I have just one word for this fantastic written book: WOW. This was a great mystery book. I read it in less than three days because it had my attention from the first chapter – which is hard to do for me!
Cards of Sin by K.J. Dahlen is about a report, Cheyenne Gentry, who gets pulled into a murderer’s ways when he sends her an instant message right after murdering a man. The killer wants her to write his story and if she doesn’t? He’ll take out the people who mean the most to her.
If you’re looking for a mystery/suspense novel that will have you hooked, I definitely recommend Cards of Sin by K.J. Dahlen! You can purchase it at Amazon and Barnes and Noble!
Follow Dahlen:
Twitter – @kjdahlen
Facebook – Facebook.com/djdahlen
Email: [email protected]
To read an excerpt, just click ‘Read More’!
Chapter One
I murdered a man tonight.
Cheyenne Gentry found the statement in the Instant Message dialog box on her computer when she sat down after making a grilled turkey and pepper jack cheese sandwich for her supper. She had reached for half of her sandwich before she looked at her computer. She dropped the sandwich back on the plate and stared at the computer screen for a moment before she reached over to delete the message. Her job as a reporter told her this was a message she couldn’t ignore but it had to be a prank. Who in their right mind would boast about something as insane as murder?
She was logged into her personal blog and someone was trying to get her attention. When the line disappeared she began typing again. It was late in the day and she had already changed into her sweats and she was running down her day before she posted it. Cheyenne had had a busy day and she wanted to get all her thoughts down before she forgot any part of her day. Even as she typed her mind kept going back to the unwanted message.
Suddenly the Instant Message dialog box popped back up and the message came back up on her computer. Cheyenne growled at her keyboard. She closed her box for a second time without thinking and as soon as she did she regretted her actions, but seconds later the message popped up again.
Whoever IM’d her apparently had something to say. She decided to play along.
Why?
The man lied to me and I hate liars. Came the reply.
What did he lie to you about?
He hired me to murder another man and when I did what he asked, he told me he wasn’t going to pay me. He thought because I committed a crime I couldn’t or wouldn’t go to the police. He laughed in my face and told me to squirm back under the rock I slithered out from under.
Cheyenne gasped softly. So you killed two men not just one? A stranger was admitting a crime to her and she wondered if this was a joke or if what he was telling her was real? What did you do then?
I asked him if anything he told me since we met was true and he said not really. The man I murdered for him earlier had been having an affair with his wife and he wanted to teach them both a lesson. I guess he isn’t laughing anymore.
Why are you telling me about all of this? Cheyenne typed.
I wanted someone to know why the man had to die. In fact I want the whole world to know the real reason he had to die.
Cheyenne paused for a moment. She wasn’t sure what was happening. What’s this man’s name?
Congressman Howard Betts. The police will find his body on the steps of the House of Congress in a few hours, or at least someone will find his body.
Cheyenne scooted her chair back and stared at the computer monitor. Her brown eyes were wide with shock. She was horrified by what she saw. As a reporter she knew this story would be top news in a few hours. She also knew the public would never get the real story behind the Congressman’s murder. She inched her chair back to the desk. Congressmen lie for a living, why would anyone expect him to tell the truth? she typed.
I respect honest people. I try to be honest myself and I absolutely hate being lied to.
But you said you killed another man tonight. What was his name?
Howard said his name was Steve. At first Howard tried to tell me Steve found out a secret about him, a secret Howard didn’t want the world to know. An in digression from his youth Howard called it. Howard told me Steve was going to expose him.
But you see Howard was a cheat as well as a liar. He wasn’t afraid of anything he did when he was younger. I dug a little deeper into Howard’s background and found out he was making deals under the table and taking money that didn’t belong to him for false promises. Steve found out about the kickbacks and threatened to tell the world. Howard couldn’t let that happen so he asked me to take care of Steve for him. Howard wasn’t a very nice guy and he deserved to die.
What makes you think the people will hear the real story?
Because you’re going to write the story just the way I tell you.
Why would I do that?
You are without a doubt the best reporter out there and I have chosen you to write my story.
What if I don’t what to tell your story?
If you become of no use to me I’ll end our relationship and I would really hate to do that. Your death would become another useless statistic in a city that has too many unsolved crimes already.
You would really kill me if I refused to write your story?
I’m will be giving you intimate knowledge of a killer. Surely that means something to you?
I didn’t ask you for this story and I’m not sure I want it.
Oh but you will want it.
What makes you think so?
I’m going to make you famous.
I don’t want to be famous. I’m very happy just the way I am.
No you aren’t. How could you be? You’ve done a few great stories but this one could set you apart from the rest. You are a good reporter and from what I can tell you still have your integrity, most other reporters don’t care about the truth, they just write what they are told to write, but you still do. That’s what sets you apart from the rest.
I really don’t have time for this right now. I’ll pass. Cheyenne clicked on the save button then she clicked on the close button. She prayed this was a hoax but she didn’t know for sure. Cheyenne tried to get back to her blog but she couldn’t get her mind off the Instant Message.
She tried taking a bite from her sandwich but the sandwich tasted like cardboard. She reached for her hot green tea and found it was cold. She grimaced at the taste but she took a sip anyway. Her mind was busy thinking about what the guy had said. She couldn’t block out what he told her. She was assuming the IM’er was a man but it could have been a woman as well. She did have to wonder how they knew she was a reporter.
DO NOT SHUT ME OUT AGAIN! The instant message box flashed up again.
I will kill you if you don’t cooperate with me and it will be your body found next by the police.
How did you get my IM address? Cheyenne typed.
I like to know as much as I can about the people I choose to get close to. I don’t get close to too many people but I am trusting you with a big chunk of my life and I wanted to know what I could find out about you. I will tell you one thing, you need to water your plants more or they will die.
Cheyenne sat back for a moment to think about what he was telling her. It took a moment for her to realize just what he was saying. You’ve been in my house haven’t you?
Yes I have.
Cheyenne stared at her monitor and felt goose bumps on her arms. The tiny hairs were standing up on the back of her neck. She was shaken by his audacity. To know he had been inside her domain was nothing short of creepy.
What did you hope to gain by breaking into my home? Cheyenne asked.
I told you I wanted to know what kind of woman you were.
And what did you learn about me that you didn’t already know?
You are a neat, organized person. Your office has a place for everything and it’s neat and tidy at the moment. I imagine when you’re working on one of your books it gets a little messy. From the amount of sticky notes you have stored I imagine you use quite a few of them to jot down ideas when you write. You like Chocolate Fudge Almond ice cream and you don’t eat red meat. You like to drink merlot wine and you like caramel chocolates. You are a writer by nature but you report the news to make a living. You have a few books published under a pen name but the money isn’t enough for you to write full time, well not yet anyway. Writing my story will only help your fledging career.
Enough. Cheyenne was sick inside. He had learned a lot about her in a very little amount of time.
Why are you killing people? Cheyenne asked after she swallowed the sick feeling in her stomach.
I decided something a long time ago. I’ve been watching the world we live in go to hell for some time now and I decided to show everyone what’s really going on around them. I’m hoping that by doing what I am, people will wake up and start dealing with what’s wrong and try to make it right again. People have to start caring, not only about themselves but about their neighbors too. The very people we look to for help just don’t seem to give a damn any more and more and more people are falling through the cracked system. The same system we set up to help them are shoving them right out onto the streets. He paused for a moment then went on to tell her, I took a regular deck of cards and I’m marking the people I murder for their sins. Howard has a red Joker nailed to his forehead with the word Liar on it. He should have another card telling the world he’s a cheat too but I’m only giving him one card.
You consider Congressman Betts a joker?
Yeah, He’s a fool. He’s a liar and a fool and he wasn’t the first to die for his sins.
What does that mean? He isn’t the first to die?
He’s only the second man in this town to die. There are others who have met their fate already, so to speak.
What kind of story do you want me to write?
I want you to tell the world the real reason these people are dying. Howard thought the law couldn’t touch him. He placed himself above the laws that govern each and every one of us mere mortals. He lied and cheated the very people who voted him in office. That just didn’t seem right to me, so I stopped him.
I can’t say that. Cheyenne typed. No one would believe me. Betts may not be liked as a person but I can’t blacken his name now that he’s dead.
You have to. I want the world to know he wasn’t a nice guy.
Where is your proof? Do you have solid, stand up in court, proof? People aren’t going to believe what I write if I can’t prove it.
No I don’t, just my own experience with the man.
Then I can’t write his story. Cheyenne told him. I can’t smear another person’s good name whether you feel they deserve it or not.
You must write the story. He insisted. People have the right to know, isn’t that the job of a reporter?
Yes it is, but I can’t do it now. If what you’ve told me is true, Betts isn’t around to defend himself. My newspaper wouldn’t publish the story with nothing to back it up. There has to be evidence of his crimes.
The evidence is there, I’m sure. Howard wasn’t trying to hide what he was doing. He didn’t care what anyone thought of him.
As soon as he’s discovered his people will destroy the evidence that would have proved your claims. By this time tomorrow he’ll be a saint and everyone will be weeping crocodile tears lamenting all the hard work he did for the people of his state. Cheyenne typed. And whatever story you wanted will never see the light of day. You screwed up.
There was a long pause on his end of the conversation. Damn I killed him too soon.
You didn’t think your plan though too well did you? She taunted. Maybe you should quit while you’re ahead?
How dare you mock me!
Cheyenne waited for a moment before she answered him. Maybe taunting this nut wasn’t such a good idea but she couldn’t help herself. He scared the crap out of her and she had to get her perspective back in place, in order to deal with him.
When she didn’t answer him, he got impatient. Answer me damnit.
She waited a few more minutes just to see how far he would go.
I said, answer me. He paused, then added, Unless you want me to kill again. This time it might be someone a little closer to home, for you anyway.
If you kill me who will write your story?
Reporters are a dime a dozen. I’ll get someone else to write it.
Then why did you pick me?
You were my first choice, but not my only one.
Then pick someone else, I don’t want to play your sick game. Cheyenne hit the save button and then the print key. When both conversations were printed out she glanced at her monitor and found one last message from the killer. She shivered when she read it,
You will play the game. Or I will start killing the people you call your friends.
Cheyenne closed out her instant message box and sat here for a while staring at the screen. She almost expected him to come back. She picked up the printout and began rereading it. She happened to glance at her computer screen and she noticed a small red light. The web cam was still running. She quickly shut down her computer and closed the lid.
She got up and gathered the papers together. She grabbed her coat and purse and left the house. She couldn’t take the chance he would try to reconnect somehow. She drove downtown to the steps of the House of Congress. She parked and began walking toward the steps. She had to know if what the killer told her was true.
Each step she took brought her closer to where she saw something about halfway up to the top of the steps. When she got closer she could see the bundle on the steps was indeed a body. She stared at his face to confirm the identity. It was the body of Howard Betts. His clothing was semi casual but his pants were torn and his shirt was bloody. His right sleeve was almost torn off and he wasn’t wearing any shoes. She could see ugly bruises on his wrists but whatever bound them was gone.
His blue eyes were open staring at the night sky. His mouth formed a silent scream. Cheyenne felt sick to her stomach as she looked at his forehead. There was the playing card with the word Liar written in what looked like blood. The card looked like it was nailed into his skull. She bent closer to get a better look. She found a large nail protruded from the card and his skull.
Cheyenne gasped and covered her mouth as she turned away. She stumbled down a few steps and had to sit down. The nausea in her stomach threatened to make her puke. She opened her purse and fumbled for her phone. The chill in the air made her shiver as she placed a call to the police.
When a male voice answered, she asked for a friend, Could you connect me with Detective Vincent Bailey.
A few minutes later Vincent answered, Bailey,
Vincent, Cheyenne whispered, I need your help. I think I’m in trouble.
Cheyenne, what’s wrong?
I’m sitting on the steps of the House of Congress. Can you get over here right away?
I’m on my way. Don’t go anywhere. Vincent ended the call and Cheyenne dropped the phone into her lap. She looked around but didn’t see anyone else. She never felt more alone in the world than she seemed to be right now. Wrapping her coat tighter around her she barely felt its warmth. She was cold right down to her bones and right now she didn’t think she would ever be warm again.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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