Played by the Ruse

The story of Hannah Skales, a love sick mistress. Wyatt Nichols, an internet billionaire, and Cole Kopps, a detective assigned to find out the truth. Hannah is accused of murdering Emma Nichols, so she could have Wyatt to herself, but when she wakes up cut and no knowledge of days passing she does what she can to prove she didn't do it.
http://www.amazon.com/Played-Ruse-Tracy-Gilmore-ebook/dp/B01C86LXH2/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1456484482&sr=1-1&keywords=played+by+the+ruse

Played by the Ruse...coming Feb 26, 2016

Soon to be available on Amazon, Kindle Unlimited and Authors websites.

Article in RedhotRomance Issue 23 page 12 and 13.

Check out a special exclusive excerpt from In Exchange for Jackie. Only here!!! http://www.thewriteconnections.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Issue23/redhot_romance_issue_23.html#p=13

In Exchange for Jackie Part Seven

Hello,” Mitch answered. “Jackie where are you?” His tone irritated.

“Answer him,” Trevor whispered, startling her.

Jackie looked around the room, to see if she could tell Mitch about her surroundings, but a nudge in her back with a pistol caused her to gasp and focus on the phone.

“Mitch, I’ve been umm….”

“Tell him you’ve been kidnapped.”

“I…I’ve been kidnapped,” She repeated loudly with a shaky voice.

“Are the kidnappers with you?”

“Yes.”

Mitch cleared his throat. “Know this, whoever you are,” there was a pause, Mitch was thinking, making sure his next set of words were spoken clearly as possible. He didn’t want there to be any misunderstanding about what he was going to say.

Jackie inhaled, swallowed and with the men in the room, she waited to hear from Mitch. Her life was in his hands, her next breath only possible if he does what the men want. He exhaled heavily over the phone, pins and needles prickling over Jackie’s skin as she gets nervous knowing what he is going to tell them.

“I will not pay a ransom. She’s your problem now.” He hung up the phone.

The room was silent. Jackie’s wide eye and trembling lip were the start of her reaction. Water filled her irises, her heart would sink to her stomach, if one was there to do so, but it was lost long before the men took her. She let out a sharp breath shocked by Mitch’s response since they were legally divorced; there really was no need for him to want her back. But a small part of her thought he would at least be hurt by her being gone or at least want her to be safe.

Trevor and Stuart looked at the phone as it faded out after a minute and then looked at each other. Stuart whispered first. “Damn dude, did he say—”

“Shut up man, let me think.” Trevor had to scratch his head. He wasn’t sure what had just happened.

“What are we gonna do?” whispered Stuart.

“Call him back,” Trevor came to stand by her ear, waving his hand at Stuart.

There was hope yet. Another chance for her to be free.

“What?” Mitch snapped.

Trevor prepared himself to sound threatening, determined this will get him the results he wanted. “We will kill…..”

Mitch didn’t give them a chance to finish before he cut them off. “Look, if you’re going to f**king kill her, then do it so I can make arrangements and move on with my life, if not then let her go so she can come home and then you can go about your lives. I told you I am not paying the goddamn ransom.” He hung up again.

A second time, tears in her eyes, her heart broken. Jackie let out a small cough of a cry lowering her head.

“Damn bruh’ he not….”

Trevor scratched his locks again unsure of what to do. “Shut up man…..f**k!”

Trevor noticed the stifled cries of Jackie; she had to be devastated after hearing her husband’s words. He wanted to offer her some comfort, but he couldn’t, it wasn’t in the plan. Neither was keeping her. He shook his head walking to Stuart. The least he could do was to let her have a moment to grieve. They both left going upstairs. She was scared, hurt and alone in a dark room. Her soft sobs were nothing in the stillness of her prison.

In Exchange for Jackie Part Six enter Mitch

 

“Why are we coming back to this house?” Constance asked annoyed they were making another trip.

“I told you why. I have some things I want to get.”

“I hope it isn’t going to take too long, I don’t want to miss my show.”

Mitch cursed under his breath about the annoying voice talking to him. Constance was a woman of substance; she provided him with all he desired, but having what you want comes at a price. He had to deal with her mouth. At first it was cute, but then all relationships start out cute, he noticed the more he was around her, the more he began to be annoyed about her.

“How long you going to be in the house?” Constance asked snapping him from his thoughts.

“Not long.”

They turned pulling into the driveway, Mitch got out of the car going into the house. He walked in through the foyer and didn’t see Jackie; he didn’t hear her in the house at all.

“Jackie?” He called, going up the stairs. “Jackie!” he roared after checking the boys rooms and then back downstairs in the family room and dining area. “Jackie stop playing, where the fuck are you?” He stood in front of the door with his hands on his hips. “Her truck,” he mumbled. She wasn’t in it, and it hadn’t been started.

“What’s wrong now, she ran out of tape?” Constance asked getting out of the car.

“Not now Connie,” Mitch snipped looking into the SUV not finding her purse or keys. He reached into his pocket to call her phone, problem was, his was already ringing.

In Exchange for Jackie Part Five

She wiped the last tear away when she made it halfway through the pint. Taking it back to the freezer, she opened the fridge to chase the ice cream with a bottle of water and resume her packing. It was well after eight and she was out of boxes and tape. The hardware store closed at nine.

“Dang it,” she grunted angrily. She had to laugh at the remark because she couldn’t even bring herself to swear then. Grabbing her keys and purse she locked the door to the house going to her Denali using the remote. The dark blanket of night was draped over the sky, what few stars could be seen through the clouds gave some light but it was dissipated from the long line of streetlamps covering the neighborhood. The chilly wind crept down her neck making her hunch her shoulders gripping her jacket tighter to keep warm. She reached for the door handle when movement out the corner of her eye stopped her.

A young man approached her. “Excuse me miss…”

“Yes, how can I help you?”

“I was wondering if you could direct me to the nearest bus stop.”

He looked like a teenager but could be older. She had never seen him around the neighborhood before. Tall, wearing a grey jacket with a hood. He was wearing a hat, but the hood covered part of it. His hands were tucked inside of his dark denim jeans and his black shoes looked worn. It’s understandable considering the time of the year, it is getting colder and he may have been walking for some time. She hugged her purse looking to see if anyone else was around. Mitch often warned her few robbers work alone, but Jackie had a kind nature and she didn’t mind assisting the young man. There wasn’t a car or anyone else nearby she could see, so she pointed up the road giving him directions.

“Umm, if you take this road down four more streets and turn left you will find a bus stop there.”

“Thank you so much.” He nodded walking off.

Before wanting to turn to get into her vehicle, she watched him walk down the street, feeling safe enough when he was three houses down. Exhaling a soft breath, she felt a sharp pain in the back of her head. The streetlamps blurred in her vision, she was falling but didn’t hit the ground, something or someone prevented it. The last thing she saw was a dark shadow coming towards her before it all went black.

Oh no.

In Exchange for Jackie Part Four...enter James.

 Stuart sat at the small table eating some left over Chinese food he’d warmed in the microwave. Flipping through the paper looking for jobs, he took a bite into the smoking hot eggroll scribbling down a few places paying good money.
Trevor came into the kitchen wearing only his jeans and scratched himself as he approached the fridge to see what was left. Smelling the heated food, he snuck to the table and took one of the eggroll...s popping it into his mouth.
“Hey man, that was mine!”
“Snooze you lose man,” Trevor mumbled between chews. Stuart got up from the table confronting his brother, hating the fact he was taking the last bit of food left. Trevor firmed up when he was approached.
“What you gonna do little bro?”
There wasn’t much Stuart could do, Trevor was bigger, stronger and of all the times they’d gotten into a fight, Trevor always won. He didn’t know how or why, but he did. Standing toe to toe but not eye to eye, Stuart sized up his brother, gave up the idea, turning to go back and search for a job.
“Thought so punk,” Trevor snorted going to the fridge again grabbing the water bottle and taking a drink from it.
He was sidelined knocking the bottle out of his hands and flinging water to the floor. They scrambled on the slippery, wet floor grunting as blows were thrown. Dishes were being knocked off the counter from their aggressiveness. Pops entered the room sighing as he had to rip them apart yet again.
“What the f**k are you two doing?” Pops pulled on Stuart and extended his other arm to hold back Trevor.
“He started it!” Trevor pointing his flexed arm to Stuart. “I came down here to get something to eat.”
“F**k you did, you ate my food and then want to call me a punk.”
“Cut it out before I beat both your a**es!” Pops declared. “I don’t care who the f**k started it, clean up this goddamn mess!”
He let the two of them go and sat on the couch. He looked around the bare home and was too tired to fiddle with anything else. The house was in disrepair. In the living room, one of the windows was broken, but they couldn’t afford to fix it, so they put up a board instead. The beige carpet had stains from the many beverages and food split upon it. The faded, torn, blue and black couch had seen better days, but for the most part it was the only real good piece of furniture left.
A knock at the door drew the attention of the trio and Pops got up to open it. A man in a dark green suit was standing there looking uncomfortable.
“Oh good, I don’t have to leave it. You have been served.” The man handed Pops an envelope and walked away. He was practically running to his car and driving off as if he were being chased.
“What does it say?” asked an excited Stuart.
Pops fingered his long hair moving it from his view. Glassy eyes skimmed over the letter widening as he got further down and then he folded the paper back up.
“Were going with plan ‘B.’”