Missing in Jinx Cove Read online

  Missing in Jinx Cove

  Jinx Cove Mysteries Book Two

  Savannah Mae & Ava Mallory

  Copyright

  Copyright 2018 @Ava Mallory and 2018 @Savannah Mae. All Rights Reserved

  http://writeravamallory.wix.com/avamallory

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the authors.

  Contents

  Table of Contents

  Copyright

  Contents

  Blurb

  Chapter 1: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 2: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 3: The Abney Family

  Chapter 4: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 5: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 6: The Abney Family

  Chapter 7: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 8: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 9: The Abney Family

  Chapter 10: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 11: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 12: The Abney Family

  Chapter 13: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 14: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 15: The Abney Family

  Chapter 16: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 17: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 18: The Abney Family

  Chapter 19: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 20: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 21: The Abney Family

  Chapter 22: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 23: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 24: The Abney Family

  Chapter 25: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 26: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 27: The Abney Family

  Chapter 28: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 29: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 30: The Abney Family

  Chapter 31: The Montoya Sisters

  Chapter 32: The Jinx Sisters

  Chapter 33

  More from Ava Mallory

  More from Savannah Mae

  Blurb

  Welcome to Jinx Cove, where ornery witches, handsome witch enthusiasts, and a bevy of laugh-out-loud foibles are sure to greet you at every turn!

  Being the daughters of a beloved Hollywood diva, former screen siren, Consuelo Montoya, comes with plenty of perks and, unfortunately for Bea and older sister Juliana, also comes with its share of problems.

  When they kiss their hometown goodbye in search of fun and adventure on the road, they naively stumble into a world of trouble. One minute, they’re posing for pictures in small-town America; the next, they’re belly-up in the trunk of a car with their hands tied behind their backs. But that’s only the beginning of what’s in store for them! Their unexpected adventure forces them to navigate the not-so-simple world of meddling witches, tabloid fodder, and a string of mishaps.

  With few leads, dozens of wild theories, and every witch coven in the Midwest on the case, will the kidnappers ever be found and brought to justice or do they have something much more sinister hidden in their bag of tricks?

  Chapter 1: The Montoya Sisters

  “I’ll have what she’s having, and make mine a double,” Juliana demanded as our masked assailants dumped us in the trunk of their car.

  “Can we not?” I forced through my parched throat. Three hours of nonstop chaos since we left the last town in the middle of nowhere and all I had to show for it was a missing shoe – one of my favorite red Manolo Blahniks – and a pain in my hip that I’m sure would require surgical correction if we survived this ordeal. “I can’t believe you got me into this.”

  The door slammed shut.

  “Hey! Let us out of here!” Juliana screamed as she tried to kick out the back taillight. “Me? I’m not the one who wanted to take a road trip across the country. That was all you, baby.”

  The engine started with a sputter, the pungent smell of flower and competing essential oils burned my nostrils as smoke billowed from the undercarriage. It’s like our kidnappers intentionally connected the exhaust hose to our faces.

  “Did you hear that?” I had to raise my voice to be heard over the loud rumble. “We’re in motion. Where do you think they’re taking us?”

  “How am I supposed to know? I’m tied up – in case you forgot.’ She kicked at the tail light again, but it didn’t budge. “Why won’t it work? I saw it on an old Oprah episode. The guy said it was easy. All we have to do is kick the tail light out, then, stick our hand out to get someone’s attention.”

  I’d managed to loosen the rope on my hands. “I’m out. Turn around. I’ll untie you.”

  “How am I supposed to turn around? It’s not like we have a whole lot of room in here,” she said.

  “Seriously? You’ve done a lot more than I ever have in dirtier places.”

  She kicked my leg. “Oh, sorry. Did I hit you?”

  I ignored her because I deserved it. “This clunker is bigger than our house. There’s more than enough room to move around.”

  Of course, my not-exactly-swimming-in-brain-cells sister had to make an already difficult task more difficult. I don’t know how she managed it or why, but it took her less than two seconds to get us coiled around each other like old drainage pipes. We needed a better plan.

  Any contingency plan would have been good, but no, Juliana, the newly-minted private eye had a brilliant idea. She wanted us to fly by the seats of our pants and let our mood dictate our future. Thanks to her sound advice, we’ve had our rental car stolen, our purses discarded like trash, and I’m out one ultra-expensive shoe I haven’t finished paying for yet. That’s not to mention we’re currently holed up in the trunk of a late model sedan oozing with the remnants of onions, lemons, and something reminiscent of a pungent nighttime cold crème my grandmother used to use. So much for her big idea. At this rate, we’ll be dead by nightfall.

  “Let’s think. We have to be smart.” I closed my eyes and listened to the sound of the tires moving over gravel. “We’re on a country road.”

  She hissed, “No kidding, Brainiac. We’re in the country. In case you forgot, we stopped at the sign that said Welcome to Jinx Cove! Country living at its finest. Yeah, not so much. If you hadn’t wanted to get a picture of every dumb thing between here and Mystic Meadow we might have avoided being kidnapped by hooligans. I swear, if we make it out alive, I’ll tell Mom about the time you borrowed her Oscar dress and stretched it out so badly, you had to—”

  “Don’t remind me.” I stopped her. “That was ten years ago. Get over it already. Besides, it’s not like it had anything to do with you. At least, what I did, didn’t land me in jail, jailbird.”

  She kicked the light again and shattered it. “See. It worked. Help me get out of the ropes, so I can wave someone down.”

  I pulled the front of her blouse. “Scoot this way.”

  She huffed. “Why? If we get any closer, we’ll be the same person.”

  “Do you want me to untie you or not?”

  She reluctantly followed my directions.

  As I untied the ropes, the car screeched to a halt, jostling us back and forth like a pair of basketballs.

  A man’s voice said, “Not here. We’ll get caught. They told us to take them to the—”

  The sound of loud music drowned out the last word.

  “What did he say?” I whispered.

  She maneuvered herself, so she could squeeze her hand out the small h
ole. “I don’t know, but we don’t have much time. We’ve already broken the first rule of kidnapping.”

  “You mean the one that says don’t get kidnapped?” I groaned.

  It sounded like there was a scuffle. Our two captors grunted and groaned as the dust kicked up, billowing into the small hole she’d managed to create by breaking the light.

  “Look!” one of them yelled. “Is that a hand?”

  Terror rippled through me. Her plan had worked, but not in the way we’d hoped.

  “They saw us,” I said.

  Juliana screamed, “Help! We’ve been kidnapped. We’re in the trunk.”

  Loud male voices and more scuffling noises ensued. We held our breath as we waited for it to end.

  When the trunk finally popped open, we kicked and punched and clawed like our lives depended on it.

  A man lifted me out of the trunk and plopped me on my feet, while he fended off my sister’s flailing arms and legs. “Stop. You’re okay. They’re gone.”

  With my fists in the air, ready to punch any part of him I could reach, I lunged forward, but he grabbed my arms before I had a chance to do anything to him.

  “Did you hear what I said? They’re gone. They got away,” he said.

  Juliana and I locked eyes. Neither of us could speak.

  The handsome man said, “Hello there. Are you hurt?” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed.

  While he was distracted, I attempted to attack him again, but he held me back with one arm. “Slow down before you hurt yourself. I’m calling the police. You’re free now. Just hold tight until the police get here.”

  I looked around. The masked figures who’d held us at gunpoint were nowhere to be found. “Where did they go?”

  “I have no idea. Do you know who they are? Can you tell me how you ended up in the trunk?” the man asked.

  “The guy with the gun robbed us. He came up behind us and pointed it at my back and told me to give him my keys,” I said. “The other guy tied us up and threw us in the trunk and then they drove. Where are we?” I blinked to adjust my eyes to the light.

  The man nodded. “Hold on. Let me call the police.” He detailed his account of the story to the dispatcher while we hugged and checked each other for injuries. Other than a few scrapes and bruises, we were fine physically. Emotionally, I knew we’d never be the same again.

  “What happened?” Juliana whimpered as she wiped tears from her face. “Why would someone want to kidnap us? We don’t have anything to offer.”

  The man finished the call and checked the car. “I don’t know what happened or why, but I do know a trunk of a car on a hot day isn’t a good idea. You could’ve died in there.” He stood back and squinted his eyes at the car. “Where did you get this car?”

  I could see Juliana had already fully recovered from our horrifying ordeal. She checked her reflection in a window, hoisted up her girls, and blinked her long, thick, fake eyelashes at him. “You saved me. How can I ever thank you?”

  “Us. He saved us,” I corrected her.

  He blushed. “I did what any decent human being would do. When you see someone in trouble, you help them. About this car, did you just buy this from someone?”

  I shook my head. “No. I think it belongs to the kidnappers.”

  He pursed his lips.

  Juliana glanced at his empty ring finger. “I bet your wife will be so proud of you when she finds out what you did.”

  He blushed and tipped his ball cap to shield his flushed cheeks from view. “Miss, I don’t have a wife … yet.”

  I cleared my throat.

  “Where were you again?” He removed his cap, revealing a thick mane of black hair that contrasted nicely with his deep blue eyes. He checked the trunk, careful not to touch anything. “I know this car.”

  My life flashed before my eyes. I’d seen similar scenes play out in the movies all the time. The savior – the handsome stranger who has come to rescue you – turns out to be the ringleader. I took a defensive stance and challenged him, “I don’t know who you think we are, but I can guarantee you, you won’t get away with it.”

  “Away with what?” he asked. “Wait a minute. You think I had something to do with what happened to you? I didn’t. I’m a police officer. I’d never do anything like that. I saw the car driving erratically down the road.” He pointed behind me. “My gut told me something wasn’t right, so I followed it. That’s when I saw your hand, so I signaled for the guys to pull over. I didn’t know if what I saw was a prank or not. Sometimes the kids around here will do crazy things to get attention, but when these guys stopped, they jumped out of the car and ran. I caught up with one and dragged him back, but he put up a good fight. I didn’t know how long you’d been in the trunk. I didn’t want to risk your lives, so I let him go.”

  “Where could they have gone? There’s not much out here. Do you think they holed up in one of the barns? How do you know they haven’t taken one of these poor farmers hostage?” Dozens of horrific scenarios played out in my head. In my limited experience as the sister of a private detective, I doubted two men dressed in all black clothing in the middle of the summer heat would go unnoticed in a town this size. Someone had to have seen them. I hoped with all my heart they hadn’t found new people to attack.

  “They ran that way.” He pointed to a cornfield. “Don’t worry. They won’t get that far. Someone will see them and turn them in. Not much happens in town without someone knowing about it. The police should be here soon to take care of everything. They’ll probably run into them along the way. That’s how small this place is.” He bent forward, his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. When he came up for air, he asked, “So, you have no idea who those guys are? Are you sure it wasn’t a lovers’ quarrel or a road trip with your boyfriends gone wrong?”

  “We don’t know them. We never even saw them before in our lives. At least, I don’t think we have. They wore masks,” I explained.

  Juliana batted her eyes at him. “I don’t have a boyfriend.”

  I rolled my eyes at her inability to grasp the seriousness of the situation and refrain from flirting with the man who’d rescued us. “No, she has three or four boyfriends and, as far as I know, neither one of those two men are among that group.” I chuckled. “But don’t hold me to that because she’s been known to date all sorts of losers. She doesn’t discriminate. Philanderers, child support dodgers, deadbeats, thieves, you name it, she’s brought them home to meet the family. We couldn’t be prouder.”

  He snickered but didn’t ask me to elaborate.

  Juliana shot the glare of death at me. “Was that really necessary? Explain to me how that helps us.”

  I shrugged. “It sure made me feel better.” That was a lie, but it was so worth it to make her stop flirting with him. I still didn’t know if he could be trusted. We were basically sitting ducks with him. We were out in the elements, on the edge of a town we knew nothing about and had no way to get home. For all we knew, the kidnappers could’ve been lying in wait for us.”

  “You said you know who this car belongs to?” Juliana asked. “Then, you know who stole our rental and kidnapped us?”

  He shook his head. “Yes and no. I know it can’t possibly belong to those guys because it belongs to someone else. A lady who lives in town. She’s an old …” He laughed. “She owns a coffee shop I used to frequent when I lived here.”

  “They stole it from someone in Jinx Cove?” I shuddered to think about what could have happened had Juliana not thought to force her hand out the window. We’d probably be dead.

  He explained, “I’ll tell you this, if it does belong to who I think it does, then, nothing the judicial system does to those guys will be as bad as what she’ll do to them. I think we should let the local police dig in and see what they find. Hopefully, they’ll get this all wrapped up before she gets involved.”

  Juliana glanced at the car again, a sour expression on her face. “If they have her car, what d
id they do with the owner?”

  His eyes went wide as he gulped. “Oh, no. I hadn’t thought of that.” He looked around as if the car owner would emerge from the fields. “What did they do to her?” Beads of sweat blanketed his forehead. “Where’s the police?” He dialed a number on his phone. Less than two seconds later, he threw the phone on the ground. “Where is she?”

  “We didn’t see a lady. We didn’t see anyone,” Juliana explained. “It all happened so fast, though. We might have missed something.” She clutched her chest. “I hope they didn’t do anything to her.”

  He apologized, “I need to take a breather.” He let out a long sigh. “The owner of that car is a fixture in this community. Everyone in town knows her. The more important thing is they all know what she does to people who cross her.”

  “She sounds like a tough woman. If what you say is true, I’m sure she’s fine. She’s probably tracked them down already,” I said to reassure her.

  His eyes narrowed. “Obviously, you’ve never met Calypso Jinx.” His tone changed. “Why are you in Jinx Cove anyway? It can’t be to visit because in a town this size, people not only know everything about each other, they know everything about everyone they’ve ever met.”

  “We’re on vacation. We didn’t plan to stay here.” My eyes welled with tears. “I had a dumb idea to take a picture of us in every town, so we’d have something to remember our getaway. If I hadn’t pulled over, none of this would have happened.”

  Juliana grabbed my hand. “It’s not your fault. I don’t blame you and you shouldn’t blame yourself.” She turned her attention to our hero. “What’s your name, by way?”

  He blinked twice slowly. “I didn’t tell you?”

  We shook our heads.

  “I’m Anthony. Anthony Bauer. You can call me Anthony, Tony, Bauer, whatever you want. I answer to almost anything.” He offered his hand for us to shake. “I’m sorry. I should’ve told you that a little while ago. I’m from Jinx Cove. This is where I grew up.” He turned his head toward the sound of sirens blaring in the distance. “Finally.” He turned to face us again. “I don’t live here now. I moved away a few years ago.”