Autumn’s Deceit

AUTUMN’S DECEIT AUTUMN TRENT SERIES SEASON TWO BOOK ONE MARY STONE Copyright © 2023 by Mary Stone All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Created with Vellum To my husband. Thank you for taking care of our home and its many inhabitants while I continue this dream of mine. CONTENTS Description 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 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 What’s Next? Autumn Trent Series Acknowledgments About the Author DESCRIPTION Welcome to the nightmare... To Special Agent Autumn Trent, it feels like déjà vu when a four-year-old boy appears on the front steps of FBI Behavioral Analysis Unit with a package taped to his chest and a note for "Agent Parrish and his superhero team." After all, it seems like just yesterday her best friend Special Agent Winter Black was strapped in an explosive vest among a crowd of unsuspecting civilians. But instead of a bomb, the package holds a hand-drawn map and the cling-wrapped heart of the boy’s mother. And instead of Winter’s deranged brother, they’re dealing with an equally demented madwoman who poses just as much threat to the entire Richmond team. One by one. Jane Doe is quietly stalking them, taking innocent lives to put each member of the team through their own worst nightmare. And she’s pulling it off right under their noses. Who is she, and where will she strike next? Autumn is certain the answer lies in decoding the map. But can she figure it out before more victims die? And before Jane Doe breaks them all? Autumn’s Deceit, the first book in Season Two of Mary Stone’s bestselling Autumn Trent Series, is a twisted descent into the mind of a killer that will make you realize some nightmares are real. 1 Izadore Peck shifted her minivan into park and closed her eyes for a brief second. Her four-year-old son chattered happily from his booster seat behind her, sharing the important details of his busy day at preschool. From what she could gather, one of Bram’s buddies brought his goldfish to school for show-and-tell and caused quite the sensation. “Can we get a goldfish, Mommy? Pleeeease!” Bram’s plea was expected, and Izzy already had her answer prepared. She said a mental prayer as she unbuckled her seat belt and turned to meet Bram’s bright blue gaze. “I think that’s a great idea. It would be a good first pet for you, but how about we wait until your birthday? Make it extra special?” She didn’t add that her main worry was stretching the monthly budget to allow for aquarium supplies and fish food. Having enough to feed her child was her main concern. Bram clapped his hands together, his eyes wide with excitement and wonder. “A birthday fish!” He didn’t seem to remember that his next birthday was still six months away, and Izzy wasn’t about to remind him. With any luck, he’d forget all about the goldfish by the time August rolled around. Or maybe her manager at the grocery store would give her a substantial raise. First-pet raises are a thing, right? A headache brewed at her temples like an oncoming storm, but Izzy forced a cheerful grin and helped Bram out of the van. He sprinted toward the front door of their home, and she followed on aching feet. Ten-hour shifts spent ringing up orders, remembering umpteen million produce codes, and convincing an endless barrage of Karens that their “fifty cents off two Hamburger Helpers” coupon had definitely been applied took a toll. A heavy one. But those tedious hours also paid the bills. “Mommy, I want mac and cheese!” Luckily, Bram’s idea of a gourmet meal remained well within their budget. “You got it, bud.” While Bram took off up the stairs, Izzy plopped her purse on the kitchen table and grabbed a pot to fill with water. Before she made it to the faucet, the doorbell chimed its singsong alert. Exhausted. I’m too exhausted for visitors. Approaching the door with the caution borne of being a single mom, Izzy sent up a silent prayer that it was a Girl Scout or Jehovah’s Witness—anyone she could kindly and quickly send on their way—and pasted a pleasant expression on her face. With my luck, it’ll be Wilma from two doors down complaining about how high the damn grass is. The suburban Richmond house that she and her late husband had purchased as their starter home came with an abundance of tight-knit and occasionally obnoxious neighbors. Izzy admitted the yard hadn’t looked the same since Gordon’s passing, but she’d been focused on the more pressing matters of surviving and raising their son alone. Annoyance simmered in her chest, just thinking about a confrontation. “This is the wrong day, Wilma. The. Wrong. Day.” As she viewed her visitor through the peephole, however, her irritation dissipated, replaced by genuine concern. A young woman stood on the front steps with hands clutched together and a forlorn cast to her downturned features. Izzy guessed her to be younger than twenty. Possibly under eighteen. The girl’s bottom lip puckered out as her chin trembled, and Izzy figured it could only be moments before she broke into tears. Or froze to death in the unusually cold weather Richmond had seen over the past few days. Unlatching the door, Izzy prepared to swing it wide open, then paused. She knew her neighbors well