Deadly Melody Read online

  PRAISE FOR CONNIE MANN

  Deadly Melody

  “Mann’s book will take you on a wild ride. The main character is intriguing, well drawn, and brave. The romance is sizzling and the danger is palpable. A must-read for fans of romantic suspense!”

  —Christy Barritt, bestselling romantic suspense author

  “Mann is an exciting storyteller. Deadly Melody is the perfect combination of romance and suspense. I loved Cat and Nick. You will, too. Not to be missed.”

  —Rachel Hauck, New York Times bestselling author

  “An engaging story that has it all—mystery, suspense, and a nice dose of sweet romance!”

  —Cindy Kirk, bestselling author of the Good Hope series

  Hidden Threat

  “Once you start reading Hidden Threat, you’ll find it nearly impossible to put down.”

  —Susan Sleeman, bestselling author and host of The Suspense Zone

  “Connie Mann is my go-to suspense author. I read her books when I’m looking for escape and adventure, and when I feel like treating myself to a page-turner . . . Eve Jackson in Hidden Threat digs into an environmental issue we all face today. She will take you on a journey you’ll never forget!”

  —Sara Goff, author of I Always Cry at Weddings

  “Connie Mann does it again. Her beautiful storytelling is fast-paced and exciting, but when she slows down and develops a star-crossed romance, she really shows off her skills. This is a great sequel to Tangled Lies and I can’t wait to see what happens in the next installment of the Safe Harbor series.”

  —Lindsey P. Brackett, author of Still Waters

  Tangled Lies

  “Action and danger bring coastal Florida to life as compelling characters seek to unravel long-held secrets before time runs out. In Tangled Lies, Mann does it again . . . A surefire must-read.”

  —Lisa Carter, award-winning romantic-suspense author

  “Connie Mann has penned a romantic suspense that captures the reader on the first page with a deadly secret and refuses to let go until the last word—masterful pacing.”

  —DiAnn Mills, bestselling author and Christy Award winner

  “Connie Mann has crafted a unique suspense with the sea as a backdrop for hidden danger and exciting romantic interludes. Prepare to be swept away!”

  —Katy Lee, RITA Award–nominated author

  Angel Falls

  “This heart-pounding novel doesn’t stint on its characters . . . masterful.”

  —RT Book Reviews, four stars

  “If you’re looking for nonstop action and heart-pounding excitement, then Angel Falls is just the read you’ve been looking to find. Connie Mann deftly weaves danger and suspense into a story that left me sitting on the edge of my seat, flipping the pages.”

  —Debbie Macomber, #1 New York Times bestselling author

  “A perfect blend of fast-paced thriller, inspiration, and romance.”

  —Fresh Fiction

  “In Angel Falls, Connie Mann has penned an edgy, gritty book that pushes the boundaries of Christian romance fiction while giving readers a hero and heroine to root for.”

  —Irene Hannon, bestselling author of the Guardians of Justice series

  “A riveting read starting with the first page all the way through the book.”

  —The Suspense Zone

  “Dark, intense, and breathlessly paced, Connie Mann’s edgy novel, Angel Falls, is exciting, romantic suspense that kept me guessing. With tight writing and fast-paced action, Connie does a fantastic job of grabbing the reader from the first page and never turning loose until the last. Angel Falls is not your usual Christian suspense. Filled with intrigue, murder, and sensuality, and set in Brazil’s steamy underbelly, Connie’s debut is riveting.”

  —Linda Goodnight, author of A Snowglobe Christmas and Rancher’s Refuge and contributing author of the Prairie Romance Collection

  “Angel Falls is a powerful read from the beginning with a hero and heroine who emotionally grip you and won’t let go. The chemistry between Regina and Brooks along with the suspense keeps you riveted to the story.”

  —Margaret Daley, author of the Men of the Texas Rangers series

  “Connie Mann takes her readers on the heart-stopping journey of a woman who puts her life on the line for an orphaned baby boy and her heart in the hands of the man who came to save them. It was a remarkable story I won’t soon forget.”

  —Sharon Sala, author of the Rebel Ridge trilogy

  Trapped!

  “Romance, intrigue, and suspense with a Florida twist. Great read!”

  —Captain Shelia Kerney, United States Coast Guard–licensed captain

  “In Trapped! the author lets the reader feel the heat and sweat and smell the fear from unknown dangers along the river. Her fast pace and stunning conclusion will give the reader a fascinating ride.”

  —Martha Powers, award-winning author of Death Angel, Bleeding Heart, and Sunflower

  ALSO BY CONNIE MANN

  The Safe Harbor Series

  Tangled Lies

  Hidden Threat

  Other Titles

  Angel Falls

  Trapped!

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Text copyright © 2018 by Connie Neumann.

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

  Published by Waterfall Press, Grand Haven, MI

  www.brilliancepublishing.com

  Amazon, the Amazon logo, and Waterfall Press are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc., or its affiliates.

  ISBN-13: 9781503901483

  ISBN-10: 1503901483

  Cover design by Faceout Studio, Lindy Martin

  For my beautiful daughter, Michele Klopfenstein, whose eye for capturing moments with her camera is pure art and who fiercely champions those she cares about.

  Go get ’em, love!

  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

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Chapter 1

  Miami, Florida—Fourteen Years Ago

  “We’re going to do this right, Catharine,” he insisted, smile confident as he took her hand.

  Was she dreaming? Daniel Habersham was tall, blond, and charming, and Catharine Wang still couldn’t quite believe the most popular boy at school even knew her name, let alone held her hand in public.

  She ducked her head, hiding behind her straight dark hair. She couldn’t meet his eyes, afraid h
e would see too much. “I think it would be better if I just, um, snuck out and met you at the dance.” Anxiety fluttered beneath her skin, her palm sweaty against his. “It’ll be easier.”

  He stopped, right there on the crowded sidewalk in front of the school. Students flowed around them and hurried to waiting luxury cars and limos to escape the sweltering Miami humidity. More than one girl sent a flirty smile Daniel’s way and then scowled at Catharine immediately after.

  “Are you ashamed to be seen with me, Catharine?”

  “No, of course not!” How could she explain her uncle and the way she lived under his constant scrutiny? Or the late-night comings and goings at the penthouse, the hushed voices and snatches of conversation that made her terrified of what her uncle was doing just beyond her rigidly monitored life. She settled for, “My uncle doesn’t like strangers. And he doesn’t want me, um, dating anyone.”

  Daniel grinned, flashing his infectious smile and looking at her with those twinkling eyes that had first met hers across the aisle in math class months ago. “Ah, but we’re going as just friends, right?”

  She nodded, relieved. She had insisted. She could never tell him how much she wished it could be more, that they could be more. She could never hope for such a thing, never dare to reach that far and risk him turning away from her. Or risk her uncle’s anger.

  Daniel shrugged his broad shoulders. “Then it should be fine. I want to meet him. I want him to know I think you’re awesome.”

  Catharine felt the blood rush to her face and ducked her head again. Confident, rich Daniel, loved by everyone, couldn’t possibly know what his words meant to her. No one had ever called her awesome. Even her parents had only ever described her as merely adequate in her schooling, somewhat proficient in her violin playing—though not nearly as good as they thought she could be—and awkward socially. It was not the ringing endorsement a fourteen-year-old girl needed. But that had been the best she’d ever heard from them.

  Eight months ago, the train they’d all been on en route to a performance with the Indianapolis Symphony had crashed. Her parents had both been killed; Catharine, who had been wandering another section of the train, had survived. She squeezed her eyes shut against the images of the crash and instead focused on the dramatic changes in her life since then. Her father’s brother, Richard Wang, whom she’d never met before, had swept her out of her ordinary Midwestern life and plunked her down in a luxurious Miami high-rise filled with secrets. She’d felt invisible with her parents. Now she tried to stay invisible in order to navigate this frightening new world.

  They reached the black Mercedes where a driver waited to take Catharine home. Phillip straightened from where he lounged against the car and eyed Daniel from behind his dark sunglasses.

  “Daniel is coming home with me today to meet Uncle.” She was proud that her voice didn’t shake.

  Phillip gave a short nod and held the back door open. Catharine slid into the car and Daniel followed. She watched Phillip, sure he would call her uncle to warn him, but he didn’t.

  Inside the car, Daniel sent her a confident look and took her hand, giving it a quick squeeze before he let go. She wanted to snatch back his hand, try to absorb some of his confidence, but one glance in the mirror at the grim expression on Phillip’s face, and she curled her hand into a fist instead.

  Daniel leaned closer. “Does your uncle not want you to bring friends home?”

  “He wants me to focus on my music and my studies.” It wasn’t really an answer, and Daniel’s raised eyebrow said as much.

  She shrugged, like an idiot. What was there to say? Her uncle had made it clear that her focus in life was to be on her music and her schooling, in that order. He did not want her to waste time socializing. And she was much too young to date. In that way, he was very much like his brother, her late father, devoted to the traditional Chinese cultural ideals of family and accomplishment, to the exclusion of emotional complications.

  From her parents, Catharine had learned to hide her feelings, to keep them from ever showing on her face. Her classmates called her cold and distant. Little did they know she felt too much, had to work to hide the hurt and the loneliness.

  Then four months ago, she’d met Daniel, with his bright, sunny personality. Somehow, he’d sought her out. She would never tell him this, but he was her very first real friend. She’d tried to befriend girls over the years, but whenever she’d started getting close, they pulled away. She wondered if her parents had somehow intervened but then felt guilty for thinking that. It was probably her shyness and social awkwardness that drove them away. She knew she was either too needy or too distant and had never learned to strike the right balance. What came naturally to those around her seemed awkward for her.

  Now here was Daniel, steamrolling his way into her life with his kindness and confidence and a family who loved him. She didn’t understand why he wanted to be her friend, and she lived in fear of doing something to make him turn away in disgust or disappointment, as her parents had so often done with her.

  The closer they got to the condo, the faster Catharine’s heart beat. Dread grew inside her like a living thing. Why had she let him talk her into this?

  All too soon, they slid up to the curb, and the doorman hurried over to open the door. Catharine sent him a weak smile and followed Phillip to the elevator, where he held the door for them to precede him, then followed them inside.

  When the elevator doors opened at the penthouse, Catharine let out a relieved breath. There was no sign of her uncle, though crossing the threshold, she could hear his voice, angry but controlled, coming from his study just off the foyer. The other voice seemed familiar, but she couldn’t place it immediately.

  “Wait here,” Phillip said to Daniel and then went to the partially open study door and knocked. He slipped inside, and moments later, the door opened wide and her uncle stepped out, gray suit impeccable, a smile on his face. “Catharine, come in. And bring your friend.”

  Daniel gave her an I-told-you-so smile, but she wasn’t fooled. Her uncle’s rigid posture gave his anger away. Though she hoped it had to do with the interrupted argument, and not with her. Or Daniel.

  “Hello, Catharine.” Her uncle leaned over and kissed her cheek, then extended his hand to Daniel. “I am Richard Wang, Catharine’s uncle. And you are?”

  Daniel shook hands. “Daniel Habersham, sir. Very nice to meet you.”

  Her uncle led them into the study, where a heavyset man with a swarthy complexion sat smoking a Cuban cigar. He rose and also extended a hand.

  “This is Carlos Garcia, my associate.”

  More hand shaking, then her uncle waved them to seats on the sofa. Behind them, a wall of windows overlooked the ocean, where departing ships made Catharine long for an escape from her narrow life here.

  The housekeeper appeared in the doorway, and her uncle gestured to her. “Mrs. Chen, would you fetch us some refreshment, please, while we get acquainted?” Then he turned to Daniel. “Catharine has not brought a friend home with her before.” He shot her a look. “She is usually too busy with her studies and her music lessons.” He made a point of checking his Rolex. “You have a lesson this afternoon, yes?”

  “Yes, Uncle. In a little while.” She took a deep breath, unsure of what else to say. They made small talk until the housekeeper returned with a tray of drinks, which she set on the credenza before leaving the room.

  Mr. Garcia went to the tray and picked up the pitcher. He looked over his shoulder and smiled as he poured them each a glass. “Virgin mojitos for the youngsters.” Catharine hid her surprise at how relaxed he seemed in her uncle’s space.

  “Your father is in real estate, isn’t he, Daniel?” Uncle asked.

  Catharine marveled at the casual way Daniel answered her uncle’s questions, completely comfortable in his own skin. Then she switched her attention to her uncle and the hard look in his eyes. The fact that he knew all about Daniel’s family made her hands want to shake. How did
he even know she and Daniel were friends?

  Mr. Garcia carried the tray over and set it on the coffee table in front of the sofa she and Daniel were sitting on, then took a seat in the armchair next to her uncle, facing them. He raised his glass. “To new friends!”

  They all raised their glasses and drank. Catharine wasn’t a big fan of the lime-and-mint cocktail, but here in Miami, it seemed to be the drink of choice.

  “So, Daniel. What exactly is your relationship with our Catharine?” her uncle asked.

  Catharine choked on her drink, and nobody spoke while she coughed. Daniel winked at her before he turned back to her uncle.

  “Catharine is a beautiful, immensely talented young lady, and I am proud to call her my friend. I came by to ask if I could escort her to the upcoming dance, with your permission, of course.”

  Her uncle glanced from one to the other, expression carefully bland. “Is she your girlfriend?”

  “No, sir. Catharine says her focus is on her music and her studies.”

  “But you would like to be more than friends.”

  He sent her uncle that lopsided grin that always made Catharine’s stomach flip. “If she’d have me, I’d be honored. But I respect her. And her wishes.”

  Catharine had never been more proud of Daniel—or felt more cared for in her life. Had he really meant all those things he’d said, or were they strictly for her uncle’s benefit?

  Her uncle pierced her with a hard stare. “Catharine, please go upstairs and work on your studies while the men continue our conversation.”

  She wanted to refuse, because something about the look that passed between Garcia and her uncle tightened the knot in her stomach. She tried to protest, but no words came out. Daniel smiled encouragement, and she slowly rose from the couch, nodded to her uncle, and left the room.

  Phillip stood outside and closed the door behind her.

  Catharine started up the stairs, then stopped on the landing and waited. She heard Phillip’s shoes on the tile, then a slight squeak when he sat down in a chair opposite the study door. Fortunately, it was just out of view of the stairs.

  Heart pounding, she slipped off her shoes and tiptoed back down, then crossed the hall and went into the library next door to her uncle’s study. She left the door slightly ajar so she could hear if anyone approached, then eased over the tile floor to just below the air-conditioning vent in the ceiling, right by the study wall. She’d discovered when she first came here that if she stood flat against the wall, she could hear what was being said in the study.