Undone: The Complete Duology, page 1
UNDONE
THE COMPLETE DUOLOGY
RAINY KAYE
Copyright © 2023 by Rainy Kaye
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
CONTENTS
UNDONE
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
UNRAVELLED
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
UNDONE
BOOK 1
1
GRACE
Today was going to require extra coffee thanks to being kept up all night by the hostage in my basement. He’d bitched and moaned the entire time. My little old farmhouse might be secluded, but the walls were paper thin. Didn’t get a wink of sleep.
I stared down at the freshly brewed cup of coffee sitting on the maker, then shuffled over to the fridge for the creamer. Snickers flavored. I smiled. It was good stuff.
As I poured a splash into my mug, a thump came from downstairs.
I groaned, flipping the lid shut on the creamer.
Parents of newborns think they have it rough.
It was after seven am. He was probably hungry.
I grabbed a bowl from the cabinet and a box of cereal from the counter, then frowned at my cup of coffee. I couldn’t lug all this downstairs.
And milk. He was going to want milk with his cereal.
I downed the coffee in a few hot gulps, then gathered up the bowl, spoon, cereal, and almond milk before heading downstairs. Mr. Fussy was still banging away as I undid the latch on the basement door then made my way down the creaking steps, careful not to drop anything.
My guest, tied to his chair, stopped rocking back and forth, banging the legs, and stared at me, chest heaving. His gaze landed on the box of cereal.
“What? I’m not making you fuckin’ pancakes,” I said, unloading breakfast onto the workbench to the side.
I poured milk and cereal—cereal first; I’m not a monster—and turned to him, bowl raised. He said something, but the words were muffled by the rag in his mouth. I leaned around him, deftly undoing the tie with one hand, and then scooped up a spoonful of cereal and milk.
“I’m going to fuckin’ murder you,” he said.
“Do you want your cereal or not?”
He hesitated and I brought the spoon to his mouth, my hand wobbling. Milk dribbled into his lap. With a defiant scoff, he opened his mouth.
“Good job,” I said, deadpan, as I dumped the cereal on his tongue. “I didn’t even need to do the airplane thing.”
He narrowed his eyes at me. He didn’t have to appreciate my sense of humor. He didn’t have to like a damn thing about me.
All I had to do was keep him alive for another twenty-one days.
“You know,” I said, feeding him another bite, “if you hadn’t delayed your trip at the last second, this would have been done and over with by now.”
He chewed and swallowed, never taking his eyes off me. I was sure it made him feel like a big tough guy.
“You’re fuckin’ insane,” he said, but then he took another bite, so I didn’t know what he thought he was accomplishing with the insults.
Insane wasn’t a good description. It was vague, sort of lame and unoriginal.
Determined. Passionate. Those fit me way better.
Not that he would understand.
“Bobby Bruno,” I admonished with a chuckle. “Watch your language.”
I offered him another bite, but he clamped his mouth shut.
I lowered the bowl in front of me. “It wasn’t like I wanted to keep you down here for three weeks, but I don’t make the rules.”
Despite being the one and only witch in all Thorn Tree, West Virginia, I still had to adhere to a higher power. She determined the cycle of events to occur, and I was beholden to them. As much as I would like to usher things along, the plan had to be done right. I would only get one chance, and it would be flawless.
They would know who I was before this was over. All of them.
“You’re not going to get away with this,” he said.
I perked up. “Is that so? And who, precisely, is going to find you? At least, while it matters.”
He stared at me, a trickle of blood running down his nose. I may have bashed him in the face a few times, but only out of necessity. First, to knock him out and second, by total accident when I was dragging him down the basement stairs.
I wasn’t used to hauling around hostages. He was my first, a designation he didn’t seem to find the least bit flattering.
When he didn’t answer my question, I lifted the bowl. “Your cereal is getting soggy.”
“Go to hell.”
“Funny you should say that…” I placed the bowl on the workbench and brushed my hands together. “Look, I’m going to get a few hours of shut eye. I suggest keeping it down. We are literally in the middle of nowhere—you remember, don’t you, Bobby?”
I batted my eyelashes at him.
“They should have put you in a hole when they had a chance,” he said.
I gripped the arms of the chair and leaned in so my nose was a centimeter from his. “Oh, Bobby, I’m not that easy to stop.”
I grinned at him until he flinched.
After returning the gag, I headed back up the stairs. I paused before the door and looked at him over my shoulder. “Oh, and Bobby?”
He met my gaze through the dim lighting.
“Welcome home.”
I shut the door on my way out then slipped the latch into place. I wasn’t sure he could get out of the restraints on the chair, but I didn’t want to risk anything. The problem was, I couldn’t use lethal force with him. I needed to keep him alive and healthy until it was time for him to serve his purpose.
Everything had aligned perfectly. Bobby Bruno hadn’t returned to town since he’d left, and the moment I needed him to, he decided to come visit his dear ol’ ma.
The Goddess delivered to her faithful.
Sure, he had delayed his plans, which threw off mine, but it had all worked out. Thorn Tree didn’t receive a lot of visitors, so the road coming in was often empty. That had made it easy to cut him off. I’d taken my jeep through a trail the local kids used for their ATVs and dirt bikes, then came out onto the road across the lane, just on the other side of a bend. He had seen my vehicle only in time to slow down. I’d laid hunched over the steering wheel, hoodie pulled, hair over my face. The driver side window was rolled down.
He hadn’t recognized me as he’d crept closer, assessing what might have been an accident. Or perhaps a passed out drunk driver.
Good boy Bobby, always looking out for everyone.
I scoffed as I flopped down onto my couch. I tucked a throw pillow under my head.
When he’d gotten close enough, I’d pepper sprayed him through the window, slammed the door into him, and then tackled him to the ground. Normally, I wouldn’t have stood much of a chance at getting him down, but the combo attack had done the trick. I’d punched him in the face the way my dad had taught me to knock him out cold. It had taken a few tries but finally he’d gone out.
Then I’d pushed his car into the part of the forest where no one ventured, and where nothing returned.
No one but the little woodland creatures had been around to witness as I’d bundled him up into my jeep and taken him back to my house.
Boy, he’d been cranky when he’d awaken strapped to a chair.
I grabbed the throw blanket off the back of the couch and draped it over my torso, feet sticking out, and closed my eyes. Just a few hours of sleep, that was all I needed. Then I would be ready to start on my next task.
I’d just dozed off when a knock came to the front door. I bolted upright, then glared at the door.
Who the hell would be dumb enough to stop by? It wasn’t like we got Jehovah Witnesses out here, so it had to be some nosy person from town.
Time to shut that down real fast.
I threw back off the blanket and stormed towards the door, preparing my best unfriendly face. I yanked open the door, then jerked back.
Standing on my porch was a man in a cowboy hat. He flicked up the brim with a smirk.
“Good mornin
I had no idea who this fuck-cake was, but he needed to go away, now.
“It is a bother, in fact,” I snapped. “Some of us work nights.”
Not me, but he didn’t need to know that.
“My apologies,” he said with a glint in his eyes.
The fact he was absolutely gorgeous made me hate him more. That cocky grin and perfectly groomed beard. And delicious biceps that flexed under his simple black t-shirt.
Someone should feed him to an alligator.
I huffed, making a big show of being annoyed. “Can I help you?”
I didn’t sound the least bit neighborly.
“I was sent over from the next precinct,” he said, stepping closer. “Just need to ask you a few questions. I’m investigating the disappearance of Robert Bruno.”
2
GRACE
Well, shit.
Someone was looking for Little Bobby after all. That didn’t bode well.
No matter. I could guarantee no one saw what went down on the road, and no one knew he was in my house. This guy was just doing his due diligence asking all the outlying farmhouses what they might know. I would just answer his questions and send him on his way.
Except, of course, I had Bobby in my basement.
“Yeah, sure,” I said, finding my composure. “Let me just put the cat up in the bedroom. Strangers piss her off.”
He smiled. “They say pets match their owner.”
“Do they?” I murmured, distracted with how I was going to pull off this trick. “Hold, please.”
I shut the door in his face before he could reply, then scrambled to the basement door, grinding my teeth.
As I hurried down the steps, Bobby sat forward in his chair. I couldn’t let on that a stranger was hanging around. He might try to signal them.
I snagged the gag that had fallen into his lap. He twisted back and forth, trying to resist as I attempted to secure it back into place. I slapped him in the back of the head with my palm then tied the gag.
I lowered my face into his.
“Listen up, you piece of shit,” I growled. “You make one peep, and I will make sure your death is the most drawn-out horrific experience known to mankind. Do you understand?”
He stared at me, sweat trickling into his eyes.
I slapped him in the head again. “Do you understand me?”
He nodded slowly.
“Good.”
I didn’t trust him though. I needed to take extra precaution. The risks were too high.
With a deep breath, I conjured my magic from the ground and then pressed my palm to his forehead, willing relaxation through him. His shoulders drooped and while he stayed awake, he fell into a gentle trance. His gaze shifted back and forth, taking in the scene, but he made little effort to move.
“That’s better.”
Too bad I couldn’t do that trick whenever I wanted. My magic had limitations.
I hurried back up the stairs, latched the door, then took a moment to compose myself before I returned to the front door.
The man had barely moved from where I’d left him.
“Come in,” I said curtly, stepping back to invite him inside.
He nodded once and headed to the couch.
“Oh, you don’t need to get comfortable,” I said.
He halted next to the couch, amusement dancing in his eyes.
I folded my arms over my chest. “So, your questions?”
“I thought hospitality was a big deal in these parts.”
“Not south enough. Who were you looking for again? A murderer, I think?”
He studied me, and I wanted to be put off. I was used to the looks, the sizing me up, but this time, it was different. There wasn’t judgment in the expression, but genuine intrigue.
I wasn’t sure what to feel about that, so I decided not to feel anything at all.
“Roberta Brown reported her son never contacted her after leaving New York to visit,” he said. “She insists he is somewhere in Thorn Tree, though.”
I’d always despised their names. Roberta and her son Robert. Someone had phoned it in that day.
“I’m not sure what the question is,” I said, still standing, ready to let him back out as soon as he was satisfied with this little interview.
“Have you seen him? Do you have any ideas of what might have happened to him?”
“Bobby and I went to school together,” I said, “but that doesn’t mean anything, really. There’s only one school in Thorn Tree, and frankly, I’m surprised we have that many.”
The man chuckled.
“I haven’t seen hide nor hair of him since graduation. Can’t say we were close, or even talked.”
“His mother mentioned that you used to attend parties with him.”
My chest squeezed. I breathed slowly through my nose, trying not to give into the panic attack that surged through me.
“Party is a bit generous of a word. Everyone under twenty-five attended the same little bonfire campouts, because there weren't enough of us to make two baseball teams,” I said. “I’m sorry, but I don’t think you identified yourself.”
This guy didn’t have any real info on me, but he was too interested.
“Officer Mac Brewer,” he said. “And you are Grace Miller, correct?”
“You’re bad at this,” I said. “I would expect an officer to identify everyone before asking questions, but yes, I am Grace Miller.”
“And where did you say you work?”
“I didn’t. I’m not sure I have anything useful to offer you, but I hope you find Robert. His mother was always nice to me,” I said, which wasn’t entirely a lie.
She had been, once. Then she’d turned on me.
They all had.
Still, I didn’t want to give the impression I wasn’t interested in his disappearance. That might make me look guilty—because I was.
Mac pulled out his wallet and handed me a business card. I hesitated before snatching it with two fingers.
“My number,” he said. “I’m staying at Honey and Hive during the investigation. If you think of anything, please let me know.”
I smiled sweetly, and my cheeks ached. “I will. Thank you, officer.”
He scanned me head to toe, and I shrank back into myself. I didn’t like him looking at me, and I didn’t like that my body warmed under his gaze.
He needed to go.
I opened the front door. “Thanks for stopping by.”
He headed towards the door, then halted. “Your cat is very quiet.”
“I gave her catnip.”
As he towered over me, another little smirk twitched on his face. I would smack it off his head, given the chance.
“Call me,” he said, “for any reason.”
I flicked the card out the front door. “Bye.”
He tipped his hat then strolled out the door. I slammed it shut before he’d barely passed the threshold.
I let out a shuddering breath. No doubt, if I hadn’t used my magic, Bobby would have made some racket and got us in a bunch of trouble.
Despite the fact Mac had left, I wasn’t convinced my problems with him were over. He was going to continue poking around, looking for clues, digging into the past of Thorn Tree.
And Thorn Tree’s past was my past, too.
I couldn’t allow him to destroy everything I had been working on, that I had risked my life for. He wouldn’t come between me and what the Goddess had gifted me. If only I could use my magic to stop him, but it didn’t work like that.
I was going to have to keep a close eye on him.
