A Trace of Crime (a Keri Locke Mystery--Book #4)
Blake Pierce · Completed · 71.1k Words
814
Hot
814
Views
244
Added
Start Reading
Add to Shelf
Share:
)
814
Hot
814
Views
244
Added
Add to Shelf
Start ReadingShare:
Introduction
“A dynamic story line that grips from the first chapter and doesn't let go.”--Midwest Book Review, Diane Donovan (regarding Once Gone)From #1 bestselling mystery author Blake Pierce comes a new masterpiece of psychological suspense.In A TRACE OF CRIME (Book #4 in the Keri Locke mystery series), Keri Locke, Missing Persons Detective in the Homicide division of the LAPD, follows a fresh lead for her abducted daughter. She winds her way through a twisted underworld, and step by step, she gets closer to finding her daughter.Yet she has no time. Keri is assigned a new case: a dad calls from an affluent community and reports that his teen daughter vanished on the way home from school.Shortly after, ransom letters arrive. Twisted, filled with riddles, they make it clear that there is little time to save the girl. They also make it clear that this is the work of a diabolical killer who is toying with them.Keri and the police must scramble to find the kidnapper, to understand his demands, to decode the letters, and most of all, to outwit him. But in this master game of chess, Keri may find herself up against a foe even she cannot understand, and for the missing girl—and her own daughter—she may just be too late.A dark psychological thriller with heart-pounding suspense, A TRACE OF CRIME is book #4 in a riveting new series—and a beloved new character—that will leave you turning pages late into the night.“A masterpiece of thriller and mystery! The author did a magnificent job developing characters with a psychological side that is so well described that we feel inside their minds, follow their fears and cheer for their success. The plot is very intelligent and will keep you entertained throughout the book. Full of twists, this book will keep you awake until the turn of the last page.”--Books and Movie Reviews, Roberto Mattos (re Once Gone)Book #5 in the Keri Locke series will be available soon.
Chapter 1
PROLOGUE
Carolyn Rainey could sense something was wrong. It was hard to explain the feeling. But as she walked along the winding residential street to meet her twelve-year-old daughter, the skin on the back of her neck tingled.
On the surface, nothing was out of the ordinary. Carolyn always left the house around 2:30 to meet up with Jessica. She enjoyed the solitary, if brief, walk. It allowed her to clear her head for the second half of the day.
Playa del Rey Middle School let out at 2:35 and Jessica biked home every day. By the time she got everything from her locker into her backpack, made it to the bike rack, said goodbye to her friends, and got on the road, it was usually around 2:45.
Mother and daughter invariably met up at about the halfway point between the school and house around 2:50. Then they would return home together, Carolyn walking, Jessica biking slowly beside her, occasionally circling her mom playfully.
They would talk about the events of the day: who had a crush on whom, which teacher accidentally used a curse word, what song they were working on in choir. When they got home, there was always a snack waiting, after which Jessica would dive into her homework and Carolyn would get back to her own work. They had their routine and it was always the same, give or take a few minutes.
But Carolyn had been walking for close to a half hour now. It was almost 3 p.m. and she was nearly two-thirds of the way to the school. She should have run into Jessica by now.
Maybe her daughter had needed to go to the bathroom. Or maybe she had gotten caught up in a conversation with Kyle, the cute boy from her English class. But the tingling sensation on her neck told Carolyn that something else had happened.
When she rounded the next corner, she saw that she was right. Jessica’s purple bike, covered in stickers from the live-action
Beauty and the Beast
movie and photos of her favorite singers, Selena Gomez and Zara Larsson, was lying on its side, half on the sidewalk, half on the road.
She ran over to it and stared, frozen with fear. Looking around desperately, she caught a glimpse of something in the bushes of the nearest house. She hurried over and pulled at it. A branch snapped and the thing came loose.
She looked at it, almost unable to process what she was seeing. It was Jessica’s backpack. Carolyn dropped to her knees, her legs suddenly unsteady. Her heart pounded nearly out of her chest as the realization hit her: her daughter had vanished.
Last Chapters
#35 Chapter 35
Last Updated: 3/3/2025#34 Chapter 34
Last Updated: 3/3/2025#33 Chapter 33
Last Updated: 3/3/2025#32 Chapter 32
Last Updated: 3/3/2025#31 Chapter 31
Last Updated: 3/3/2025#30 Chapter 30
Last Updated: 3/3/2025#29 Chapter 29
Last Updated: 3/3/2025#28 Chapter 28
Last Updated: 3/3/2025#27 Chapter 27
Last Updated: 3/3/2025#26 Chapter 26
Last Updated: 3/3/2025
You Might Like 😍
Omega Bound
215k Views · Ongoing · Veronica White
Ayla Frost is a beautiful, rare omega. Kidnapped, tortured, and trafficked to rogue clans and corrupt alphas to do with as they pleased. Kept alive in her cage, broken and abandoned by her wolf, she becomes mute and has given up on hope for a better life until one explosion changes everything.
Thane Knight is the alpha of the Midnight Pack of the La Plata Mountain Range, the largest wolf shifter pack in the world. He is an alpha by day and hunts the shifter trafficking ring with his group of mercenaries by night. His hunt for vengeance leads to one raid that changes his life.
Tropes:
Touch her and die/Slow burn romance/Fated Mates/Found family twist/Close circle betrayal/Cinnamon roll for only her/Traumatized heroine/Rare wolf/Hidden powers/Knotting/Nesting/Heats/Luna/Attempted assassination
Thane Knight is the alpha of the Midnight Pack of the La Plata Mountain Range, the largest wolf shifter pack in the world. He is an alpha by day and hunts the shifter trafficking ring with his group of mercenaries by night. His hunt for vengeance leads to one raid that changes his life.
Tropes:
Touch her and die/Slow burn romance/Fated Mates/Found family twist/Close circle betrayal/Cinnamon roll for only her/Traumatized heroine/Rare wolf/Hidden powers/Knotting/Nesting/Heats/Luna/Attempted assassination
Letting Go
252.7k Views · Completed · Becky j
Molly's life was perfect. She was married to her high school sweetheart, surrounded by her friends and family and she was looking forward to the future. But that all ends one tragic night when her whole world is turned upside down.
That fateful night leads to Molly and her best friend Tom holding a secret close to their hearts but keeping this secret could also mean destroying any chance of a new future for Molly.
When Tom's oldest brother Christian meets Molly his dislike for her is instant and he puts little effort into hiding it. The problem is he's attracted to her just as much as he dislikes her and staying away from her starts to become a battle, a battle that he's not sure he can win.
When Molly's secret is revealed and she’s forced to face the pain from her past can she find the strength to stay and work through the pain or will she run away from everything she knows including the one man who gives her hope for a happy future? Hope that she never thought she would feel again.
That fateful night leads to Molly and her best friend Tom holding a secret close to their hearts but keeping this secret could also mean destroying any chance of a new future for Molly.
When Tom's oldest brother Christian meets Molly his dislike for her is instant and he puts little effort into hiding it. The problem is he's attracted to her just as much as he dislikes her and staying away from her starts to become a battle, a battle that he's not sure he can win.
When Molly's secret is revealed and she’s forced to face the pain from her past can she find the strength to stay and work through the pain or will she run away from everything she knows including the one man who gives her hope for a happy future? Hope that she never thought she would feel again.
The Pack: Rule Number 1 - No Mates
1.4m Views · Ongoing · Jaylee
Soft hot lips find the shell of my ear and he whispers, "You think I don't want you?" He pushes his hips forward, grinding into the back of my ass and I groan. "Really?" He chuckles.
"Let me go," I whimper, my body trembling with need. "I don't want you touching me."
I fall forward onto the bed then turn around to stare at him. The dark tattoos of Domonic's chiseled shoulders, quiver and and expand with the heave of his chest. His deep dimpled smile is full of arrogance as he reaches behind himself to lock the door.
Biting his lip, he stalks toward me, his hand going to the seam of his pants and the thickening bulge there.
"Are you sure you don't want me to touch you?" He whispers, untying the knot and slipping a hand inside. "Because I swear to God, that is all I have been wanting to do. Every single day from the moment you stepped in our bar and I smelled your perfect flavor from across the room."
New to the world of shifters, Draven is human on the run. A beautiful girl who no one could protect. Domonic is the cold Alpha of the Red Wolf Pack. A brotherhood of twelve wolves that live by twelve rules. Rules which they vowed could NEVER be broken.
Especially - Rule Number One - No Mates
When Draven meets Domonic, he knows that she is his mate, but Draven has no idea what a mate is, only that she has fallen in love with a shifter. An Alpha that will break her heart to make her leave. Promising herself, she will never forgive him, she disappears.
But she doesn’t know about the child she’s carrying or that the moment she left, Domonic decided rules were made to be broken - and now will he ever find her again? Will she forgive him?
"Let me go," I whimper, my body trembling with need. "I don't want you touching me."
I fall forward onto the bed then turn around to stare at him. The dark tattoos of Domonic's chiseled shoulders, quiver and and expand with the heave of his chest. His deep dimpled smile is full of arrogance as he reaches behind himself to lock the door.
Biting his lip, he stalks toward me, his hand going to the seam of his pants and the thickening bulge there.
"Are you sure you don't want me to touch you?" He whispers, untying the knot and slipping a hand inside. "Because I swear to God, that is all I have been wanting to do. Every single day from the moment you stepped in our bar and I smelled your perfect flavor from across the room."
New to the world of shifters, Draven is human on the run. A beautiful girl who no one could protect. Domonic is the cold Alpha of the Red Wolf Pack. A brotherhood of twelve wolves that live by twelve rules. Rules which they vowed could NEVER be broken.
Especially - Rule Number One - No Mates
When Draven meets Domonic, he knows that she is his mate, but Draven has no idea what a mate is, only that she has fallen in love with a shifter. An Alpha that will break her heart to make her leave. Promising herself, she will never forgive him, she disappears.
But she doesn’t know about the child she’s carrying or that the moment she left, Domonic decided rules were made to be broken - and now will he ever find her again? Will she forgive him?
My Husband Wants An Open Marriage
198.7k Views · Completed · Elysian Sparrow
It’s true what they say about marriage: one partner’s always happier than the other.
Julie's world is shattered when her husband, Ryan, reveals that he wants an open marriage. His reason: he needs a child as they've been unable to have one. Julie reluctantly agrees to save her marriage.
The next day, Ryan returns home with his secretary, confirming Julie’s long-held suspicion that their affair was taking place behind her back.
Julie, heartbroken and enraged, seeks solace in a bar, where she meets a fascinating stranger named Luke, who changes the game. Julie confides in Luke over drinks, and he proposes a risky plan: he will act as her "boyfriend" to turn the tables on Ryan.
Julie agrees, setting off a chain of events that will challenge everything she thought she knew about love, loyalty, and herself.
Julie's world is shattered when her husband, Ryan, reveals that he wants an open marriage. His reason: he needs a child as they've been unable to have one. Julie reluctantly agrees to save her marriage.
The next day, Ryan returns home with his secretary, confirming Julie’s long-held suspicion that their affair was taking place behind her back.
Julie, heartbroken and enraged, seeks solace in a bar, where she meets a fascinating stranger named Luke, who changes the game. Julie confides in Luke over drinks, and he proposes a risky plan: he will act as her "boyfriend" to turn the tables on Ryan.
Julie agrees, setting off a chain of events that will challenge everything she thought she knew about love, loyalty, and herself.
Falling for my boyfriend's Navy brother
212k Views · Ongoing · Harper Rivers
Falling for my boyfriend's Navy brother.
"What is wrong with me?
Why does being near him make my skin feel too tight, like I’m wearing a sweater two sizes too small?
It’s just newness, I tell myself firmly.
He’s my boyfirend’s brother.
This is Tyler’s family.
I’m not going to let one cold stare undo that.
**
As a ballet dancer, My life looks perfect—scholarship, starring role, sweet boyfriend Tyler. Until Tyler shows his true colors and his older brother, Asher, comes home.
Asher is a Navy veteran with battle scars and zero patience. He calls me "princess" like it's an insult. I can't stand him.
When My ankle injury forces her to recover at the family lake house, I‘m stuck with both brothers. What starts as mutual hatred slowly turns into something forbidden.
I'm falling for my boyfriend's brother.
**
I hate girls like her.
Entitled.
Delicate.
And still—
Still.
The image of her standing in the doorway, clutching her cardigan tighter around her narrow shoulders, trying to smile through the awkwardness, won’t leave me.
Neither does the memory of Tyler. Leaving her here without a second thought.
I shouldn’t care.
I don’t care.
It’s not my problem if Tyler’s an idiot.
It’s not my business if some spoiled little princess has to walk home in the dark.
I’m not here to rescue anyone.
Especially not her.
Especially not someone like her.
She’s not my problem.
And I’ll make damn sure she never becomes one.
But when my eyes fell on her lips, I wanted her to be mine.
"What is wrong with me?
Why does being near him make my skin feel too tight, like I’m wearing a sweater two sizes too small?
It’s just newness, I tell myself firmly.
He’s my boyfirend’s brother.
This is Tyler’s family.
I’m not going to let one cold stare undo that.
**
As a ballet dancer, My life looks perfect—scholarship, starring role, sweet boyfriend Tyler. Until Tyler shows his true colors and his older brother, Asher, comes home.
Asher is a Navy veteran with battle scars and zero patience. He calls me "princess" like it's an insult. I can't stand him.
When My ankle injury forces her to recover at the family lake house, I‘m stuck with both brothers. What starts as mutual hatred slowly turns into something forbidden.
I'm falling for my boyfriend's brother.
**
I hate girls like her.
Entitled.
Delicate.
And still—
Still.
The image of her standing in the doorway, clutching her cardigan tighter around her narrow shoulders, trying to smile through the awkwardness, won’t leave me.
Neither does the memory of Tyler. Leaving her here without a second thought.
I shouldn’t care.
I don’t care.
It’s not my problem if Tyler’s an idiot.
It’s not my business if some spoiled little princess has to walk home in the dark.
I’m not here to rescue anyone.
Especially not her.
Especially not someone like her.
She’s not my problem.
And I’ll make damn sure she never becomes one.
But when my eyes fell on her lips, I wanted her to be mine.
The Alpha King's Human Mate
412.4k Views · Ongoing · HC Dolores
“You must understand something, little mate,” Griffin said, and his face softened,
“I have waited nine years for you. That’s nearly a decade since I’ve felt this emptiness inside me. Part of me began to wonder if you didn’t exist or you’d already died. And then I found you, right inside my own home.”
He used one of his hands to stroke my cheek and tingles erupted everywhere.
“I’ve spent enough time without you and I will not let anything else keep us apart. Not other wolves, not my drunken father who’s barely holding himself together the past twenty years, not your family – and not even you.”
Clark Bellevue has spent her entire life as the only human in the wolf pack - literally. Eighteen years ago, Clark was the accidental result of a brief affair between one of the most powerful Alphas in the world and a human woman. Despite living with her father and her werewolf half-siblings, Clark has never felt like she really belonged in the werewolf world. But right as Clark plans to leave the werewolf world behind for good, her life gets flipped upside down by her mate: the next Alpha King, Griffin Bardot. Griffin has been waiting years for the chance to meet his mate, and he's not about to let her go anytime soon. It doesn't matter how far Clark tries to run from her destiny or her mate - Griffin intends to keep her, no matter what he has to do or who stands in his way.
“I have waited nine years for you. That’s nearly a decade since I’ve felt this emptiness inside me. Part of me began to wonder if you didn’t exist or you’d already died. And then I found you, right inside my own home.”
He used one of his hands to stroke my cheek and tingles erupted everywhere.
“I’ve spent enough time without you and I will not let anything else keep us apart. Not other wolves, not my drunken father who’s barely holding himself together the past twenty years, not your family – and not even you.”
Clark Bellevue has spent her entire life as the only human in the wolf pack - literally. Eighteen years ago, Clark was the accidental result of a brief affair between one of the most powerful Alphas in the world and a human woman. Despite living with her father and her werewolf half-siblings, Clark has never felt like she really belonged in the werewolf world. But right as Clark plans to leave the werewolf world behind for good, her life gets flipped upside down by her mate: the next Alpha King, Griffin Bardot. Griffin has been waiting years for the chance to meet his mate, and he's not about to let her go anytime soon. It doesn't matter how far Clark tries to run from her destiny or her mate - Griffin intends to keep her, no matter what he has to do or who stands in his way.
Mated To The Cold Hearted Alpha
262.5k Views · Ongoing · Alice Tumusiime
Warning 18+ ⚠️MATURE READERS ONLY⚠
"You want me to fuck you, I know it"
"As much as you don't like me, you're my mate and you can't deny it."
He stood up behind me, one hand holding my hip, and leaned down, his breath ragged against my neck, his voice was husky,
"You'll listen to your body... what it wants... and my body... what it needs. Only the pleasure that a small bite can bring."
At the age of 15, I was shocked to hear the ruthless Alpha claim that I was his mate.
To make matters worse, he killed my father, who was trying to protect me. At that time, I successfully ran away from him.
However, when I turned 18, I fell into his trap again.
I hated him and wanted revenge, but the moon goddess had a different plan for me.
I was his mate, and we were fated to be together. No matter the circumstances, my body couldn't resist him.
"You want me to fuck you, I know it"
"As much as you don't like me, you're my mate and you can't deny it."
He stood up behind me, one hand holding my hip, and leaned down, his breath ragged against my neck, his voice was husky,
"You'll listen to your body... what it wants... and my body... what it needs. Only the pleasure that a small bite can bring."
At the age of 15, I was shocked to hear the ruthless Alpha claim that I was his mate.
To make matters worse, he killed my father, who was trying to protect me. At that time, I successfully ran away from him.
However, when I turned 18, I fell into his trap again.
I hated him and wanted revenge, but the moon goddess had a different plan for me.
I was his mate, and we were fated to be together. No matter the circumstances, my body couldn't resist him.
Stuck With My Three Hottie Boss
170k Views · Completed · Oguike Queeneth
"Your pussy is dripping for us, begging for us to use it." His deep voice sent shivers down my spine.
"Do you want that, buttercup? Do you want us to give your little cunt what it craves?"
"Y…yes, sir." I breathed
Joanna Clover's hard work through university paid off when she got a secretary job offer to her dream company, Dangote Group of Industries. The company is owned by three mafia heirs, they don't only own a joint business, they are also lovers and had been together since their college days.
They are sexually attracted to one another but they share everything together including women and they change them like clothes. They are known as the world's most dangerous playboys.
They want to share her but will she accept the fact that they fuck each other?
Will she be able to navigate business and pleasure?
She has never been touched by a man before let alone three, all at the same time. Will she oblige?
"Do you want that, buttercup? Do you want us to give your little cunt what it craves?"
"Y…yes, sir." I breathed
Joanna Clover's hard work through university paid off when she got a secretary job offer to her dream company, Dangote Group of Industries. The company is owned by three mafia heirs, they don't only own a joint business, they are also lovers and had been together since their college days.
They are sexually attracted to one another but they share everything together including women and they change them like clothes. They are known as the world's most dangerous playboys.
They want to share her but will she accept the fact that they fuck each other?
Will she be able to navigate business and pleasure?
She has never been touched by a man before let alone three, all at the same time. Will she oblige?
The Wolf Prophies
159.8k Views · Ongoing · Catherine Thompson
Lexi has always been different than others. She is faster, stronger, can see better and heals quickly. And she has an odd birthmark in the shape of a wolf's paw. But she never thought of herself as special. Until she gets close to het twentieth birthday. She notices all of her oddities get stronger. She knows nothing about the super natural world or mates. Until the birthmark starts to burn. Suddenly she finds herself involved with werewolves that think she is the prophesied one that is supposed to unite the packs against a vampire that wants her dead. She has to learn how to handle her new powers as well as not one but two mates. One wanted to reject her because he thought she was human. The other accepts her completely. The prophecy says she has to have both. Wha twill she do. Will she accept both or reject one and hope for a second chance mate? Will she be able to handle shifting and her powers before it is too late?
A pack of their own
512.1k Views · Completed · dragonsbain22
Being the middle Child ignored and neglected, rejected by family and injured, She receives her wolf early and realizes she is a new type of hybrid but doesn't know how to control her power, she leaves her pack with her best friend and grandmother to go to her grandfather's clan to learn what she is and how to handle her power and then with her fated mate, her best friend and her fated mate little brother and grandmother start their own pack.
Unwanted Mate Of The Lycan Kings
101.5k Views · Completed · Jessica Hall
Caught in a deadly game, Zirah must outwit three savage Lycan Kings and their lethal pets to survive. But what happens when she finds herself in the heart of the maze, not just alive, but protected by the very beasts sent to kill her? It is supposed to be a game—a game of life and death. But what started with the maze trials ended in a prize that is more than Zirah bargained for. She never thought the prize would be for her to choose between the three Lycan Kings fighting for their father’s throne.
Upon meeting the three Lycan kings, Zirah learns that the Kings are no prince charmings. That this would be no fairy tale love story, but one where her life is constantly balanced on the sharp edge of a knife's blade. A knife that is poised to take her life or leave her horribly broken. The Kings want nothing to do with her or each other and plan to get rid of her.
What they don't expect is for Zirah to fight back, only she plays with something far more dangerous than weapons. She’ll play with their hearts.
Zirah has to pick one King, but secrets will be revealed, and the battle between the Kings will be for more than just the throne. They will battle for the queen that they tried to break. But there's just one issue: Zirah wants revenge, and what better revenge than taking away their precious throne?
Upon meeting the three Lycan kings, Zirah learns that the Kings are no prince charmings. That this would be no fairy tale love story, but one where her life is constantly balanced on the sharp edge of a knife's blade. A knife that is poised to take her life or leave her horribly broken. The Kings want nothing to do with her or each other and plan to get rid of her.
What they don't expect is for Zirah to fight back, only she plays with something far more dangerous than weapons. She’ll play with their hearts.
Zirah has to pick one King, but secrets will be revealed, and the battle between the Kings will be for more than just the throne. They will battle for the queen that they tried to break. But there's just one issue: Zirah wants revenge, and what better revenge than taking away their precious throne?
A FORCED CONTRACT MARRIAGE WITH THE DEVIL
85.6k Views · Completed · Alice Tumusiime
"Love me or hate me either way, I will fuck you every night.."
MXM R18+
A FORCED CONTRACT MARRIAGE WITH THE DEVIL.
I sucked in my breath when he all of a sudden took hold of my jaw and kept my other hand above my head" "Let go of me, you devil," I beat against his chest repeatedly. I wanted to shove him off me but he didn't even budge a bit. Within minutes , l brought my knee up and kicked him in the shin. As soon as I did, he groaned out in pain and I took that as an opportunity to free myself from his grasp. I rushed quickly to the other side of the room desperate to get away from him.
He wasn't going to do as he pleases with me and yet we are fellow men
MXM R18+
A FORCED CONTRACT MARRIAGE WITH THE DEVIL.
I sucked in my breath when he all of a sudden took hold of my jaw and kept my other hand above my head" "Let go of me, you devil," I beat against his chest repeatedly. I wanted to shove him off me but he didn't even budge a bit. Within minutes , l brought my knee up and kicked him in the shin. As soon as I did, he groaned out in pain and I took that as an opportunity to free myself from his grasp. I rushed quickly to the other side of the room desperate to get away from him.
He wasn't going to do as he pleases with me and yet we are fellow men
