Journey ericka stone cas.., p.1
Journey, Ericka Stone Case #009,
p.1
Journey
Ericka Stone
Case #009
By
Felicia Rogers
Journey
Ericka Stone
Case #009
Copyright ©2024 by Felicia Rogers
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.
Contact Information:
Website: http://feliciarogersauthor.weebly.com
Email: feliciarogersauthor@yahoo.com
Published by:
Felicia Rogers
Cover Design by For the Muse Designs
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
The author, Felicia Rogers, does not consent to any artificial intelligence (AI), generative AI, large language model, and machine learning.
Dedication…
To my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
And to my family who continues to support me through this writing journey.
And to my father, who left this world too soon.
Table of Contents
Other works by Felicia Rogers
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Excerpt, Vanished, Ericka Stone Case #010
Author’s Note
Other works by Felicia Rogers
Stand-alone works:
All I Have
The Holiday Truce
A Month in Cologne
Andrews Brothers (Regency Romance)
The Ruse
The Rescue
Southern Hearts Series (Civil War Romance)
Millicent
Amelia
Cora
“Justice” and Miss Quinn Mysteries (Regency Romance)
The Case of the Missing Cross
The Case of the Puppet Constable
The Case of the Secret Love
The Case of the Chinese Boxes
The Case of the Hidden Treasure
The Case of the Lost Island
The Kenelm Chronicles (Regency Romance)
The Golden Goose
The Silver Moon
The Bronze Heart
Hudson Hunts: The First and Last
Secret Defenders (Paranormal Romance)
Cian and Arin: Beginning (prequel)
The Key
Mara’s Secret
Iceas’ Victory
Meaningful Numbers Series (Christian Romance)
One of Forty
One of Twelve
One of Three
The Haywood Brothers Series (Christian Romance)
Love of a Businessman
Love of a Detective
Love of a Rancher
Redeemed Soldiers (Christian Romance)
Diamond Mine
Pearl Valley
Emerald Street
Ruby’s Way
Amethyst Cove
Sapphire Shoals
Opal Obsession
Ericka Stone Cases (Clean Detective Stories)
Freelance
Pendant
Treasure
Escape
Reunion
Reckless
Discovery
Detour
Journey
Vanished (coming August 2024)
The Board Series by F. A. Rogers
(novellas are listed in order)
Maralie (FREE on Amazon)
Reuben
Vanessa
Simon
Darla
Daniel
Irving
Levi
Francesca
Benjamin
James
The Return to Eden’s Hollow
Prologue
The cold spray hit Eliott in the face and he held his hands up as if to protect his eyes. Another wave crested near the ship and sent more spray across the bow. Andre wrapped his arms around Eliott and drew him away from the side.
He flung him around in a wide arc sending Eliott squealing with delight. When he placed him back on the deck, Eliott’s face morphed into a smile.
His son hadn’t said much on the trip. Andre had instructed him not to. People in nice suits and fancy dresses strolled along the deck of the White Lily. Andre and Eliott didn’t fit in. He wore jeans and a black T-shirt that stretched across chest and his well-defined triceps. Eliott wore a white T-shirt with plaid golfer pants and a matching plaid newsboy hat that snapped down in front.
Eliott had an old man style.
His mother, God rest her soul, had fostered it and since her departure, Eliott had maintained it. Andre didn’t mind. Anything that kept her close was a good thing.
The White Lily…
The ship was a luxury liner and not his first choice. He’d picked something more discreet for his escape from his country; however, his chosen date had been overbooked and when they had arrived at the dock he’d been turned away.
There they were, him and Eliott, on the dock with their bags and nowhere to go. Then their luck changed. A man in an all-white suit and hat had said they could take his place on the White Lily. He was willing to sell his tickets for half price. Andre had jumped at the chance.
Soon they would be in America, and everything would be made a right. He would offer what he knew for asylum. France didn’t seem to want to offer the same deal despite his working for them for years.
But life was like that. Not everyone he’d assumed was on his side was. The most dependable people often left their best friends in the middle of a misfortune.
“Papa, will we be there soon?”
Andre ruffled Eliott’s hair and noticed that he held his stomach once more.
The rolling waves of the smaller ocean liner had gotten to him more than once. The doctor had helped before. Andre sensed they were about to make another trip to see him.
“Let’s go see the doctor, um?”
“Merci.”
Andre led Eliott below decks to the first level and entered the doctor’s office. He was on the phone ranting about the inconvenience that a stop would cause. Andre stood outside the door and waited.
He froze in place.
Russian.
The doctor was speaking Russian.
Andre’s heart skipped a beat. He’d left France to get away from Russian intelligence questioning and now he was on a boat with what sounded like Russian intelligence.
When he’d been on deck hadn’t he noticed the ship slowing? He’d been distracted, but still it had been there.
He squeezed Eliott’s hand and dragged him along the hallway. The sound of the boat’s horn going off and the ship slowing until it only bobbed in the rough water had Andre running.
He found a place that he could look up on the top deck without them being seen. Black military boots. He saw dozens of them. As he looked upward, the sun blocked most of his view, but he could still make out weapons. Lots of heavy artillery had just climbed aboard the vessel.
The sound of a woman speaking caught his attention.
“Thank you for taking a ride aboard the White Lily. You were all specially chosen for a first-class seat on this vessel because of your unique position to bring me lots of money. These men here, yes, the ones with the big guns, will escort you to your quarters. Again, thank you. The money for your ransom or turning you over to your own government will be greatly appreciated.”
Andre held Eliott securely to his side. He had to either stay on this boat or get off without them seeing them. They weren’t really close enough to shore to jump. He remembered seeing some lifeboats on one side of the ship as they boarded. It might be the only shot they had.
Andre ran his hands through his hair. He drew in a deep breath. Quietly, he said, “Let the new journey begin.”
Chapter One
Detective Ericka Stone pulled into Greg’s driveway. Greg Kane. Her boss, her friend, her neighbor.
She couldn’t help looking over at him. While she drove, he’d fallen asleep and started snoring again. Only this time she could have sworn his snoring echoed.
“Are we here?” Greg stretched his arms over his head and leaned back in the seat.
“Ow!”
Greg sat straighter. His eyes widened. “Did you say that?”
Ericka shook her head. “No, I thought it was you.”
“It wasn’t me.”
A head appeared between the seats. “It was me. You crushed me.”
Ericka shrieked and jumped fo
Greg gasped, sounding breathless. “You’re a kid.”
“I’m a big kid.” The child held up six fingers and puffed out his chest.
Ericka licked her lips and cleared her throat. “What are you doing in my car?”
He shrugged.
Greg asked, “Where did you come from?”
The boy smiled. “God.”
Greg tried again. “I mean today. When did you climb in the car?”
“Can’t remember.” He bounced from one side of the seat to the other.
Ericka watched the little boy go up and down. Every now and then he would squeal as if something was funny. She eased closer to Greg. “What are we going to do?”
“You stay with him while I make a call.”
“I can’t—”
Greg opened the car door and stepped out.
Ericka swallowed and smiled. “I’m Ericka, what’s your name?”
The little boy shifted his head to the side and put his finger to his chin. “Um, not sure.”
“I mean, what do people call you?”
“Lots of things. Tadpole, stinky, fish, cat, Roger.”
“Is your name Roger?”
He shook his head no. “Roger, roger like the droids in the Star Wars movie. Remember? I like that movie. There was a little boy and he drove in a special race, and he won. Do you think I could win?”
“Oh.” Ericka was perplexed. She had a stowaway in her car and a new journey that looked as if it was about to begin before she even went inside her house. That reminded her. She hadn’t told Greg about the last journey.
She might need to do that soon. It could have something to do with the kid being in her car. She wondered…
****
Greg stepped out of the car and placed the phone to the side of his head. The line kept ringing. Over his shoulder he could see the child once again moving from side to side in the back seat of the car. The car rocked with the movement. He wondered how long Ericka would let the kid get away with that.
“Hello?”
Greg’s hand jerked at the word and the phone did a summersault before he was able to catch it. Once it was righted, he said, “Jake! I’m so glad you answered.”
“Well, I wasn’t going to until I saw your name pop up. You haven’t called in a while so I thought it could be important. Tell me, what’s going on?”
Greg’s eyes went back to the car. “Um, I’m not exactly sure what to say, but I have a kid in my car who doesn’t know his name or how he got in my vehicle.”
“You have a what?” Jake’s voice rose.
Greg understood the reaction. He tried again. “Yeah, you heard me right, a kid.”
“I guess I’m coming over.”
“Maybe you should.”
The line went dead in his hand, and he replaced his phone in his pocket. Ericka was still in the front seat. Before she was looking at the back, but now she faced forward. Her eyes were wide, and she leaned forward onto the steering wheel.
Rescuing. She needed rescuing.
Greg stepped up to the car and opened the back door. He leaned forward and peered inside. “Are you hungry?”
“Um, I could eat. What do you have?” The boy with no name gave him a big toothy grin.
He was a cute thing with a fair complexion and fair hair. And Greg thought he detected a hint of an accent, but he couldn’t be sure where from.
“Good question. I haven’t been home in a few days. Why don’t we go inside and find out.”
“I don’t know. You’re a stranger and I’m not supposed to go with strangers.” The boy leaned back and crossed his arms over his tiny chest.
The boy was cheeky. And Greg would have commented on him climbing into a stranger’s car, but he’d decided not to. Instead, he squatted before the little boy who was still sitting in the back seat. “You are absolutely right that you should not go with strangers. Let me show you something.” Greg withdrew his badge and handed it over.
“Is it real?” The boy ran his fingers over the gold plating.
“Yes, it’s real. I’m a police officer and so is the lady in the front seat.”
“Oh.” He shot a quick glance at Ericka who had turned back to face them and then returned his gaze to the badge he held.
“So, I have a friend coming over to meet you, but while we wait, we could go in and see if I have anything that hasn’t molded in my absence.”
He leaned his head to the side and pushed his lips in the opposite direction. “Could we order pizza?”
Greg shrugged. “Sure, why not?”
“Yay!” The boy jumped from the back seat and stood on the driveway. He paused while he studied the two houses side-by-side.
“Come this way.” Greg directed him to his house. He wasn’t sure if the work had been completed on Ericka’s. That was going to be a big problem if it hadn’t.
Ericka climbed from the driver’s seat and followed behind them to his house. Both Ericka and the boy waited patiently for him to find his key and unlock the door. Once inside she didn’t wait but took a seat on the couch and the little boy followed her. He snuggled so close to her side that she wouldn’t be able to move.
Greg smiled at the two of them as he found his house phone and ordered pizza. When he was done, he returned to the living room and plopped into his one cushy chair.
“What should we call you?”
“Um, I like the name Rex. It rhymes with Tex. And it is what they call a big dinosaur. Have you ever seen a T-Rex? They have tiny arms.” He pulled his hands into his sleeves and began flopping his arms around.
Greg laughed quietly. “I’ve only seen them in museums.”
“I’ve only seen them in movies.” The boy kicked his legs up in the air and back down. “I don’t think they are really alive anymore.”
Greg cocked one brow but didn’t say too much about the comment. The little boy moved a lot. Maybe he just accidentally moved into his car when he was supposed to move into another.
The little boy began to play with his thumbs and Greg directed his attention to his other houseguest. Ericka hadn’t said much since he’d gotten out of the car the first time. He thought about offering to let her go home, but figured it was better if they stayed together.
There was a knock at the door. Greg rose to his feet and answered it. The pizza had arrived, but there was still no sign of his friend.
It was going to be a long afternoon.
****
Robert Stone had gone to Madison’s Inn. Edna Madison had bought his story that he was a reporter doing a story on the Hastings’ family reunion. She’d been more than happy to share every detail. He probably could have asked for information on Ericka, and she would have gladly handed it over, but he didn’t want to be quite so forward.
Instead, while Edna was busy, he snuck into her office and found the information he needed. Ericka’s address and phone number were readily available in a big black book on Edna’s desk.
Robert had stayed at the inn for a couple more days to make sure that everything looked on the up and up. The town was quite charming. But he couldn’t stay. If Felix went into town and saw him then he didn’t know what might happen. One thing that would happen was his cover would be blown. Robert didn’t think that was a good thing at the moment.
After checkout on that third day, Robert plotted his course in the GPS. Ericka had wanted to know him, at least he thought she did, but there were other reasons for running her way.
He was pretty sure that he was being followed. Sloan and Roxanne had gone off the grid as far as he could tell, but every now and then he would see signs. Just little things that made him think they had been close by. A candy wrapper in the park from Roxanne’s favorite candy. A car that would drive by too many times.
Just little things.
The motor idled and Robert took a sip of hot coffee before pulling out on the road. The tendency to look over his shoulder had never left. He’d acquired it after his first mission and kept it ever since.
Through the rearview mirror he saw a black SUV. It was parked on the corner. Smoke rolled from the tailpipe as it idled. He knew this was his tail, the person following him.
Robert smiled. It might be fun to lose them. He hadn’t had a good car chase in some time.
He backed out of the lot and pulled onto the road. The black SUV followed.
He wasn’t concerned. There were many miles between the Inn and his daughter. He could lose them a hundred times over before he arrived in New York. His biggest worry was that she wouldn’t want to see him. He prayed that wasn’t the case. More than anything he wanted to foster a relationship with his daughter. They deserved to get to know each other. It was a journey they both needed to take.
