Deadly Intentions by Leighann Dobbs

Isaiah Blackmoore.
    The treasure had been hidden on their property unbeknownst to the Blackmoore sisters and the girls had almost been killed defending it. In the end, they’d had to summon the forces of their powers to defeat Goldlinger’s henchmen. That’s when they’d learned the true power of their gifts.
    Luke shrugged. “Yep. This guy is even more powerful and even more of a badass. In fact, our sources tell us Goldlinger is just one of his henchmen.”
    “So, are they after treasure again? Or something else they think we have?” Jolene glanced up at the attic thinking about the journals they’d discovered that had led them to the treasure.  
    Was that what Eliza had been looking for?  
    They’d never fully deciphered all of the journals—maybe there was more in there and that’s what this guy was after.
    “I’m not sure. I get the impression it’s more personal than that.”
    “Personal?” Celeste asked.
    “Yes. So there is an immediate threat to you girls. And you probably can’t trust anyone,” Luke answered.
    “Which brings me to your Aunt Eliza,” Jake cut in. “What do you girls really know about her?”
    “What are trying to say?” Morgan shrugged one shoulder, a sour look on her face. “She’s our aunt . She got into some kind of fight and left a long time ago and is now back for a visit.”
    “Why come back now?” Jake asked. “It seems like strange timing is all I’m saying. An odd coincidence she’d appear out of nowhere and insinuate herself in the house when there is a threat against you girls. And in my line of business, there’s no such thing as coincidence.”
    “Maybe you should do a little investigating on her,” Luke suggested.
    “Investigate our aunt?” Celeste bristled. “That doesn’t seem right. She’s a Blackmoore and we don’t investigate our own people.”
    “But aren’t you the least bit curious as to why she left and what she’s been doing all this time?” Jake asked.  
    “Maybe.” Celeste pressed her lips together. “But that still doesn’t mean I condone investigating family .”
    The arrival of the pizza suspended the conversation and they all took a gooey slice and sat around the kitchen island with paper plates and a roll of paper towels.  
    Jolene picked a pepperoni off her slice and popped it into her mouth. The salty grease tickled her taste buds. They ate in silence for a few minutes, the only sounds an occasional nummy noise.
    “So where is Eliza tonight?” Jake asked as he picked out his second piece of pizza.
    “She said she was going to visit friends,” Jolene answered.
    Jake raised a brow. “Really? Did she say who?”
    “No,” Morgan cut in. “And we weren’t about to give her the third degree.”
    “Of course not. It just seems funny that after being gone for twenty years without contacting any of you, she’d still have friends back here.”
    Jake had a point. Eliza sure did seem to have a lot of people to visit in town and she never once mentioned who any of them were.
    Jolene looked around the kitchen at her family. A feeling of foreboding spread in her stomach, making the pizza weigh heavy. Usually it was Morgan who had the premonitions, but tonight, Jolene had one herself.  
    Shoving aside her plate, she swallowed hard, trying to push down the lump that was forming in her throat as she wondered if this might be their last supper together.  

    ***

    Eliza Blackmoore pulled the key out of the old truck’s ignition and listened to the engine sputter out. Clicking off the lights, she stared into the depths of the darkened woods. It was dusk and the dense forest was cloaked in shadow.  
    She’d better hurry. Soon it would be totally dark.
    Eliza hurried down the path, the dark trees looming beside her like silent sentinels. The hazy dusk gave the woods a dream-like quality. The forest was almost silent except for the sound of her own heartbeat and a few birds letting out their last chirps before bedding down for