Harlan's Secret (Behind The Crime Book 5) Read online

  “Yes, thanks, babe,” Jessy answers. “Just put them here on my desk.”

  She points to a large desk strewn with other files, competing for space with her computer.

  “Ooooh,” Mia says with excitement, running into the room. “I can't wait to get going!” She rushes over to another desk and sits herself on a comfortable leather chair behind it. This desk is not filled with files, but is instead empty except for a couple of beauty magazines and a picture of Mia's new fiancé, who she thinks might just be the one if he plays his cards right.

  It's been three months since Harlan's death and the outing of Carmichael, whose criminal dealings are now common knowledge, having been illuminated through the hard work of Jessy and her friends. Carmichael himself is in witness protection, claiming refuge by turning witness against other crime bosses across the country. Jessy sees little justice in this, but then, he will have to live in a hole somewhere for the rest of his life looking over his shoulder. He put Harlan in a cell for the last years of his life; now Carmichael's existence will be a prison of sorts. His days of running the city are over, and Jessy and her friends can now return to their lives.

  But some things have changed.

  Jessy looks out from a window. The office space peers over an old graveyard, filled with the quiet dead. She smirks to herself and wonders if there are any hidden tombs beneath it. Then, her thoughts turn to Harlan.

  “Are you okay?” Danny asks, walking up to the window next to Jessy and putting his arm around her affectionately.

  She nods hesitantly. “I just wish we could have saved Harlan. Everything he went through. To die in the end...”

  “But he won, Jessy,” Danny says quietly. “He may have been to hell and back, but in the end he and you and Mia brought his life's work to a positive close. Carmichael is gone. His criminal network has been exposed. You did Harlan proud, Jessy. And look where it's brought you!”

  Scratching sounds come from somewhere behind them. For a moment, Jessy is taken back to the night she found Harlan's desk behind the wall in her home. But while the source of the scratching was never discovered then, the source is definitely knowable here. A man is etching words onto the glass entrance to the office space.

  Jessy kisses Danny. She eyes the box Danny brought up with him and sees that there is a name across it. “We should put that box with the others.”

  “Sure thing,” Danny says, heaving the box back up off the desk and into his arms. “I need to get back to work, anyways.”

  “It's a good thing they took you back,” jokes Jessy. “I was starting to worry about you rattling around that house on your own. You might find yourself getting up to mischief.”

  “Like you did?” Danny smiles, holding the box of files. “You won't work too late, will you? It took a lot for me to cut my hours in the evenings.”

  “I'll be home by 6pm on the dot... let's put that box in the other room.”

  “I still think it's weird, but what do I know?” Mia remarks from her desk as Jessy and Danny walk across the room to another door.

  Jessy unlocks it and Danny goes inside.

  “I'll just leave them here...” Danny says, moving over to an old antique writing desk sitting between stacks of filing cabinets and other boxes.

  “No,” Jessy says softly. “That's Harlan's desk. We'll keep it clear in memory of him.”

  Danny nods and then places the box on top of a filing cabinet with some effort. He and Jessy then leave the room, closing the door behind them. There is a sign upon it. It reads: “Harlan's Office”.

  “You know,” offers Mia, standing up from her desk and pointing to the other room, “as things get going, we're gonna need some space for our own files and stuff.”

  “I'm sure Harlan wouldn't have been offended by us adding to his own archives,” says Jessy, smiling wistfully.

  “Done!” the man at the glass office door says, standing back and looking at his work. “How does this look, Miss?”

  Jessy, Danny, and Mia walk over to the door. Etched in black lettering on the glass are the words, “Mayweather & Co. Detective Agency.”

  “I love it,” Jessy says, looking around at Mia and Danny, feeling thankful for the life she has, the life she saved, and for the adventures ahead.

  Want more? Click here to start reading my new series Deadly School (Book 1) on Amazon now!

  Also by Laura Greene

  Wild Cove Mystery Series

  Murder At Wild Cove Book 1

  Susan Dern is Missing Book 2

  The Demise of Tom Hendry Book 3

  The Past Life of Jane Scott Book 4

  The Hooded Figure Book 5

  Behind The Crime Series

  The Secret Room Book 1

  The Houston Party Book 2

  The Unclaimed Dead Book 3

  Frozen In Time Book 4

  A Boarding Case Mystery Series

  Deadly School Book 1

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  About the Author

  Laura Greene is an international bestselling Crime and Murder Mystery author. She loves the outdoors. Hiking, exploring new adventures in nature and spending time with her family make for some of her favorite moments in life. When she’s not writing a new Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, she loves to connect with her readers whom she considers her friends. Join Laura Greene on Facebook.