Evil Embers by Cristelle Comby

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After narrowly preventing the destruction of Cold City, PI Bellamy Vale needs a rest. Or rather, he needs a plain and simple vanilla case—no monsters or otherworldly creatures involved!

When foreign businessman Eli Smith shows up at his doorstep with a thick wallet and a request to find his missing sister, Vale doesn’t think twice before agreeing.

If he’d known body-hopping demons and smoke monsters came attached to this job, however, he might have.

Read an Excerpt

I started feeling eyes on me about two blocks up. I was hoping it was just one guy…and that it was the kind of guy I could win a fight against without losing all my teeth.

I turned off Maltese Street and into a familiar alley. The rusted-out dumpster was where it usually was, tall enough for me to hide behind in a crouch. I wished I had my knife with me. My gun might have been nice too, but too much noise would have put me back in Morgan’s crosshairs. I was going to have to wing it.

Another set of footsteps came into the alley. They slowed down as they got closer. I heard labored breathing on top of the steps, like the guy was running a mile to get me. In a voice so low it barely echoed off the walls, he muttered, “Where is he?”

That’s all I needed to hear. The moment the intruder got past the dumpster, I gave him a hip tackle that should have sent him into the opposite wall. But somehow, he managed to flip me around in mid-air and I was the one that hit the wall with a thud. I was still shaking my head clear when I saw a fist aimed right at my nose. I jerked my head to the side, making the attacker’s hand slam into the brick with a meaty slap. My right fist jabbed into his belly and side, working his body like a jackhammer.

I bucked my hips and used my left hand to help flip him over. But once again, he kept the flip going and I wound up on the bottom before I could blink. This time the fist struck, and my head went blank a couple of times as the blows hit home. I wrapped my hands around his arm as the third punch landed and applied pressure to the elbow. The strangled cry from my attacker’s mouth sounded familiar.

“Smith?” I asked in confusion, relaxing the pressure.

“Mr. Vale,” the shadowy figure said back, confirming my guess.

I released his arm, and we both got back on our feet, a bit unsteadily. Something about his gait told me he was a lot less steady than I was right then.

“I…I must apologize,” he said. “I was quite certain you were a robber of some sort.”

“A robber that doesn’t use a gun or a knife?” I asked. “In this city?”

He sighed. “Yes…upon reflection, that theory does seem rather foolish.”

I took the time to check myself over for any severe damage. Aside from new aches and pains, nothing was pressing. “What were you doing following me in the first place?”

“I was most interested to see if you had managed any progress on the leads we found.”

“So, instead of waiting at my place for me to come back, you stalk me across town to make sure I’m on the job?” I admit I was more than a little offended. Sure, I can be a bit devious when it comes to getting the money I need, but I’m enough of a professional to stick with a job until I either figure out that it’s not worth pursuing or I get paid.

It made me want to punch my client all over again.

About the Author:

Cristelle Comby was born and raised in the French-speaking area of Switzerland, on the shores of Lake Geneva, where she still resides.

She attributes to her origins her ever-peaceful nature and her undying love for chocolate. She has a passion for art, which also includes an interest in drawing and acting.

She is the author of the Neve & Egan Cases series, which features an unlikely duo of private detectives in London: Ashford Egan, a blind History professor, and Alexandra Neve, one of his students.

Currently, she is hard at work on her Urban Fantasy series Vale Investigation which chronicles the exploits of Death’s only envoy on Earth, PI Bellamy Vale, in the fictitious town of Cold City, USA.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/cristelle
Website: http://www.cristelle-comby.com
Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/Cristelle-Comby/e/B00EAWEODS
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/CristelleComby
Amazon buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Evil-Embers-Vale-Investigation-Book-ebook/dp/B07MD2Z7ZV/ref=sr_1_1

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