Hour of Reckoning (Donatella Book 2) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Part I

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Part II

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Part III

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Epilogue

  Hour of Reckoning

  A Donatella Novel

  Demetrius Jackson

  Shadow World Productions

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Hour of Reckoning

  Copyright © 2020 by Shadow World Productions, LTD. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review, without permission in writing from the author or publisher

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without written permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use materials from this book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

  First edition: August 2020

  ISBN 978-0-9771133-3-0 (Paperback)

  ISBN 978-0-9771133-4-7 (Hardcover)

  Dedication

  I dedicate this book to Denise Jackson. You always taught me to follow my dreams and exemplified the definition of a strong woman.

  Part I

  Decisions

  Prologue

  June 8th – 7:15 p.m.

  M arcellous Thompson gripped the steering wheel of his royal blue 2018 Tesla Model S as he weaved back and forth through the nighttime traffic. The performance model upgrade and the dual motors provided the torque needed to hurry past any traffic unwilling, or in many cases too slow, to accommodate his rapid rate of speed.

  “Damn it, Marcellous. Hurry! This is all your fault! I will not forgive you for this,” Jasmyn screamed from the passenger side.

  “My fault. My fault? If I recall we were both there and fully engaged in this matter that now has us in this fine predicament.”

  “Well if you don’t hurry up and get me to the hospital, I will have this baby right here in the front seat of your precious Blue Ice.” If you don’t want to see that happen, I suggest you press on the gas and get me to the hospital.”

  This car is fully electric, Marcellous thought, so there is no gas to push. However, he decided in the matter of self-preservation, he would be better off keeping that thought to himself.

  The couple was now only a few moments from the hospital and the nurses would then be able to take over and he would be able to breathe again.

  “No worries, babe,” Marcellous said in a calm, reassuring voice as he reached his hand over to his wife’s hand. “We are almost there.”

  “Don’t you touch me.” The words came in rapid succession. “Oh…the pain. Get this baby out of me. And why is it so hot. Turn on the air. You are roasting me to death. Me and the baby. Is that your plan? To make us bake in the car while you take your sweet time getting me to the hospital?”

  Marcellous shook his head in disbelief. Though he knew this wasn’t truly his sweet wife talking, he still felt himself holding his tongue from his natural inclination to retort. Nine months of pregnancy had turned into nine months and two weeks and those extra two weeks had Jasmyn at her wits’ end.

  Saved by the bell, he thought as he turned into the hospital and saw a nurse standing outside the entrance with a wheelchair holding a sign that read, “Thompson”. That’s a new one. I had no idea that they offered curbside service.

  When Jasmyn began to feel continuous contractions, she was convinced that the baby could come at any moment. Marcellous contacted the hospital and they said that her OB-GYN, Dr. Prince, could not be located at the time but that they would let her know that the Thompson’s were on their way to the hospital. They also contacted the on-call doctor as a backup.

  Marcellous depressed the brake, reached over to the touchscreen and pressed the unlock icon to unlock the door. While the nurse began to help Mrs. Thompson exit the vehicle, Marcellous hopped out of the driver’s side.

  “Oh, thank you so much for being out here and ready to take her inside. Wait. Let me grab her bag and we will be all set to go.”

  “No worries, Mr. Thompson,” the nurse said with a genuine smile, “We will take great care of your wife. Why don’t you go park the car, grab the bag and then come on in when you’re done. We will take her up to labor and delivery located on the fifth floor. You can meet us there.”

  “Oh right, the car. OK. I will go park the car and then come up to labor and delivery on the fourth floor.”

  “Fifth floor, Mr. Thompson.”

  “My bad! Fifth floor. Gotcha.”

  Marcellous took another look at his wife and thought to himself how utterly beautiful she is and how much he truly loved her. Reading his mind, Jasmyn looked at him with a smile plastered on her face and said, “I love you, Marcellous.”

  He looked back at his wife and said, “I love you too, Jasmyn. I’ll go park the car and then I’ll be right back.” He watched the nurse wheel his wife toward the sliding doors as he settled back into the driver’s seat.

  As he pulled away from the hospital door to find a parking spot his phone rang. It was Donatella, the baby’s soon to be godmother and a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

  He answered the phone feeling more at ease now that the professionals had his wife and they would ensure their first child would make it into the world safe and sound. “Hey Donatella, I was just about to call you. We –”

  “Marcellous, are you still with Jasmyn?” she interrupted Marcellous in a huff. “Are you at the hospital?”

  Alarms began to register in his head. “No, I’m not with her, I just dropped her off with the nurse at the entrance to the hospital. They are taking her up to labor and delivery.”

  “Shit!” she said in a panicked voice. “This has all been a trap. A well-orchestrated trap. Jasmyn is in dire danger and you need to find her immediately.”

  Marcellous, beginning to process that his wife could be in mortal danger, quickly rotated the steering wheel a full 180 degrees, pressed the accelerator and quickly made his way back to the entrance. Without taking any time to place the car in park, he opened the door and ran inside. He frantically scanned the lobby and didn’t see his wife, but his eyes connected with a nurse who was eyeing him. The nurse began to approach Marcellous and as she did, she spoke.

  “You must be Marcellous. I was told to expect you and your wife. Is she outside in the car?”

  “What do you mean is she in the car? I just dropped her off with a nurse who was waiting outside,” he stated in a high confused voice.

  “Waiting outside?” The nurse stated, raising an eyebrow. “I only received the call mere minutes ago and I haven’t had time to tell anyone else. I came right down so I could meet you both.”

  With panic in his voice he raised the phone back to his ear, “Donatella, they’ve got her. They’ve got Jasmyn.”

  Chapter 1
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  December 10th – 6:20 p.m.

  T he crisp cool air accentuated by the starlight filled night breathed frost on this December evening. The trees, bare of leaves during the turn from fall to winter, glistened from the melting icicles dripping from the branches. Adam Joseph maneuvered his 2018 Toyota Camry between the lines in the lot, parking underneath the tree as the melting icicle drippings landed with a splash on the hood of the car.

  Adam rummaged through his leather messenger bag until he found what he was looking for. Running his fingers through his thinning jet-black hair, he popped two breath mints into his mouth. Chewing the mints, he removed the silk red power tie adorning his neck and unbuttoned the top button on his specially tailored, white presidential dress shirt. As he swallowed the last of the mints, he cupped his hand over his mouth and nose, blew his breath into his hand and inhaled deeply.

  “Fresh like a new spring day,” he said out loud. Satisfied, he placed the mints back into the bag and opened the door. The frigid cold air rushed into the car sending a chill through his core. He shivered and pulled his coat tighter as he exited the car. He cast his eyes down toward the ground as a gust of wind stung his pupils. He quickened his pace as he hustled to 631 Sapphire Ave. He arrived at his destination, for the moment, and knocked.

  After waiting a full 10 count, he knocked again wringing his hands feverishly to generate friction and thus some warmth. She knew I was coming, he thought as he began to bounce in place. He reluctantly moved his right hand from his left preparing to rap on the door for a third time when he heard the deadbolt disengage seconds before the door swung open.

  Samantha stood on the other side of the door with a Cheshire cat grin on her face motioning for Adam to enter into her two-bedroom apartment. Adam rushed through the entrance but not without giving Samantha the once over.

  She wore a pair of slim fitted dark blue jeans ripped above the right thigh. The fit hugged her hips, while narrowing at the waist. Tucked into the jeans, she wore a white, fitted body shirt that lay flat on her stomach while exposing the nipples of her A cup breast.

  Adam walked through the opening and Samantha closed the door behind them. Turning to face him, he pulled her close into his embrace, kissed her deeply with passion that sent a spark down her spine and a stiffening in his pants. He reached behind her running his hand down the small of her back, over the soft feel of her jeans and took a firm grasp of her bottom. She returned the gesture with a quick tug of his bottom lip.

  Adam had known Samantha for years and only recently did she come back into his life. His heart raced every time he thought about going to see her and today was no different. As their lips pressed and their tongues wrestled, he could feel each beat of his heart in a harmonious rhythm with hers. He inhaled her smell and that nearly sent him over the top. The coconut and lime scent mixed with her body chemistry pushed pheromones into the atmosphere and had Adam under a spell. He began to nibble her earlobe before making his way down to her long slender neck.

  A knock at the door momentarily broke the mood, but Adam would not be deterred. Again, the knock came from the door.

  “I should get that,” she said. “Tina is dropping off a sleeping bag I need for my camping trip tomorrow. Go on, have a seat in the living room. I promise not to be long.” She stretched out the last word as she ran her hand down the front of his trousers.

  Adam turned reluctantly away and proceeded toward the couch. Samantha turned back to the door, straightening up her hair in the process. She pulled open the door and was struck in the abdomen with a vicious blow that sent her sprawling to the floor. She let out an ear screeching yell as her head hit the ground.

  Adam heard the scuffle and sound that arose from the front and came to her aid only to find himself staring down the barrel of a gun as a woman calmly closed the door.

  “Not so fast, Adam. Don't take another step,” the newcomer said patiently while waving the gun in his direction. "Please take these and secure Miss Samantha." The intruder tossed Adam a pair of flex cuffs. “And please be quick about it. Time is running short.”

  “Who are you?” Adam asked in a trembling voice while Samantha clutched her stomach, writhing in pain.

  “Who I am is not important. You following my directions is what's important. Now the cuffs, if you would. I don't like to repeat myself and I've already done it once.”

  Adam retrieved the flex cuffs from the ground and made his way over to Samantha. He pulled her left arm from her abdomen placing the cuff over her wrist. He repeated the task with her right wrist and then pulled the cuffs tight.

  “See that wasn't so hard, we are off to a good start. Now if you would be so kind, please bring our dear Samantha to a seated position.”

  Without a moment’s hesitation, Adam did as he was asked. Samantha sat with her legs stretched out in front of her and hands secured with the flex cuffs sitting on her lap.

  “Again, a job well done. Lastly, take this duct tape, secure her legs and place a strand across her mouth. I wouldn't want her to interrupt the conversation you and I need to have.”

  Adam once again did as he was asked while Samantha looked at him with uncomprehending eyes.

  The intruder pulled a tablet from the left pocket of her overcoat while she leveled the gun at Adam with her right hand. Wordlessly, she tossed the tablet underhanded to Adam. “Please, take a look.”

  Adam terrified to take his eyes off the gun and the woman holding it, begrudgingly did as he was bid. He had to turn the tablet over so the screen was facing him. For a moment, the screen was blank.

  “Go ahead, tap the screen.”

  Again, Adam did as he was asked. When he tapped the screen, he realized he needed to turn the tablet to landscape orientation to enlarge the multiple sets of pictures displayed. While turning the device, he could tell the screen was split into three sections. Once he did, he was mortified into silence.

  On the top half of the screen was a video of his wife, Evelyn, in the kitchen of their house preparing dinner. On the bottom, left-hand side of the screen was a video of his oldest daughter, Courtney (10), and his youngest daughter, Megan (5), sitting in the family room playing a game. On the bottom right-hand side of the screen was his middle daughter, Chasity (7) sitting in her room listening to her headphones.

  “What the hell is this?” Adam exclaimed raising his voice.

  “You mean to tell me you don't recognize your own family?” She said mirthlessly. “You are indeed far gone.”

  “Damn it, I know it's my family. Why are they on this... this tablet?”

  “The better question, Adam, is why are you here instead of being at home with your family? No need to answer the question,” the stranger chided while shifting her eyes toward Samantha who was now staring back at the stranger.

  “But it's time we stop with these trivial questions because as I said, we are on limited time. You have a very important decision to make. Will it be your family, or will it be your mistress? The power is yours. You'll notice a clock at the bottom of the tablet you hold in your hands.”

  Adam looked down to notice 3 minutes and 15 seconds on the clock. The clock was moving in reverse acting as a countdown.

  “What decision do I have to make?”

  “Someone must die,” she said in a cold, detached voice. She reached back into her left pocket and extracted another handgun. She took a few steps forward, the gun in her right hand still leveled at Adam, she handed him the gun in her left hand. “You can do nothing, and when that clock reaches zero your house will be set ablaze. The exits will be bolted, your wife, and three daughters will be burned alive. Or you can take the gun I've handed you and put a bullet into Miss Samantha, ending her life. In ending her life, your family will be spared. Oh, and you have a third option. You can kill yourself, in which case, both Samantha and your family will be spared. But make no mistake, if you point that gun at me, I will put you down, fire another shot into Samantha, and set your house on fire. The choice is yours!”


  Adam could not believe his ears. “Those are not choices. Why are you doing this? What have I done to you?”

  “Oh Adam,” she said in a patronizing tone. “You haven't done a thing to me. But you have been an unfaithful piece of shit to your wife and your family. It’s obvious to me you do not deserve them. But I decided to give you a chance to do the right thing, or at least something. And instead of making a decision you are squandering your time by asking me questions.”

  He looked down at the clock; 1 minute 33 seconds. His hands began to sweat and his heart, that 10 minutes earlier was pounding with lust, was now pounding even faster with fear.

  His eyes shifted from the stranger over to Samantha. Her eyes were wide with fear as muffled words and muffled screams emanated from her bound mouth. She was now crying as she tried to undo her hands from the flex cuffs.

  Adam's mind raced. He loved his wife, even though he had been unfaithful, he still loved her. And more than that, he loved his children, unconditionally. They are everything to him and his being. He furrowed his brows in deep contemplation. He loved Samantha as well. He loved her from the moment he first met her, and had it not been for his job moving him away and them losing touch, the two of them could be married. His eyes blazed as he stared at Samantha.

  Although she could not speak, her eyes pleaded with him. The tears that rolled down her slender face and puddled on the tape pleaded with him, “Don't do this. Please don't do this.”

  He glanced down at the tablet, 40 seconds to go. He dropped the tablet to the floor with a resounding thud. He needed to decide. He raised the gun and the muffled screams turned hysterical from Samantha. He placed the gun to his temple. Horror and confusion spread over her face and also a look of love, mixed with relief.

  Adam closed his eyes and said out loud, “Lord forgive me.” When they reopened they were cold and resolute. He retrained his eyes on Samantha, snapped his wrist in front of him locking his arm and fired.