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  Mind Bender

  A Miranda and Parker Mystery

  Book 10

  Linsey Lanier

  Copyright © 2017 Linsey Lanier

  All rights reserved. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, please return to your online distributor and purchase your own copy.

  Thank you for respecting the author’s work and helping her earn a living.

  Felicity Books

  ISBN: 978-1-941191-43-9

  ###

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  Book #10 in the gripping mystery-thriller series from bestselling author, Linsey Lanier

  A shooting. A bank robbery. A car chase. A kidnapping. And that was just Miranda Steele’s morning.

  After a relaxing vacation in the North Georgia Mountains with her sexy husband and boss, Miranda Steele gets mixed up in a bank robbery that leads to a desperate hunt for a missing woman. Never in her life would she have guessed it would be that woman, but she can’t give up now. The woman’s life may be in danger, as well as the trust of Miranda’s new team at the Parker Investigative Agency.

  On a twisted trail of violence, kidnapping, and mind control, Miranda is forced to face a frightening question: Can someone brainwash you to do something that’s not in your nature? Like rob a bank and kill everyone in your way?

  Miranda and Parker are about to find out.

  Edited by

  Editing for You

  Books by Linsey Lanier

  Linsey’s Amazon Author page

  THE MIRANDA’S RIGHTS MYSTERY SERIES

  Someone Else’s Daughter

  Delicious Torment

  Forever Mine

  Fire Dancer

  Thin Ice

  THE MIRANDA AND PARKER MYSTERY SERIES

  All Eyes on Me

  Heart Wounds

  Clowns and Cowboys

  The Watcher

  Zero Dark Chocolate

  Trial by Fire

  Smoke Screen

  The Boy

  Snakebit

  Mind Bender

  Roses from My Killer

  (more to come)

  OTHER SUSPENSE BOOKS BY LINSEY LANIER:

  Chicago Cop (A cop family thriller)

  Steal My Heart (A Romantic Suspense)

  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 Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Chapter Fifty

  Copyright

  Chapter One

  She was so excited, her skin tingled.

  She could feel her own heartbeat as she listened to the murmur of Friday business being conducted around her.

  As she waited in the roped-off line, she bounced on her toes and gazed up at the tall glass façade of the front wall and entrance to the downtown Buckhead bank. Ten minutes ago she’d marched through those doors, her first paycheck tucked in her pocketbook under her arm.

  Well, it wasn’t her very first paycheck.

  She’d worked all kinds of jobs back in Austin. She’d waitressed in dives, cleaned houses, even tried a little panhandling. But she’d gone to school and taken acting lessons for the past eight year, and all that effort had finally paid off.

  She was in a real movie being filmed in Atlanta.

  She was about to deposit her first check from the production company.

  Okay, she wasn’t a star yet. She was only an extra, and the part was only supposed to last a few days. But the second assistant director seemed to be taking a liking to her. He’d asked her to stay on another week, and she thought he might give her a line in one of the upcoming scenes. Who knew where that could lead? She was on her way. She could feel it. The sky was the limit. Someday, she would be a star. She always knew she would be.

  She couldn’t stop smiling.

  Bouncing on her heels with excitement, she glanced around at the other customers waiting in line and the busy bank clerks behind the counter. The place was crowded and felt close. She could smell the colognes and body washes of the customers near her. One large man in a suit grumbled impatiently. She should have expected the bank would be busy on a Friday just before noon. Everyone was here to cash their own paychecks and go out for a good time.

  She wasn’t in a hurry.

  She was done for the day and didn’t have plans for tonight. She’d be heading home after this stop. So why was she suddenly feeling so anxious? Maybe because Drew had promised he might stop by later.

  She’d only known him a week, but she really liked him. She’d met him back in Austin and he’d asked her out. When she told him she was trying to get into the movies, he said he had some connections and might be able to get her something in Atlanta if she was willing to start at the bottom.

  At first she’d thought it was a come on line. But there was something about Drew that made her trust him. But leave home and go all the way to Atlanta with him? It might have been risky, but she’d decided to do it. And it had worked out. Drew hadn’t been lying. Here she was, cashing her first paycheck.

  She felt a hand on her shoulder. As if he’d materialized from her own thoughts, Drew appeared at her side, wearing that heart-stopping smile of his.

  “Hey, honeybun.”

  “Hey,” she breathed in answer.

  He was so handsome. Tall and broad-shouldered, dressed in jeans and his leather motor-cycle jacket, his thick black hair tousled as if he’d just been on a ride. His face was to-die-for. He was part Asian and his dark exotic eyes always made her knees feel like jelly.

  “Cashing your check?”

  “Making my first deposit.”

  “We need to go out and celebrate tonight. My treat.”

  She bounced on her toes again. Could this day get any more perfect?

  Drew touched her shoulder again and she caught a whiff of that sexy aftershave he always wore.

  It smelled like honeysuckle and cinnamon—and something els
e she couldn’t quite identify.

  The man behind her stepped a little too close. Feeling suddenly claustrophobic, she glanced around at the crowd. She was uncomfortable, antsy. She started to perspire. The A/C was on, but her skin felt like it was on fire. There were too many people in here.

  She heard a voice calling to her.

  “Ma’am?”

  Looking up, she saw the clerk standing behind the counter. A fuzzy red haze surrounded her.

  The clerk beckoned her forward. “Can I help you ma’am?

  Awkwardly she stepped toward the window.

  “What can I do for you?”

  The clerk was wearing a ridiculous smile. She reminded her of Emmy Holt, a girl in high school who’d always made fun of her.

  Suddenly, she hated that clerk. Who did she think she was, anyway?

  “Would you like to make a deposit?” The woman prompted.

  “Deposit?” She put a hand to her forehead and tried to think.

  She couldn’t remember what she was here for. She opened her pocketbook and stared down at its contents. There was a check, but she didn’t remember putting it there. She saw lipstick, tissues, a cell phone—and tucked neatly beside the phone was a small handgun with a pink handle.

  How did that get in there?

  “Ma’am?” The clerk said again.

  The red haze grew dark. Blue and purple clouds began to form around the edges of her vision. She felt dizzy, sick.

  “Ma’am? Are you all right?”

  And all she wanted was to make that clerk shut up. She reached into her purse, pulled out the gun, and fired at the woman.

  The clerk crumbled to the floor as a collective scream rose from the crowd of customers.

  She spun around flailing the gun at the sea of terrified faces. Suddenly, she knew exactly what to do.

  “All of you,” she growled. “On the floor or you’ll be next.”

  Chapter Two

  Miranda Steele stretched and yawned in the buttery soft leather passenger seat of Parker’s midnight blue Lamborghini. That was a nice long nap. She flexed her arms and looking up, caught sight of the big green signs for Peachtree Street and GA-400 looming ahead.

  Buckhead.

  They were nearly home. She almost didn’t want to go back.

  After a nerve-racking case that had taken a toll on both of them, she and Parker had retreated to their favorite spot in the North Georgia Mountains. For a whole week she’d lazed around with him in bed in their high-end rustic cabin. They’d gorged themselves on the country fare and made love whenever the mood struck. They’d strolled over rolling mountain trails where the magnificent fall foliage boasted a heart-stopping array of gold and orange and burnt red hues. They’d waded in a babbling forest brook. She’d even fed a deer from her hand. She was starting to really love that area.

  It was healing, therapeutic. But then, Parker always knew exactly what she needed.

  She leaned over and took his hand. She loved him more than she thought was humanly possible. Marrying him was the smartest decision she’d ever made.

  He smiled at her. “You’re awake.”

  As if he didn’t know.

  He sat behind the wheel with a commanding pose, dressed in his casual look. Designer jeans and a polo shirt in a shade of blue that made his dark hair and salt-and-pepper edges look more sophisticated than the expensive suits he wore in the office. The glow in his gray eyes made her melt.

  “Yeah.” She let out a sigh. “Wish we could stay in that fairytale world forever.”

  “I would have stayed longer.”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  The plan was to stay two weeks, but Colby had called yesterday and said Mackenzie was making a speech at the PTA meeting this afternoon—on the dangers of vaping for young people, no less.

  Miranda couldn’t miss that.

  Parker lifted his wife’s hand and pressed her fingers to his lips. Out of the corner of his eye, he stole a glimpse of her and his heart went to heaven, as it had so many times since they’d met. With her wild dark hair and her flashing blue eyes, she possessed a beauty she didn’t know she had. From the first he’d been drawn to her determination, her sacrifice, her boldness. He felt a oneness with her he’d never felt with another woman. But on their last case, she had done something for him that went beyond anything he imagined. He couldn’t be more grateful. Or more intensely in love with her.

  If only he could pay her back by soothing her anxieties about her daughter. Not so easy to accomplish. He was worried about Mackenzie, as well.

  “Are you nervous for her?” Parker said causally.

  Miranda eyed him, knowing he was reading her mind. “I don’t know what to feel, Parker. She’s done such a one-eighty.”

  “Most parents would consider that fortunate.”

  She took her hand back and let out a sigh. “I just can’t help worrying. How can she go from vaping with some guy on the school grounds and getting expelled for it, to a crusade against it?”

  “She’s a fourteen-year-old.”

  “Yeah, I guess.” Or it might be symptoms of a traumatic reaction to finding out her real father was a serial killer.

  Parker kissed her hand. “It’s prudent to assume the best until proven otherwise.” He was being clairvoyant again. He knew what was troubling her.

  “I know. I know.”

  Maybe it was force of habit. After enduring thirteen years of an agonizing search for her daughter, after seeing her shot by that bastard of an ex-husband she’d had, after learning what a psycho her real father was, a normal life seemed too good to be true.

  But she’d try.

  Forcing herself to think optimistically, she glanced at the dash. Just past noon. They had plenty of time to get home, unpack, maybe even get in another lovemaking session before the meeting at five.

  The ringtone on Parker’s phone broke into her thoughts. It was that chicken dance song she’d snuck on there a few days ago while he was in the shower.

  Parker scowled. “I wish you’d stop doing that.”

  With a satisfied smirk, she looked at the display on the dash and saw the caller. “Holloway? What does he want?”

  “I’ll find out.” Parker pressed the button on the screen to answer the call. “Good morning, Detective. What can I do for you?”

  Holloway’s light Texas accent came through the speaker. “I’m sorry to bother you, sir. I know you’re on vacation. But I need the rest of the day off.”

  Parker’s scowl deepened. “You’ll have to speak to your manager about that. Fortunately, she’s in the car with me now.” Parker gave Miranda a nod, transferring his scowl along with the call.

  She pressed her lips together in annoyance. She’d never wanted to manage a team, especially not her old work buddy, a guy who resented the arrangement as much as she did. Besides, she knew Holloway was royally po’d she hadn’t taken him along on their last case.

  But the job was the job. For now.

  “What is it, Holloway?” She made sure to add a touch of the irritation she was feeling to her tone. She’d given the team the option of down time before she’d left with Parker for the mountains. Holloway had opted to stay in the office. Now he wanted time off?

  “I need the day off, Steele,” he said, sounding as grouchy as she did.

  She didn’t really care if he took it off, but why did she have to be the one to say yes or no? She heard traffic in the background. “Sounds like you’ve already taken it.”

  “Actually, I have.”

  “Why did you call in, then?”

  “Following protocol.”

  Protocol would be calling in before you left. She couldn’t bring herself to point that out. Instead she said, “Okay. Why do you need the day off on such short notice, Holloway?”

  Did Gen have some cozy cushions ready for them to try out at her apartment? By now Miranda was pretty sure Parker knew Holloway and his daughter were dating, but surely Holloway would have enough sense not to blurt
out something like that now.

  “It’s an emergency.”

  She rolled her eyes. “The toilet flood in your apartment?”

  She heard an angry huff on the other end. “I got a call from my ex-wife a few minutes ago.”

  Ex-wife? Holloway hadn’t mentioned his ex-wife in a long time. She was under the impression they weren’t in contact with each other. “What did she want?”

  “There’s bank robbery in progress in downtown Buckhead. She’s being held hostage. She called me for help.”

  Miranda looked at Parker. Bank robbery? This really was serious. “Which bank? We’ll get there as fast as we can.”

  “I don’t need your help, Steele.”

  “Of course, you do.”

  “I’ve had the same training you have. I’ll handle it.” And he hung up.

  Parker’s jaw was tight as he reached for the radio.

  “I’ll do that.” Miranda pressed buttons, scanning through country music, a talk show, and static before she got what they needed.

  “We interrupt this broadcast with breaking news,” said a man with alarm in his voice. “A few minutes ago gunshot broke out at the South Exchange Bank in downtown Buckhead. Police are arriving at the scene now, and there seems to be a hostage situation in progress.” The reporter went on to interview a bystander who didn’t know much more than what he’d already stated.

  Miranda was on her phone, looking up the address. “South Exchange Bank. It’s close to the office. Just off Piedmont.” And near Parker’s penthouse, too.

  “Hosea must be there already,” Parker said darkly.

  Parker and Lieutenant Hosea Erskine of the APD went way back.

  “Probably. Let’s go.”

  Her stomach lurching, she watched Parker cut the steering wheel and speed down the exit, heading for Piedmont Street.

  Chapter Three

  Every nerve tight, Miranda scanned the streets as they swung through the traffic around Lenox then onto GA-141. Changing lanes several times, they zoomed through the cars and the tangle of tunnels and twisty asphalt with creatively shaped high-rises looming on every jagged corner. They passed a bistro Parker had taken her to once, a high end shopping area, rows of sweeping glass-and-steel towers housing offices, high-end hotels, and pricey restaurants.