Hidden Read online

  Books by Fern Michaels

  No Way Out

  The Brightest Star

  Fearless

  Spirit of the Season

  Deep Harbor

  Fate & Fortune

  Sweet Vengeance

  Holly and Ivy

  Fancy Dancer

  No Safe Secret

  Wishes for Christmas

  About Face

  Perfect Match

  A Family Affair

  Forget Me Not

  The Blossom Sisters

  Balancing Act

  Tuesday’s Child

  Betrayal

  Southern Comfort

  To Taste the Wine

  Sins of the Flesh

  Sins of Omission

  Return to Sender

  Mr. and Miss Anonymous

  Up Close and Personal

  Fool Me Once

  Picture Perfect

  The Future Scrolls

  Kentucky Sunrise

  Kentucky Heat

  Kentucky Rich

  Plain Jane

  Charming Lily

  What You Wish For

  The Guest List

  Listen to Your Heart

  Celebration

  Yesterday

  Finders Keepers

  Annie’s Rainbow

  Sara’s Song

  Vegas Sunrise

  Vegas Heat

  Vegas Rich

  Whitefire

  Wish List

  Dear Emily

  Christmas at Timberwoods

  Hidden

  The Sisterhood Novels:

  Bitter Pill

  Truth and Justice

  Cut and Run

  Safe and Sound

  Need to Know

  Crash and Burn

  Point Blank

  In Plain Sight

  Eyes Only

  Kiss and Tell

  Blindsided

  Gotcha!

  Home Free

  Déjà Vu

  Cross Roads

  Game Over

  Deadly Deals

  Vanishing Act

  Razor Sharp

  Under the Radar

  Final Justice

  Collateral Damage

  Fast Track

  Hokus Pokus

  Hide and Seek

  Free Fall

  Lethal Justice

  Sweet Revenge

  The Jury

  Vendetta

  Payback

  Weekend Warriors

  The Men of the Sisterhood

  Novels:

  Hot Shot

  Truth or Dare

  High Stakes

  Fast and Loose

  Double Down

  The Godmothers Series:

  Far and Away

  Classified

  Breaking News

  Deadline

  Late Edition

  Exclusive

  The Scoop

  E-Book Exclusives:

  Desperate Measures

  Seasons of Her Life

  To Have and To Hold

  Serendipity

  Captive Innocence

  Captive Embraces

  Captive Passions

  Captive Secrets

  Captive Splendors

  Cinders to Satin

  For All Their Lives

  Texas Heat

  Texas Rich

  Texas Fury

  Texas Sunrise

  Anthologies:

  Home Sweet Home

  A Snowy Little Christmas

  Coming Home for Christmas

  A Season to Celebrate

  Mistletoe Magic

  Winter Wishes

  The Most Wonderful Time

  When the Snow Falls

  Secret Santa

  A Winter Wonderland

  I’ll Be Home for Christmas

  Making Spirits Bright

  Holiday Magic

  Snow Angels

  Silver Bells

  Comfort and Joy

  Sugar and Spice

  Let it Snow

  A Gift of Joy

  Five Golden Rings

  Deck the Halls

  Jingle All the Way

  FERN MICHAELS

  HIDDEN

  ZEBRA BOOKS

  Kensington Publishing Corp.

  www.kensingtonbooks.com

  All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected.

  Table of Contents

  Also by

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Prologue

  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

  Epilogue

  Teaser chapter

  THE TRUTH WILL RISE

  ZEBRA BOOKS are published by

  Kensington Publishing Corp.

  119 West 40th Street

  New York, NY 10018

  Copyright © 2021 by Fern Michaels

  Fern Michaels is a registered trademark of KAP 5, Inc.

  This book 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 fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

  To the extent that the image or images on the cover of this book depict a person or persons, such person or persons are merely models, and are not intended to portray any character or characters featured in the book.

  If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the Publisher and neither the Author nor the Publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

  Zebra and the Z logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

  ISBN: 978-1-4201-5232-6

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4201-5233-3 (eBook)

  ISBN-10: 1-4201-5233-5 (eBook)

  Prologue

  Boston, Massachusetts

  Millstone Manor

  “What do you mean you still don’t know where it is? I’m paying you good money to find it.” The decibel level of his rage almost shook the walls. “Just find it! And fast!” Arthur Millstone hurled the burner phone across his desk, causing his wife, Rowena, to flinch. After years of marriage to Arthur, she very rarely flinched anymore. “I told you to oversee the estate sale!” The vein in his neck was pulsing as he unleashed his fury at his wife. She could have sworn there was spit coming out of his mouth.

  Rowena calmly flicked the ash of her cigarette into the Burj al Arab ashtray from the world-class hotel in Dubai. She leaned back into the sumptuous leather club chair facing Arthur’s desk and crossed her long legs, which were shod in a pair of Christian Louboutin shoes. “You do realize there was a lot of furniture involved in that sale. A great many pieces. And they were sold to a multitude of buyers. Whatever piece of furniture that document was stashed in is long gone. Somewhere. Anywhere.” She let out an annoyed huff.

  “Well, that’s just not good
enough, darling,” he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

  “May I remind you that you were the one who insisted I use Amber. The aspiring art curator from your club.” Another drag of her cigarette, then a long glare, as Rowena waited for Arthur’s response.

  “I’m not in the mood for your snide remarks,” he hissed. He pointed to her shoes, one at a time. “Those? Those? And that Chanel bag? Remember where the money came from. And if we don’t find and destroy that document, all of it will be out the window.” He slumped into his chair. “Must you smoke those filthy things in here?” he barked.

  “It’s your ashtray, darling. And these are no worse than your horrid Cuban cigars.” Another flick of ash.

  “I don’t have time to quibble as to whose nasty habits are worse.”

  “Oh, Arthur, take a chill pill, will you. It’s lost, gone. Fini. Finito. It is never going to turn up,” Rowena said, calmly stubbing out her cigarette to emphasize her remark.

  “Don’t be so sure. If we don’t get our hands on that thing, this multibillion-dollar empire will no longer be at our disposal. And I doubt they have designer jumpsuits in prison.”

  Buncombe County, North Carolina

  Stillwell Art Center

  Cullen Bodman wiped his hands on the work apron that protected his pants. He stepped back to look at his latest handiwork. The sign read: THE B.A.R.R.N. It announced the Bodman-Antiques-Retro-Restoration & Namaste Café. His sister, Luna, looped her arm through his. “Nice work, Cul. Just in time for this weekend’s grand opening of the art center. I have to admit, the adjacent café was a brilliant idea.”

  “I had to get you out of my hair somehow.” He lightly elbowed her in the waist.

  “Aren’t you the funny man?” Luna returned the affectionate nudge.

  Luna and Cullen had grown up in a modest middle-class community. Their parents were antique dealers who were planning to retire. Cullen had graduated from college two years before Luna and had worked for a large development company for ten years. When their parents announced their retirement, Cullen saw it as an opportunity to use his hobby of restoring furniture and embark on a new career, beginning with what was left of the inventory from his parents’ shop. They had been able to negotiate a space for Cullen’s workshop and showroom, and an adjacent shop for a small café.

  Luna was a free, creative soul. Given her paranormal endeavors, she used Bodhi as her last name in honor of her alter ego. The word meant “enlightened” in Sanskrit. But when it came to working with Cullen, she was a Bodman through and through.

  But it was her interest in human behavior that had led her to earn a degree in psychology with a strong focus on parapsychology. Luna was also astute at kinesics, the interpretation of body language. Both of her skills, learned and intuitive, allowed her to do freelance work with local police departments, handling missing persons cases, including a big case for the U.S. Marshals Office of Missing Children.

  Now the plan was for her to set up shop at the adjacent café, doing readings for those who inquired, and consulting with Cullen’s clientele when it came to helping pick out pieces that would conform to their particular tastes. It was the best of both worlds for her.

  Cullen was all business when he wasn’t in the shop stripping old furniture and bringing it back to life. Though in a lot of ways opposites, he and his sister made a good pair. Always had.

  The beeping of a truck backing up signaled the final delivery. Cullen had purchased several items that were in dire need of restoration from a dealer in Reston, Virginia. The original estate sale, in Boston, Massachusetts, consisted of dozens of pieces ranging from a rococo ormolu commode that had fetched $10,000, a Louis XVI marquetry armoire that had gone for $6,000, and a Louis XVI sideboard that had sold for $5,000. But Cullen was much more interested in the old, dilapidated objects that came from the garage of the estate. With some TLC, it would give him a great deal of pleasure to bring the four items back to life and sell them to good homes. In all honesty, Cullen was hoping to move further away from the antiques business and make restoration his only focus. He just didn’t have the heart to tell his parents that yet.

  Cullen had the business head and the restoration expertise. He would leave Luna to her many talents. Together, they could make this “crazy idea” work, which was what their father had called it when they decided to open their business at the art center.

  Luna and Cullen worked their way through the pristine shop, in which dozens of restored pieces waited for a new home. Four more pieces would fit perfectly in the thousand square feet of space at the front.

  A ramshackle ash-blue farm table with drawers was the last thing off the truck. Luna moved toward it as if it were a magnet. When she touched the top of the table, she got a shiver. She wasn’t sure why, but the shudder led her to believe something wasn’t quite right.

  Chapter One

  North Carolina

  Cullen Bodman was a typical, clean-cut, all-American guy. He was nearly six feet tall, with sandy-brown hair and green eyes. True to his name, he was a “good-looking lad.” He had a lean and trim build. Physically fit. Woodworking had made his biceps the envy of most of the guys at the gym. They were toned and sinewy, something that came from physical labor rather than barbells. He loved to work with his hands. Build things. But his parents had encouraged him to get his degree in business administration. “You can take that anywhere” was his father’s advice.

  He was right to a certain extent, but working in the business world was not anything for which Cullen had any real desire. He wanted to be enthusiastic about his work, something he shared with his sister. They were both creative and sensitive; and they felt smothered if they couldn’t express themselves. However, unlike his sister, Cullen often disguised his compassionate and sympathetic side. He needed to be levelheaded. Responsible. But underneath the cool, contemplative exterior was a kind, considerate, and tender man. It had been a long inner quest to be able to merge the two.

  Now, at thirty-five, he could look forward to something exciting. Not looking at spreadsheets and tracking costs per project. Other people’s projects. Bor. Ing. But this? This was exhilarating. Even with the financial risks involved in starting a new business, he was happy to wake up to a new day every morning.

  Cullen was equally thrilled to have his sister working in close proximity. Growing up, he had always been his sister’s protector. He knew she could take care of herself, but he also knew that she had a kind, vulnerable soul. Her empathy could lead her down paths where people did not appreciate her generosity.

  Funny. Despite being psychic, she very often found herself bailing people out of tight messes while getting herself into one. He thought of the adage about the shoemaker’s kids who have no shoes. He recalled the time when one of her college roommates needed to borrow some cash. Luna couldn’t get to the bank and foolishly gave her roommate her ATM card. Luna had no reason not to trust her. They had been roommates for almost four years. But the next morning, she discovered that her roommate had cleaned out her account and skipped town. Cullen gave her the $3,000 she had stupidly let slip through her hands without a lecture or reprimand.

  Or the time when someone spray painted big, black letters on Luna’s apartment door with the words Weirdo. Luna-tic!

  It took several days of interrogating the neighborhood and looking at whatever surveillance video was available, but Cullen finally identified the graffiti artist and tracked him down. It took little convincing from Cullen for the Keith Haring wannabe to decide he would be retiring his can of spray paint.

  Cullen smiled to himself recalling the confrontation. The kid was around twelve years old. Cullen followed him home from school. When Cullen rang the doorbell, a very tough-looking woman with a large mole on her chin answered. A large black hair, the size of a cat whisker, protruded from the mole. It completely caught Cullen off guard, and he almost burst out laughing. Instead, he regrouped and began his lecture. “Mrs. Rector, your son defaced my sister’s front
door.”

  She immediately became defensive, but Cullen put an abrupt halt to her tirade. “While my sister may have beliefs different from yours, I can assure you she is not weird. In fact, she is a highly spiritually evolved human being. Much more than I can say for you, given your lack of tolerance. I don’t know what you are teaching your children, but if I so much as see your son, or any member of your family, near my sister again, you will wish you lived in another country. Harassment and hate are not welcome here.” He stared her down. “Do I make myself clear?” Her lower lip twitched as the mole danced up and down on her face.

  Mrs. Rector answered with a meek, “Crystal.” Cullen turned on his heel, eager to leave the scene before he burst out laughing. With that mole on her face and her hair wrapped up in a babushka, she reminded him of Strega Nona, the famous award-winning children’s book by Tomie dePaola. It had once been banned for showing witchcraft and differences in spirituality in a positive light. How ironic, he thought. Luna will certainly get a big kick out of this.

  Throughout high school and college, Cullen and Luna had remained close. Neither had married nor entered into a committed relationship. At least not for any length of time. Luna would give Cullen her take on the latest girlfriend. One time, it resulted in a heated argument when Luna warned Cullen that Nora was a cheater. “You have no proof of that,” he bellowed.

  “No. Not yet. But mark my words, Cullen Bodman.” She slammed the door on her way out.

  They hadn’t spoken for almost a month. Luna was not only his sister, but she was also his best friend. He felt terrible about it. Then one day his phone beeped, indicating an Instagram message was waiting. It was from Luna’s friend Barb. He furrowed his brow. Barb rarely, probably never, sent Instagram photos to him. Her text read: