Table Of Content

A M U R D E R I N P A R I S (A Year in Europe—Book 1) B L A K E P I E R C E Blake Pierce Blake Pierce is the USA Today bestselling author of the RILEY PAGE mystery series, which includes seventeen books. Blake Pierce is also the author of the MACKENZIE WHITE mystery series, comprising fourteen books; of the AVERY BLACK mystery series, comprising six books; of the KERI LOCKE mystery series, comprising five books; of the MAKING OF RILEY PAIGE mystery series, comprising six books; of the KATE WISE mystery series, comprising seven books; of the CHLOE FINE psychological suspense mystery, comprising six books; of the JESSE HUNT psychological suspense thriller series, comprising fifteen books (and counting); of the AU PAIR psychological suspense thriller series, comprising three books; of the ZOE PRIME mystery series, comprising six books; of the ADELE SHARP mystery series, comprising ten books (and counting); of the EUROPEAN VOYAGE cozy mystery series, comprising six books (and counting); of the new LAURA FROST FBI suspense thriller, comprising three books (and counting); of the new ELLA DARK FBI suspense thriller, comprising six books (and counting); of the A YEAR IN EUROPE cozy mystery series, comprising three books (and counting); of the AVA GOLD mystery series, comprising three books (and counting); and of the RACHEL GIFT mystery series, comprising three books (and counting). ONCE GONE (a Riley Paige Mystery--Book #1), BEFORE HE KILLS (A Mackenzie White Mystery—Book 1), CAUSE TO KILL (An Avery Black Mystery—Book 1), A TRACE OF DEATH (A Keri Locke Mystery—Book 1), WATCHING (The Making of Riley Paige—Book 1), NEXT DOOR (A Chloe Fine Psychological Suspense Mystery—Book 1), THE PERFECT WIFE (A Jessie Hunt Psychological Suspense Thriller—Book One), IF SHE KNEW (A Kate Wise Mystery—Book 1), and MURDER (AND BAKLAVA) (A European Voyage Cozy Mystery—Book 1) are each available as a free download on Amazon! An avid reader and lifelong fan of the mystery and thriller genres, Blake loves to hear from you, so please feel free to visit www.blakepierceauthor.com to learn more and stay in touch. Copyright © 2021 by Blake Pierce. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior permission of the author. This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictionally. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Jacket image Copyright Roman Sigaev, used under license from Shutterstock.com. BOOKS BY BLAKE PIERCE RACHEL GIFT MYSTERY SERIES HER LAST WISH (Book #1) HER LAST CHANCE (Book #2) HER LAST HOPE (Book #3) AVA GOLD MYSTERY SERIES CITY OF PREY (Book #1) CITY OF FEAR (Book #2) CITY OF BONES (Book #3) A YEAR IN EUROPE A MURDER IN PARIS (Book #1) DEATH IN FLORENCE (Book #2) VENGEANCE IN VIENNA (Book #3) ELLA DARK FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER GIRL, ALONE (Book #1) GIRL, TAKEN (Book #2) GIRL, HUNTED (Book #3) GIRL, SILENCED (Book #4) GIRL, VANISHED (Book 5) GIRL ERASED (Book #6) LAURA FROST FBI SUSPENSE THRILLER ALREADY GONE (Book #1) ALREADY SEEN (Book #2) ALREADY TRAPPED (Book #3) EUROPEAN VOYAGE COZY MYSTERY SERIES MURDER (AND BAKLAVA) (Book #1) DEATH (AND APPLE STRUDEL) (Book #2) CRIME (AND LAGER) (Book #3) MISFORTUNE (AND GOUDA) (Book #4) CALAMITY (AND A DANISH) (Book #5) MAYHEM (AND HERRING) (Book #6) ADELE SHARP MYSTERY SERIES LEFT TO DIE (Book #1) LEFT TO RUN (Book #2) LEFT TO HIDE (Book #3) LEFT TO KILL (Book #4) LEFT TO MURDER (Book #5) LEFT TO ENVY (Book #6) LEFT TO LAPSE (Book #7) LEFT TO VANISH (Book #8) LEFT TO HUNT (Book #9) LEFT TO FEAR (Book #10) THE AU PAIR SERIES ALMOST GONE (Book#1) ALMOST LOST (Book #2) ALMOST DEAD (Book #3) ZOE PRIME MYSTERY SERIES FACE OF DEATH (Book#1) FACE OF MURDER (Book #2) FACE OF FEAR (Book #3) FACE OF MADNESS (Book #4) FACE OF FURY (Book #5) FACE OF DARKNESS (Book #6) A JESSIE HUNT PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE SERIES THE PERFECT WIFE (Book #1) THE PERFECT BLOCK (Book #2) THE PERFECT HOUSE (Book #3) THE PERFECT SMILE (Book #4) THE PERFECT LIE (Book #5) THE PERFECT LOOK (Book #6) THE PERFECT AFFAIR (Book #7) THE PERFECT ALIBI (Book #8) THE PERFECT NEIGHBOR (Book #9) THE PERFECT DISGUISE (Book #10) THE PERFECT SECRET (Book #11) THE PERFECT FAÇADE (Book #12) THE PERFECT IMPRESSION (Book #13) THE PERFECT DECEIT (Book #14) THE PERFECT MISTRESS (Book #15) CHLOE FINE PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE SERIES NEXT DOOR (Book #1) A NEIGHBOR’S LIE (Book #2) CUL DE SAC (Book #3) SILENT NEIGHBOR (Book #4) HOMECOMING (Book #5) TINTED WINDOWS (Book #6) KATE WISE MYSTERY SERIES IF SHE KNEW (Book #1) IF SHE SAW (Book #2) IF SHE RAN (Book #3) IF SHE HID (Book #4) IF SHE FLED (Book #5) IF SHE FEARED (Book #6) IF SHE HEARD (Book #7) THE MAKING OF RILEY PAIGE SERIES WATCHING (Book #1) WAITING (Book #2) LURING (Book #3) TAKING (Book #4) STALKING (Book #5) KILLING (Book #6) RILEY PAIGE MYSTERY SERIES ONCE GONE (Book #1) ONCE TAKEN (Book #2) ONCE CRAVED (Book #3) ONCE LURED (Book #4) ONCE HUNTED (Book #5) ONCE PINED (Book #6) ONCE FORSAKEN (Book #7) ONCE COLD (Book #8) ONCE STALKED (Book #9) ONCE LOST (Book #10) ONCE BURIED (Book #11) ONCE BOUND (Book #12) ONCE TRAPPED (Book #13) ONCE DORMANT (Book #14) ONCE SHUNNED (Book #15) ONCE MISSED (Book #16) ONCE CHOSEN (Book #17) MACKENZIE WHITE MYSTERY SERIES BEFORE HE KILLS (Book #1) BEFORE HE SEES (Book #2) BEFORE HE COVETS (Book #3) BEFORE HE TAKES (Book #4) BEFORE HE NEEDS (Book #5) BEFORE HE FEELS (Book #6) BEFORE HE SINS (Book #7) BEFORE HE HUNTS (Book #8) BEFORE HE PREYS (Book #9) BEFORE HE LONGS (Book #10) BEFORE HE LAPSES (Book #11) BEFORE HE ENVIES (Book #12) BEFORE HE STALKS (Book #13) BEFORE HE HARMS (Book #14) AVERY BLACK MYSTERY SERIES CAUSE TO KILL (Book #1) CAUSE TO RUN (Book #2) CAUSE TO HIDE (Book #3) CAUSE TO FEAR (Book #4) CAUSE TO SAVE (Book #5) CAUSE TO DREAD (Book #6) KERI LOCKE MYSTERY SERIES A TRACE OF DEATH (Book #1) A TRACE OF MUDER (Book #2) A TRACE OF VICE (Book #3) A TRACE OF CRIME (Book #4) A TRACE OF HOPE (Book #5) CONTENTS 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 CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE CHAPTER TWENTY SIX CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT CHAPTER TWENTY NINE CHAPTER THIRTY CHAPTER ONE Sipping from her I Survived Another Meeting That Should Have Been an Email coffee mug, Diana St. James shivered in the too-chilly air-conditioning. Who’d turned that sucker down again? Someone on the floor definitely had the constitution of a penguin just like her soon-to-be ex- husband, Evan. All those years, she’d had to grin and bear it when he turned the thermostat way down. It was so much better to be able to do as one pleased, organize the house the way she wanted to . . . I should be happy to be getting rid of him! Diana stood behind her desk, contemplating the latest addition to the product line. Sure, there was MAC cosmetics, NARS cosmetics, e.l.f., and NYX. But the last thing they needed was to make Addict the butt of all jokes by naming their latest, greatest mascara after one. B. U. T. Who the heck came up with that one? Diana sighed. It was another rainy Monday. It seemed like April showers had just given way to more May showers, and now it was a humid, sticky, waterlogged early June. The floor-to-ceiling windows in Diana’s corner office were steamed over, only partially blocking her view of the throngs of people dodging the puddles and raindrops on the busy Tribeca street below. She went to her intercom and buzzed Sandy, her trusty, just-out-of-college administrative assistant. Diana had chosen her because, with her blue eyes and freckles, she reminded her of her youngest daughter, Beatrice, who’d been in Japan for the past year. Most marketing executives would’ve questioned that hiring move—god knows, HR did, especially since Sandy didn’t have squat on her resume—but Diana hadn’t had the heart or the time to go through a lengthy hiring process. Anyway, it had turned out to be a good decision. Sandy was always cheerful, always willing to help, and always eager to learn. Plus, she always answered on the first buzz. “Good morning, Diana! How can I help?” “Hi, Sandy. Can you please tell Phil that none of these names is going to work for the new mascara? They’re going to have to go back to the drawing board and come up with something different.” “Oh, really? Because I thought that B.U.T. one was cute! Ellie in graphic design came up with that,” she said in her too-happy-for-Monday voice. “Get it? Like, B-U-T. Beauty?” “I understand that,” Diana said with a wan smile, “But the last thing we want is anyone to associate Addict’s latest product with one’s derriere. Right?” “Oh. Yes. I understand. Good point. I’ll tell him. Right away.” “Thank you. See if they can come up with anything new before the morning meeting,” she said, depressing the button and sighing as she scooted forward in her leather executive chair. Opening her email, she started to go through the two hundred that Sandy had flagged for her as Urgent. This was nothing new. She’d been the marketing director for Addict for over twenty years, almost since its inception, so now she ate, slept, and breathed the products. In the beginning when she was new to the company—though she’d been a marketing manager at Elizabeth Arden for ten years prior —Addict was young, hip, and fun; but now it was exclusive, refined, and sold at high-end boutiques. It had aged right along with the women it served. A few years ago, against Diana’s better judgement, they’d tried to take back some market share among teenagers, even hiring a young YouTube star as their spokesperson—and what a disaster that had been. Now, Diana knew to trust her instincts. And her instincts were clearly saying N.O. to B.U.T. or any of their other less-than-buzzworthy ideas. After tackling the first few emails, a meeting alert popped up on the corner of her computer screen, telling her it was time for the morning briefing. Leaving her mug on her desk, she grabbed her pen and blank pad and headed next door to the massive board room. On the way, she mentally ran through ideas for the mascara line. Lash Pump? Lethal Lengths? Incredi-Pop? Really, anything would be better than B.U.T. Her staff was already assembled, chatting. They quieted down when she came in. She wasn’t sure if that was something they did around all the executives, out of respect, or just around her, out of fear. She tried to be relatable and fun—and thought they liked her, but a supervisor never could tell what her employees whispered about around the water cooler. It didn’t matter. She wasn’t there to be their friends. If they didn’t like her, they all did a good job of faking it, smiling and saying “good morning” as she sat at the head of the table. As she pulled her chair in, she let out a sigh. Same scenery, different week. “Hello, everyone. And how was your weekend?” she said, just as a formality. She didn’t care to know, and she sensed from their usual terse responses that they understood that. They all nodded and added their own version of “too short.” Short? Really, they didn’t know the meaning of the word. At least they’d left the office for more than a few hours. Diana hadn’t. She’d stayed overnight Sunday into Monday, working on the new spreads for their Allure ad, and showered in the downstairs gym. She kept an entire closet of clothes in her office just for that purpose. So while her employees may have had lives outside of the Addict headquarters, Diana—well—didn’t. Not anymore, anyway. Among the group of twelve, a third were millennials. She related to them because of her own daughters. The rest were older, in their thirties and forties. And then there was Phil, branding director, who had come on board around the same time Diana had and was nearly Diana’s age. The two had clawed at each other, years ago, over who’d become a senior vice president and lead the creative group. She’d managed to come out on top. Still full of piss and vinegar over the snub, Phil wasn’t going to be happy about her nixing all those brand-name ideas. But she’d been through that rodeo before. She knew how to cut through his crap. “How was yours?” he asked from his usual spot at her right elbow. He was busy nursing his usual extra-huge commuter cup of something, probably a necessity due to his commute in from Central Jersey. “Do anything fun?” he questioned in a lilting way that made her wince. He knew she hadn’t. “Yes. It was fun. Quiet,” she said, not looking at him. Though she’d tried to keep the messy details of her pending divorce out of the office, it had a way of leaking in, anyhow. With all the phone calls Sandy had been taking from her lawyer and Evan, they likely knew something was up. She pointed to her notebook. After decades of running these meetings, she knew the agenda by heart, but she never came in without one. She couldn’t afford to let anything sidetrack her from the work that needed to be done, and side-conversations and tangents always seemed to bloat meetings unnecessarily. “Let’s get start—” She stopped when she realized she didn’t have the full attention of the room. A few of the millennials on the other side, Sandy included, were speaking in a low voice to one another, grinning. The three stopped talking and looked at Diana. “Sorry,” Sandy mumbled. “Am I missing something?” Diana asked. Sometimes this was like dealing with a bunch of kids. Anything you’d like to share with the class? Sandy shook her head, “Marie was just telling us about her amazing vacation.” Case in point—the vacation tangent, that was the last thing this meeting needed. People always