Never Tell Them
A psychological suspense thriller
N. L. Hinkens
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Biography
Also by N. L. Hinkens
Books by Norma Hinkens
1
Glancing up at a commotion outside her kitchen’s bay window, Sonia caught sight of a small U-Haul truck attempting to back into the driveway of the vacant house that bordered her back yard. She scrubbed distractedly at the congealed remnants of the previous evening’s lasagna, now welded to the white porcelain casserole dish she had cooked it in, as her eyes lit on the lean, dark-haired man emerging from the moving truck. She had spotted him at the house several times over the past month, but he had yet to stop by and introduce himself. One of Celia’s estranged sons, no doubt.
Abandoning the dish to a much-needed soaking, she shook the suds from her hands and watched as the man staggered inside hefting an unwieldy box. Folding her arms across her chest, she let out a disgruntled humph. Her elderly neighbor had only been dead six weeks and, as Sonia had predicted, the scavengers had descended.
She inserted another capsule into her Nespresso, vowing it would be her last shot of caffeine for the day, before retreating to the family room to update her mother on the new arrival to the neighborhood. After Sonia had divorced her husband, Finn, seven years ago, her widowed mother sold her house in Raleigh and moved in to help defray the cost of the mortgage and to care for Jessica, Sonia and Finn’s eight-year-old daughter. Stationed overseas in some classified location, Finn hadn’t darkened the door of the house since their acrimonious divorce, and only called his daughter on the rare occasion—usually with some lame excuse about why he hadn’t sent her a gift for Christmas or a card for her birthday.
“The vultures have landed,” Sonia announced, sinking down on her favorite nail-head-tufted gray couch next to Evelyn, her mother, who was glued to the local morning news on TV. Her recent hip surgery had put a temporary halt to her customary morning walks around the neighborhood to glean the local gossip.
Evelyn blinked at her in confusion. ”What’s that, dear?”
“I said the vultures have landed.”
Evelyn frowned. “You mean the cardinals? I saw five or six of them at the feeder earlier.”
Sonia let out a snort of laughter. “I’m not talking about birds.”
“Then, I have no idea what you’re rambling on about.” Evelyn eyed the mug in Sonia’s hand with a disapproving air. “How much coffee have you had this morning?”
Sonia shrugged good-naturedly. “Enough to call it a serious hobby. Back to the vultures—I’m talking about Celia’s missing-in-action offspring.”
A glimmer of curiosity flickered in Evelyn’s eyes. She glanced uncertainly at the television before muting it and giving Sonia her full attention. “Are they at the house?”
Sonia gave a teasing nod. “A U-Haul truck just pulled in.”
“Then they must be moving in—or maybe they’re here to pick stuff up.” Evelyn sniffed in indignation. “I’d like to give those boys a piece of my mind for neglecting their mother all these years.” She frowned, rubbing a thumb over her gnarled fingers. “Still, I suppose we should take something over, for Celia’s sake. I could whip up some of my French Toast muffins. Not that—”
“Whoa! Slow down, Mom! You’re getting ahead of yourself.” Sonia took a quick sip of coffee, and wrapped her fingers around her mug. ”Here’s what I do know. I saw a small U-Haul backing into the driveway, so I assume someone’s moving in, although they can’t have brought much.”
“They won’t need it. All Celia’s furniture is still there.” Evelyn cocked her head to one side. “Did you get a good look at them?”
“Him, not them,” Sonia corrected. “Only one guy got out of the truck. I watched him carry a box inside. Tall, dark-haired. That’s about all I could make out through the kitchen window. I think it’s the same guy who stopped by a couple of times already.”
Evelyn quirked an eyebrow. “Maybe you should fix yourself up and go over there.”
Sonia shot her mother a reproving look. “Seriously? You’re trying to pair me up with the jerk who neglected his mother for years on end? A minute ago, you wanted to give him a tongue lashing.”
Evelyn pulled her wrinkled lips into an exaggerated grimace. “I might still do that, after I introduce myself.”
Sonia gestured with her chin at the television. ”Any news I need to know about?”
Evelyn reached for the remote and turned the volume back up. ”Only the same depressing tidbits—break-ins, robberies, and what the weather’s planning to unleash on us next. Oh, and it’s the five-year-anniversary of that missing local girl—Katie Lambert. Such a sad story. You remember her, right? Her mother died of cancer when she was young; her father raised her. He committed suicide after she’d been missing for two years—couldn’t take it anymore.”
“Ugh, don’t remind me.” Sonia shuddered. ”This is why I don’t watch the news anymore. It puts a damper on the rest of the day. How about you go bake some muffins for our new neighbor instead?”
“So now you’re warming up to the idea of taking a peace offering over, are you?” Evelyn turned off the television and got to her feet with a grunt. “Admit it, you’re just as curious about him as I am.”
“Nobody’s as nosy as you are, Mom. I’m willing to extend a neighborly introduction, as long as you promise not to rip into him right away for being missing in action all these years. As far as we’re concerned, Celia was a sweet lady, but we don’t know her sons’ side of the story.”
Evelyn patted her ash blonde pixie bob. “She constantly made excuses for them—they were always too busy with their careers and the like to visit. It’s a
