The Return of Cassandra Todd Read online

  Darrel Nelson’s The Return of Cassandra Todd is a compact, quickly paced, dynamic adventure/love story tucked into a revealing study of the far-reaching effects of mental and physical abuse. This tale of suspense builds page by page as a wife and little boy must depend upon the wits and courage of the ultimate underdog to escape the wrath of a man consumed by hate born of ego and desperation. This is a book that is impossible to put down and a story that lingers long after the final page has been read.

  —ACE COLLINS

  AUTHOR OF REICH OF PASSAGE

  I said I’d read this manuscript for endorsement if I had time, though I seriously doubted I would. Then came a flight to Michigan—the perfect opportunity. I became riveted by the story line, the characters’ dilemmas, and the real-life dialogue. I hardly remembered to change planes during the layover. I read every free minute I had, often so fast I could hardly keep up with myself because of the heart-stopping action and emotion. In other words: I loved it! I’m a forever-fan.

  —EVA MARIE EVERSON

  AUTHOR OF THE CEDAR KEY SERIES

  I loved Darrel Nelson’s debut novel. The Return of Cassandra Todd is even better. The multilayered characters, the complex relationships, and the strong suspense thread all kept my attention until the very last page. This one is a keeper.

  —LENA NELSON DOOLEY

  AWARD–WINNING AUTHOR OF CATHERINE’S PURSUIT,

  MARY’S BLESSING, MAGGIE’S JOURNEY, AND LOVE

  FINDS YOU IN GOLDEN, NEW MEXICO

  Most CHARISMA HOUSE BOOK GROUP products are available at special quantity discounts for bulk purchase for sales promotions, premiums, fund-raising, and educational needs. For details, write Charisma House Book Group, 600 Rinehart Road, Lake Mary, Florida 32746, or telephone (407) 333-0600.

  THE RETURN OF CASSANDRA TODD by Darrel Nelson

  Published by Realms

  Charisma Media/Charisma House Book Group

  600 Rinehart Road

  Lake Mary, Florida 32746

  www.charismahouse.com

  This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by United States of America copyright law.

  Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.

  Copyright © 2013 by Darrel Nelson

  All rights reserved

  Visit the author’s website at www.darrelnelson.com.

  Cover design by Nancy Panaccione

  Design Director: Bill Johnson

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

  An application to register this book for cataloging has been

  submitted to the Library of Congress.

  International Standard Book Number: 978-1-62136-021-6

  E-book ISBN: 978-1-62136-022-3

  The characters portrayed in this book are fictitious unless they are historical figures explicitly named. Otherwise, any resemblance to actual people, whether living or dead, is coincidental.

  First edition

  13 14 15 16 17 — 987654321

  Printed in the United States of America

  CONTENTS

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  CHAPTER 33

  CHAPTER 34

  CHAPTER 35

  CHAPTER 36

  CHAPTER 37

  CHAPTER 38

  CHAPTER 39

  CHAPTER 40

  CHAPTER 41

  EPILOGUE

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  WHEN IT COMES to thanking those who have helped me with this novel, knowing where to start is the easy part. The hard part is knowing where to stop.

  I am reluctant to name names for fear of missing someone truly deserving. But name a few I must. And I apologize in advance for missing anyone I should have mentioned.

  First of all, thanks to my wife, Marsha. It’s been forty wonderful years. You have been, and remain, my biggest supporter and toughest critic. You are my official sounding board, and nothing is committed to final manuscript form until I have discussed it with you and received your take on it. You pick me up when I get discouraged, and you keep me grounded when I get carried away. As with all my writing, this book is dedicated to you. Thanks for always being there, love. Let’s make it forty + forever years more.

  Next, a huge thanks to my children—Tami, Chad, Kim, and Shawn—and to their spouses—Jeramy, Lisa (my website manager), Peter, and Christy. I appreciate your love and support. Also, love and appreciation go to my grandchildren: Hunter, Emerson, Cassidy, Ella, Avery, Weston, Finn, Cambree, Chase, and Brooklyn. Ten future writers! Grandpa is so proud of you.

  Thanks to Liana, Cari, and Martha for reading the manuscript and offering timely suggestions. Friends who can remain objective are a wonderful asset.

  I would also like to thank my agent, Joyce Hart, for signing me to a contract back in May 2009. It has been four eventful years that we have worked to bring The Anniversary Waltz and The Return of Cassandra Todd to light. Thanks, Joyce, for believing in me from the beginning. I look forward to more eventful years of working together.

  The team at Charisma House has my undying gratitude. You are amazing to work with, and you truly exemplify the principles upon which Charisma House is based. This time around I worked most closely with Debbie Marrie, Adrienne Gaines, Leigh DeVore, Althea Thompson, Debbie Moss, and Atalie Anderson. But I know many others were involved in the process, and although unnamed, you are not unrecognized, and you have my sincerest appreciation.

  Also, thanks to Rebeca Seitz and LeAnn Hamby of Glass Road Media & Management. I appreciate your work, along with Althea, in helping promote my books. It is humbling to realize how far the ripples spread when a stone is cast into the water.

  As always, it has been a pleasure and a learning experience working with Lori Vanden Bosch, my editor. You are top-notch in my books, Lori. No pun intended. When asked recently who gives me the best feedback on my novels, I answered without hesitation: “My wife, Marsha, and my editor, Lori Vanden Bosch. I wouldn’t dare submit anything for publication without first obtaining their stamp of approval. And even though their stamp of approval is sometimes hard to come by, I am a better writer because of it. So far I have been unable to slip anything by either one of them—I know because I keep trying—but they hold me accountable to their exacting standards.” Lori, I acknowledge my indebtedness and thank you and Marsha for your unwavering expectations.

  PROLOGUE

  SHE LAY BESIDE her husband, listening to his steady breathing. A sliver of moonlight peeked through a gap in the curtain and illuminated his features. He lay on his back with his mouth partway open, his hair disheveled, a two-day growth of s
tubble on his chin. He snored softly but otherwise remained asleep.

  She rolled onto her side and glanced at the clock. 1:27 a.m. After waiting to make certain her movement hadn’t disturbed him, she eased back the covers, her bare feet soundlessly touching the floor. She grimaced as the bedsprings protested her departure. Remaining still for a moment, she studied her husband. He continued to snore, and his silhouetted shape did not stir.

  After tiptoeing into the bathroom, she quickly changed in the darkness, slipping into the clothes she’d purposefully laid out before going to bed. She rehearsed what she’d say if her husband unexpectedly came in and discovered her . . . dressed.

  Then, with her heart in her throat, she stepped into the hallway as cautiously as though walking through a minefield and went directly to the bedroom next door. Opening the door slowly so the hinges didn’t squeak, she listened to see if her husband had noticed her absence.

  All remained silent, except for the blood pounding in her ears. Exhaling slowly, she crossed the room and gently touched the little figure huddled beneath the covers. “Sweetie,” she whispered. “It’s Mommy.”

  The little boy, only four, rolled over in protest to the interruption.

  “Time to wake up.”

  He opened his eyes and stared questioningly at her.

  “Come with Mommy.”

  “Where?” he asked. This was followed by an extended yawn and catlike stretch.

  “We’re going on an adventure.”

  “An adventure!”

  “Shhh! We don’t want to disturb Daddy. Hurry and get up, but be very quiet.”

  Another yawn. “Isn’t Daddy coming too?”

  “No, he has to work. So it’s just you and me, sweetie. Now hurry.”

  After helping her son get dressed, she guided him to the door and peered into the hallway. “Remember,” she whispered, “Daddy needs his sleep, so be very quiet.”

  “Okay.”

  They went into the kitchen, and she opened the refrigerator door. Grimacing as the refrigerator light blazed on, she grabbed the bag of food she had prepared earlier and closed the door quickly and quietly. Then she went to the home security controls near the interior garage door and entered the code to disarm the system.

  “Mommy, I have to go potty.”

  Sighing, she whispered, “All right, but we won’t flush the toilet. We have to be very quiet.”

  When that chore was finished, she led him into the garage and pressed the remote button on the key fob. The trunk lid opened with a soft click, revealing a single suitcase inside. She lifted out the suitcase and then lowered the trunk lid, not daring to latch it shut. In the stillness every sound seemed magnified.

  “Aren’t we going to drive, Mommy?”

  “No, we’re going on this adventure by bus.”

  The little boy’s eyes lit up, and he sucked in his breath.

  “But we still have to be very quiet, sweetie.”

  They exited through the side garage door, and she paused to make sure their departure hadn’t been detected. The house remained dark and silent.

  She pulled her son close and embraced him. “Dear God,” she prayed, “please guide us and watch over us. We need Your care and protection. Amen.”

  “Amen,” her son repeated.

  She kissed him on the cheek. “Ready for our adventure?”

  “Ready.”

  Avoiding the streetlight, they crossed to the other side of the street and headed down the sidewalk, remaining in the shadows.

  Ahead lay the bus depot. Behind only heartache.

  CHAPTER 1

  AS THE DIGITAL clock sounded its invasive alarm, Turner Caldwell hit the snooze button with a well-practiced thrust of his arm. Five more minutes to sink back into his pillow, he decided. There would be time to shower and grab some breakfast before beginning his day. The jobs on his to-do list would still be there. Like they were every morning.

  The alarm sounded again five minutes later, and Turner staggered out of bed, running a hand through his short, brown hair. He stretched the kinks out of his six-one frame and then dropped to the floor and did fifty push-ups. He followed this with a hundred sit-ups. He was glistening with perspiration by the time he made his way into the bathroom and turned on the shower.

  He adjusted the temperature to as cool as he could stand and let the water soothe his burning muscles. The last few days had been fairly busy, and he needed to get back to the gym.

  After drying off on a musty-smelling towel—he made a mental note to do the laundry soon—he put on his work clothes. As he reached for a pair of socks in his dresser drawer, his hand brushed against a book he had stashed there. Gideon’s Bible. Picking it up, he looked sullenly at it for a moment and then tossed it back into the drawer.

  A photograph fell out of the Bible and fluttered to the floor. As he retrieved the photograph, his scowl deepened. It showed him standing with a group of other guidance counselors in front of a large wooden sign that read Camp Kopawanee.

  He flipped the photograph over and noted the dates written on the back, denoting the four years he had worked there following graduation from high school. Camp Kopawanee was a Christian youth camp for troubled teens. Canoeing, hiking, and camping activities in the summer had given Turner a chance to develop outdoor skills, while helping the participants straighten out their lives. And in the winter he had done maintenance work, which had given him a chance to develop handyman skills. It was a great situation . . . until church budget cutbacks occurred and he lost his job.

  “Laid off by God!” he muttered, flicking the photograph into the drawer and kneeing it shut.

  He went into the kitchen and grabbed a container of blue raspberry protein powder. After putting a scoop in the blender, he added one cup of cold milk and made a protein shake. He studied the protein powder container as he drank the foamy mixture, wondering if he could believe what the label stated. He should have energy to spare and a smile to go with it according to the advertising.

  Problem was he didn’t feel like smiling. Seeing the Camp Kopawanee photograph was a downer, and he wondered why he’d bothered to keep it. Having it around was like rubbing salt into an open wound. Still, it was all that remained of the best four years of his life.

  He finished the protein shake and then gave the blender jar and his glass a token rinse, placing them in the drainer to dry. After wiping his hands on a dishtowel that hung from the handle of the oven, he headed for the door.

  As he stepped outside, he paused to survey his surroundings. Morning had brought a fresh wash of color to the Mountain View Motel, a two-story structure located just off Highway 6 in Lakewood, Colorado, a western suburb of Denver. During the past two years he’d worked as the motel’s resident handyman and had begun attending college. The motel was owned and operated by Harvey and Loretta Jones, and showed signs of recent refurbishment. The exterior walls had been freshly painted, and trim had been added around the doors and windows. Sunlight glinted off the new asphalt shingles and backlit the well-maintained lawn and flowerbeds.

  Turner headed for the maintenance room.

  Harvey was already there, waiting with list in hand. His customary windblown appearance, magnified by his large forehead and a fringe of hair that stuck out at odd angles, made him resemble the stereotypical image of a mad scientist. “There you are,” he said, rubbing his shoulder and wincing dramatically. “I thought I was going to have to send out a search party.”

  “Sorry, sir. But I got in late from last night’s mission.”

  Harvey stopped rubbing his shoulder. “Not that old joke again.”

  “Yep, protecting the good citizens of Lakewood from crime and danger.”

  Rolling his eyes, Harvey muttered, “We should be so lucky.”

  Turner traced an H on his own chest with a finger.

  “Handyman at your service, sir. Just promise not to reveal my secret identity.”

  Harvey clicked his teeth and handed Turner a piece of paper. “Here
’s today’s job list. I’d help you out but my shoulder is giving me fits. My arthritis is acting up again.”

  Studying the list, Turner said, “Not to worry, sir. I’ll just grab some duct tape and chewing gum and get right to work.”

  “Duct tape and chewing gum,” Harvey grumbled. “And to think I pay you good money.”

  “Not to mention the free rent.”

  Harvey shook his head and walked away, mumbling to himself and rubbing his shoulder.

  Turner watched him go and smiled affectionately. He loved the guy. No matter how bad things were for other people, Harvey had it worse. If Turner complained of a headache, Harvey had a migraine. If Loretta had a sore back, Harvey had severe muscle spasms. In the game of one-upmanship, Harvey was a true champion.

  Turner grabbed his toolbox and headed for the first job on the list. He knocked on the door and called out, “Maintenance.”

  A middle-aged woman answered the door, scrutinizing Turner from head to toe.

  “I’m here to fix the sink,” he said, holding out the toolbox as evidence.

  “The faucet is constantly dripping,” she said. “It kept me up half the night. I have a good mind to check into a different motel.”

  “No need to do that, ma’am.” He switched on his smile. “I’ll have it fixed in a jiffy.”

  She opened the door hesitantly, and Turner marched into the bathroom. He noticed her husband in bed, still sleeping.

  The woman followed and stood in the doorway, watching him work. Turner didn’t mind. He was used to motel guests making sure their specific concerns were addressed. Fixing the problem to their satisfaction was the key.

  As he reached under the sink to shut off the water supply, he said, “The problem is, they don’t build things to last anymore, do they?”

  “Isn’t that the truth,” the woman replied, glancing at the sleeping figure of her husband.

  “Planned obsolescence is what it’s all about. You buy something, and it only lasts for a while before it wears out and you have to replace it. Not like in the good old days. Back then things were built to last.”

  “I still use the same toaster I did ten years ago.”