warm light and makes the room look even more stylish. As the tall Scot kneels in front of the fireplace, he hears little feet walking down the stairs. He rolls his eyes and goes over to stand before her, saying, "No boots in the house! How many times do I have to say it! I clean and clean in here and you can’t come up with a better idea than to bringing all the dirt from the stinking stable in here! It'll take me another whole day to get that stink out of the house! What will our guests think!” He shoots back a teasing response as he pokes around in the fire.
When he hears neither a contradiction nor an outburst of insults, he turns around, wondering, and looks into the gaping eyes of the petite woman standing in the open door. Slowly he gets up, walks over to her and bends down to her eye level. "You look like you've seen a ghost! Did you see a ghost? Hailey?” The girl blinks excitedly and swallows almost audibly before she finds her voice. “He's coming... They're coming... All... Both... All three of them... They’re all coming..."
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
Chapter 76
Chapter 77
Chapter 78
Chapter 79
Chapter 80
Chapter 81
Chapter 82
Chapter 83
Chapter 84
Chapter 85
Chapter 86
Chapter 87
Chapter 88
Chapter 89
Chapter 90
Chapter 91
Chapter 92
Chapter 93
Chapter 94
Chapter 95
Chapter 96
Chapter 97
Chapter 98
Chapter 99
Chapter 100
Chapter 101
Chapter 102
Chapter 103
Chapter 1
"Bonnie, as always, it was just delicious! You're by far the best cook on this planet!” Frank leans back comfortably in his chair, takes the napkin from his lap and slaps his well-muscled stomach with the palm of his hand. “So, it’s a good thing I got in two rounds this morning. Otherwise, I won’t be getting any more parts in exciting movies, I definitely belong to the old guard in Hollywood, but every meal of yours is worth the difficult physical training, my pearl!” He reaches for Bonnie's hand as she goes to take his plate off the table and gives the old lady an appreciative kiss on it. She pulls her hand away, embarrassed, and replies, "Now stop it! You exaggerate as always! But I'm not saying you’re not flattering me. Thank you, Frank!“ She picks up his plate and walks around the large mahogany table to take Ken's plate as well.
"No Bonnie, he’s not exaggerating! That was really a fantastic meal! I would say a gourmet reviewer would call this a ‘palate explosion’ and rate it with 5 stars!" He copies the actions of his father and sits back in his chair, also slapping his stomach and smiling as he says, “However, my fitness rounds this morning were not quite as athletic as yours, Dad. I whipped our apartment into shape, ran to the supermarket, took the stairs instead of the elevator, and that's it! Now everything is ready for the big reception."
Frank gets up from his chair and heads for his bar. "Do you also want a little digestif? Otherwise I will explode in mid air!” He laughs happily and takes a bottle of single malt from the mobile globe-shaped liquor cabinet. Ken puts his napkin on the table and stands up from his cozy position. "Dad, I wanted to tell you something before we drive to the airport." He slowly approaches his father, who is holding out a crystal glass with golden liquid contents.
“Drive?"
Chapter 2
She should not have told him. Not yet, at least. But how in the world could she keep such news to herself? Hailey vigorously mashes the still steaming potatoes in the pan. The earthy smell spreads around the large kitchen and gives the experienced cook renewed motivation. Yes, she had to tell him without delay. It would have been a lot worse for him if he would have found out about it in the village. Such news spreads fast and then it’s either not true at all or only half of it is. Don’t even think about if Crissa had found out before him. "Holy Mother of God!" Hailey crosses herself with a startled look out of the window. She lingers on that thought for a fraction of a second, then eagerly resumes mashing the potatoes. Crissa must not find out – that would be a disaster! Once she gets wind of this gossip, lies will spread all over the village. That would be worse than the plague! Once again, the small Scotswoman crosses herself and begins whispering the Lord's Prayer.
"Whom did you kill?" As if caught in the act, Hailey drops her cooking spoon into the pan, slaps her chest with her hand and turns on her heels. "Do not say such horrible things, Angus Cunningham MacKay! And what in the world do you think you’re doing, coming into my clean kitchen with your dirty boots?" She turns around angrily, picking up a knife and lifting it menacingly into the air without even glancing at the man who gave her such a fright. "Go outside and bring me a chicken!" When she doesn’t hear any sounds behind her, she slowly turns around and looks directly into the man’s grim stare. With his arms crossed in front of his chest, the laird of the manor leans against the door frame and chews on a blade of grass sticking out of his mouth. "I'm not INSIDE the kitchen... I'm standing in the doorway..." He raises an eyebrow casually, snorts air loudly into his nose and stomps one of his boots on the floor.
"You are a monster, Angus Cunningham MacKay! A terrible, misbehaved and godless monster!” Hailey puts down the knife, brushes her hands on her lacy apron, and walks over to the big wooden table in the middle of the kitchen. She takes the scissors lying on top of it, cuts some herbs from the fresh shrubs in their pots and places them gently in a small bowl. After placing it next to the hot pan, she goes to the refrigerator, opens the chromed door, takes out a glass bottle and returns with the bottle full of white liquid to the steaming pan. After unscrewing the milk, Hailey pauses for an instant. She can feel her chest rise and fall for a moment. A second later, she finishes by adding some milk into the mashed potatoes and says loudly, "Well then, I guess there will be no fried chicken today!"
Chapter 3
"But she will hopefully get used to this situation, won’t she?" Frank looks out of the limousine window with a slightly bored look on his face and taps a rhythm on his leg with his fingers. Ken grins mischievously and turns to his father, saying, "Are you getting comfortable in your old age? Hey, Dad, a grandfather should be flexible and spontaneous! I thought Mirjam was keeping you in good shape!" The cheerful Law Professor sits down on the side seats in the long limousine so that he can get a better look at his father. He opens his shirt collar slightly and looks at the watch on his wrist. “Hm… Mirjam... When exactly are they landing anyway? I could surprise the little one and we could all meet at home. They’re still planning on coming to the guest house, right?" He looks questioningly into the excited eyes opposite him.
"You know what? That's a great idea! Why don’t you surprise Mirjam, kidnap her and fly back with her? We can take the car and drive to Roberto’s office and take him with us. Then we all meet at home. And yes, we would like to use the guest house for a few days. Then we‘ll go back to the city. Ok, Dad?"
His father’s raised eyebrows and twisted mouth tell Ken that only part of his idea has been well received by the nation's former action hero. And he tries another tactic to get his father’s facial expression to change. "Come on, Dad, we'll enjoy a vacation together soon! And believe me, you will be glad to get some rest away from us later!"
Frank Conley clicks his tongue and casually presses the button next to him. Kenneth rolls his eyes, leans his head back and pushes his butt forward to the edge of the seat so that he’s hanging off the seat like a potato sack. "Here we go..."
The darkened window between the driver's compartment and the back of the stretch limo is slowly opening and now the view of the road in front of them and the neck and right shoulder of Max the driver are visible. "Hey my friend! Tell me, how are your boys? All healthy and cheerful? Is your Melissa still the happiest woman in the world?” Frank speaks these words into the built-in microphone next to his seat. His longtime driver and companion on the streets of New York looks into the rearview mirror, with a pleased look, and answers, "Of course, sir! All happy and healthy! Melissa is getting prettier by the day and my boys make us proud parents of college students, sir! You know, this is all because we don’t live in this stinking city. Children need fresh air and sea breeze to thrive and be healthy! Like you, Mr. Conley Junior!" He winks in the rearview mirror and slides the window separator silently up again.
Chapter 4
"Good boy! Let's find some peace and quiet. I have never enjoyed female chatter." Angus pulls the girth on his stallion a little tighter and gently strokes the horse’s shiny black fur. He takes the reins in his hand and swings skillfully and casually onto the back of the strong animal. The clicking of his tongue and a light kick with his foot let the trained horse know which way to go. The two ride comfortably away from the farm, through the forest path alongside the babbling brook, out over the vast, hilly landscape of the Scottish Highlands. They don’t start to trot until the stallion feels the need to put more power into his legs, and then they gallop up to the high cliffs. An indescribable view down to the ocean presents itself and Angus brings his obedient horse to a halt.
"What would I do without you, my dear boy?" Angus taps his big hand on the strong neck of his faithful companion and lets his gaze wander over the sea. "What do you think about us having some visitors?" The animal who’s being asked shakes his shiny mane and snorts loudly. "Hm, yes... I feel the same way! I don’t particularly like having the house full of people. Especially not, when the same old stories get told again and again. Hailey will be reminded of everything again and she’s already finding it difficult to sleep. Well, she will have to stop doing that now because she knows they’re coming. She would never admit it, you know, but I'm not as introverted as she constantly insists I am. You know that, right? And shall I tell you why I know she can’t sleep well? Her scrambled eggs are overcooked, not spicy enough or too spicy, her tea is brewed too long, the coffee is much too strong, the meat is fried until it’s the consistency of shoe leather and the salad is swimming in dressing!"
He picks up the reins and gives his silent listener a few gentle kicks in the side. They gallop along the stunningly beautiful landscape and back home. A breathtaking home, that has been maintained and nurtured for generations, as far as Angus can see in his Scottish family tree that hangs on the wall of the large staircase. And no one will ever change that…if only the issue with his offspring were not so difficult.
Chapter 5
After the long vehicle parked in front of the airport has unloaded a passenger, it is driven back to Brooklyn. Frank Conley presses a key on his BlackBerry and holds it to his ear. "Hey Tom, how are you? Do you have time for a former customer?" He laughs and stretches his long legs out. "Great! No, thanks, I do not want to smell studio air. I’d rather inhale your fresh leather seats! Ha-ha…exactly! I need a driver for the little wild one and me. I'm on my way to school with Max right now. But he has to pick Ken up from the airport. Yes, exactly... They are arriving today. It’s unbelievable, right?" He looks out the window and realizes that they will soon be arriving at their destination. "Alright then, in front of the school? And then we’ll get going to meet Mike at the airfield! You are still the best! See you soon!"
The tall, still very well-built actor thanks his driver and gets out of the limousine. He closes the top two buttons of his jacket and walks elegantly, one hand casually in his trouser pocket, toward the school entrance. He opens the big entry door, then the next door to the reception office at the private school.
"Hello, ladies," he calls to the women who are already looking up from behind the counter, and they both stand up as if the commander of a police academy had entered.
"Hello Mr. Conley! How nice to see you! Somebody will be happy about this surprise!" The older of the two finds her voice first and pushes a sheet of paper over to him. "May I ask you to sign here? I'll do everything else, a blind autograph, so to speak." As she says that with a delightful smile, the younger girl giggles into her hand and leans back in her chair in embarrassment. Frank signs on the line for his signature and secretly enjoys the effect he still has, even though his movie days are now a long time in the past.
"Donna, will you take Mr. Conley to the classroom, please?" The first secretary takes the sheet off the counter and points out the direction to the young silly girl the way with her pen.
"Of course, I’d love to! Would you like to follow me, Mr. Conley?" She gets up, walks around the counter, and opens the second door of the office behind glass panes.
"Please, call me Frank. Mr. Conley sounds so old." The big, self-confident man, holds the door open now so the small secretary can scurry through, taking a deep breath of his seductive aftershave. She giggles again and replies, "I’d love to, sir! Oh... I mean Frank, of course."
Chapter 6
"Here you are at last! Do you still need more time with the horses?" Hailey stands with both hands on her hips in the open stall door. Angus calmly rests on one bent knee, trimming one of the horses’ hoof. "Yes, here I am, Hailey. What do you need?" Slowly he puts the horse's leg back down on the ground, letting his hand slide over the leg and gently slapping the animal's hind end. "Good girl!" He takes the rag from the half-open wooden door next to him and wipes his hands with it.
"I would like to go to the village. Can you accompany me? Please?" Her hands folded as if in prayer, she now appears almost shy.
"And what do you need from the village? Can’t Sam get it?" He takes the saddle next to him off the beam and goes back to the stately white mare. He then hangs the elegant saddle on a designated hook in front of the mare. The beautiful horse starts to get restless, so he strokes her neck under the wild mane and soothes her, "It will be fine..."
"No, Angus, you don’t understand. I would like to go to the village with YOU. I need decent clothes and would like to have lunch at Bynnie’s." No sooner has she finished talking, she hears deep, murmuring sounds from the horse stall with the new young mare. "Please Angus... I can’t receive them this way, wearing these old rags. What will they think!" She blows her nose with the kitchen towel hanging out of her apron and walks slowly away from the stable.
"What do you want me to wear to go to Bynnie’s?" Angus is leaning against the stable door, brushing his hands, with his eyes fixed on them. Hailey stops walking but does not turn to face him, so that he will not notice her happy smile, and replies, "The blue turtleneck I knit you for Christmas and the beige corduroy trousers. No boots! Your church shoes." Her face still radiant, she triumphantly approaches the house and hears the deep male voice behind her.
"Clean underdrawers as well?"
Chapter 7
Frank stops in front of the classroom door and thanks his companion. "Thank you, Donna. I'll wait a bit longer and watch the kids through the window. I like watching young and eager students. Is that ok?" He looks at her questioningly. "I'm sorry, Mr. Conley, Frank, I'm not allowed to leave you alone in the hallway, but I would love to wait with you, if you want. I have time." She blinks, slightly embarrassed, then looks through the window in the door into the classroom. "Oh look, it's Mirjam's turn! They are having their blood types checked today. Isn’t that exciting? Back in my day, we didn’t do such cool things in physics and biology classes. Mostly, we just studied leaves on trees, dissected rabbits and memorized some stupid tables."
"What do you mean; they’re checking their blood types?" Conley frowns and looks into the room, where a group of students is gathered around a large table. "What are they doing? Is that blood? HER blood?!" Now looking shocked, he moves his face closer to the window and before Donna can answer, Frank opens the door with a jerk. "Hey! What exciting things are you doing there?!" He shouts, and all heads turn around to him.
"Skipper! What are YOU doing here?!" The smallest girl with dark long curls joyfully drops her sterile instruments and hops over to the visitor. She hugs him and is immediately hugged back. Frank kisses her on the head and breathes in the scent of her hair. "Mmm, how I missed you, Lassie!" He pinches her waist, which makes her giggle.
"Mr. Conley, what an honor to welcome you to our experimentation lesson!" The tall, thin teacher, who is wearing an orange T-shirt and washed-out jeans, steps over to the two, who are still hugging each other. He shakes Frank’s hand in greeting. "You have a strong handshake, sir. Who would have thought it?" Frank winks at him and replies, "I hope I am not bothering you!" As he says this, he looks curiously at the table and the items lying on it.
"No, not at all, sir! Please, come closer! Mirjam was preparing her blood for a check. Now we will have to wait until next time. But that's not a problem, is it?" The science teacher looks first at Conley, then at Mirjam, who shakes her head eagerly, saying, "No, no, it’s fine!" She goes over to the table and takes the flat plate with the red spot on it in her hand. "I still have enough of it." She laughs happily and throws the plate into the lockable bucket under the table.
The astonished visitor goes over to the table and asks, "Why are you throwing it away?"
"Because the blood has dried up now!" A blond girl standing next to Frank answers his question. "It's my turn now!" She eagerly reaches for the microscope and carefully opens a small tube with some red liquid in it.
Chapter 8
Silently they sit side by side in the old Cadillac and drive through the untouched landscape of the Highlands. Happy and a bit nervous, Hailey sits bolt upright. Her outfit is white leather and her delicate hands, enclosed in cream-colored gloves, lie on her handbag, which is the same color. After driving over a stone that causes the car to shake briefly, she straightens her hat that covers part of her white curls. With a reproachful look on her face, she turns to Angus and stares at him sideways. He casually raises his shoulders and murmurs, "I didn’t put him out on the street." He leans his head on his right fist, with his arm leaning against the window.
"Shouldn’t you keep both hands on the steering wheel?" His nervous passenger turns to look at him pointedly.
"Someone who can’t even drive has nothing to complain about!" He does not pay any attention to her, just continues to look at the road in front of him.
"How can you be such an old grump! You never talked like this to..." She just barely shakes her head and looks out the window at the landscape again. "You know, Angus, it's not easy for me either. I would have liked things to be a bit differently as well. But you're a grown man now and a very good participant. You can’t always stay out here alone. And l won’t be around for all of eternity and…and..." She can’t finish her tirade, because the driver interrupts her, "And I also have to put up with a diaper shitter!"
"Angus Cunningham MacKay! Do not talk about your descendant like that! What exactly are you thinking should happen here anyhow? What have I done wrong in your upbringing?" Outraged, the small Scotswoman turns on the seat, so that her back is facing Angus.
After a long pouting silence, she sits straight again, smooths her coat and clears her throat, saying, "Well, I didn’t do everything wrong! You will
see, you'll like her." As soon as she finishes the sentence, the silent listener steers the car to the side of the road and turns off the engine.
"Angus?! What are you doing?! Is something wrong with the car? Why are we stopping here?" Puzzled, she looks first out the window and then back at her companion, who is sitting quietly behind the wheel, his eyes still on the road in front of them, slowly sliding his tongue over his upper lip before he purses his lips as if he wants to whistle. He inhales loudly and clicks his tongue. "Angus, what's going on here?" Hailey leans over towards him.
"You tell me! What is the real reason, I changed into fresh underwear?"
Chapter 9
"That was a great class! The teacher seems to be very nice! Do you like him, Lassie?" Frank steps nervously from one foot to the other. "Yes, I like him very much, he's super nice and always doing such cool things with us!" Mirjam stands in front of the big man whom she has called Skipper ever since she first learned how to talk. She winks at him, saying, "What's going on up there? Why are you so nervous?"
Frank stands firmly on both feet, puts his big hands on her petite shoulders and looks into her dark eyes. "Because some important visitors are arriving today! Big and small, wild and quiet, young and old! Do not say you forgot, Lassie! Not you! After all, you are the smartest person in the family! There’s quite a brain inside that beautiful head, right?” Smiling, he taps his forehead with his finger. She grabs his finger lightning-fast and opens her mouth silently. She pauses for a few seconds, then replies, "Today? They’re coming today? Are they already here? Where are they?!" She’s still holding his finger and starts looking at the street, the parking lot and the school entrance. Right at this moment, a red Porsche drives up and the darkened window on the passenger side is lowered. She does not recognize the person behind the wheel, but hears a familiar voice say, "Who needs to urgently get to the airfield?"
Joyfully, the teenage girl jumps up and runs over to the red luxury car. "Me, me, take me with you, Tom!" She opens the passenger door and sticks her head in. "Hi Tom! Wow, is this new? Is it yours?" She looks around inside the car. "Yes, it's mine. Do you like it? Get in the back seat and we’ll also take the lost old man behind you!" He laughs heartily and pats the seat next to him, saying, "Need some help, action hero?!"
At the airfield, the two men give each other a friendly hug before Mike opens the helicopter door for Mirjam. "My lady, welcome on board!"
He then turns to Frank, grinning. "Would you like to climb the stairs, sir?" He ducks just in time to dodge Frank's flying fist. "Oh, that would have caught me sharp! The stunts give way!" He shakes his head theatrically and walks around his flying workplace to get in the pilot’s seat.
"So, today is the big day, I heard! Is there a tourist flight in the next few days? Should I come up with something fun?" The Conleys’ long-time pilot focuses on the metropolitan landscape in front of them and presses a couple of buttons, Mirjam's voice can be heard in the headset as she says, "Unfortunately no, she's terribly afraid of flying, so that’s why it has taken so long for her to finally visit us. I cannot wait to see the twins again. They have definitely grown a ton over these past few weeks."
