Chasing Shadows Read Online Free PDF Page B

demons, whupping them good.
    As Neil ushered them into the kitchen, Jay wished he and KC could be more than just friends.  Everyone in town thought they were serious, sleeping together, but Jay knew it would never happen.  Still, he enjoyed thinking about what it would be like, if only—
    "Earth to Jay," Neil interrupted his fantasy.  "I asked did you want some pop?"
     
    KC wished Jay didn't feel such loyalty to his friend.  But then, if Jay and Neil weren't friends and if Neil's father wasn't the largest illegal arms dealer on the East Coast, she wouldn't be here.
    Which maybe wouldn't be such a bad thing.  Jay could go on with his life, enjoying in innocence all the things most high school seniors looked forward to: Prom, Graduation, going away to school.  She looked over at the tall, thin boy, restraining her impulse to run a hand over his unruly hair.  Kid was a neat freak about everything except remembering to get a hair cut.
    Don't let it get personal , she reminded herself.  She patted Jay's jacket, ensuring that the phone she'd given him was there.  
    "Buzz me when you're ready," she said, standing on her tiptoes to give him a quick peck on the cheek.  
    "Hey, KC, why don't you stay?" Neil said.  "There's plenty of food and stuff."  
    He spread his hands to indicate the well-stocked kitchen.  The room was larger than the entire downstairs of the Cape Cod KC lived in next door.  Although she knew servants lurked nearby, awaiting any command, the large house felt empty, devoid of life.
    Except for the two teens before her.  She gave Neil a genuine smile.  The kid was one of those people who wanted nothing more than to please everyone who mattered in his life.  KC had the feeling that, growing up attended mainly by servants with an often absent dad, Neil was starved for affection.  No wonder he followed Jay around like a lost puppy.
    It was going to break Neil's heart when Jay disappeared and KC sent Bruno Gianotti to prison.  
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER 4
     
    KC banged open the kitchen door to her house. A grey-haired man appeared, shaking his head at her appearance, then shrugging, a parent surrendering the battle as far as anyone watching from outside could see.  He moved back into the kitchen, and she followed.
    "What's up, Pop?" she asked, grabbing a slice of pizza from the box on the counter.
    "Do you have any idea what time it is?" 
    KC shrugged, crammed the pizza into her mouth, snatched a second slice and headed downstairs to the family room.  
    "Don't you walk away from me, young lady," he said, dogging her steps, closing the sound-proofed basement door behind him.  
    As soon as he shut it he sagged against it, his demeanor transformed as he tried hard not to laugh.  "Oh yeah, the police called.  Something about you were out stealing condoms from Old Man Sinderson?"
    Glenn Michaels wasn't as old as he looked, especially not when his smile met his eyes, like now.  KC galloped down the steps. Glenn followed. 
    "Why?  You need some?" she threw over her shoulder.
    "Woo-hoo, KC, dig the belt," a second man sitting in front of a massive computer console, one ear covered by a headset, said.  Carson was a ginger-haired man with a full beard that defied Bureau guidelines.  A fact he could care less about, which made him perfect for her operation.  "Those regulation?"
    KC glanced back at the handcuffs dangling behind her.  "No.  Came with the belt. They're like tin or something, but they came in handy, drove the guards at school nuts every time I went through the metal detector."  She shrugged, jangling the chains and rings adorning her leather jacket.  "After the first few times, they gave up and just let me through."
    A lot of thought had gone into deciding on the perfect persona to gain her instant notoriety in a town like Coalton.  No one here would forget "bad girl" KC who had stolen away with Jay Westin.  If she did her job right, few would think twice about Jay's