Brick (Double Dippin') Read online

  In the fourth novel in Allison Hobbs’s bestselling Double Dippin’ saga, Misty’s life hangs in the balance as Brick goes after her attackers, but is it vengeance or justice?

  After a brutal attack, Misty is barely clinging to life and no one expects her to recover. Thomasina is inconsolable, and she holds Brick responsible for her daughter’s condition. Deeming himself the judge, jury, and the executor, Brick is on a single-minded vengeance quest to dispense justice to Misty’s assailant.

  A killing machine with nothing to lose, Brick’s deadly rampage takes him from Philadelphia to Los Angeles, where he uses his good looks, sculpted body, and sensuality to gain behind-the-scenes entry into the lavish lifestyle of the rich and famous. Leaving a trail of bloodshed, carnage, and a brokenhearted woman, Brick uses any means necessary to uncover the perpetrator’s identity.

  Allison Hobbs is a national bestselling author of seventeen novels and has been featured in such periodicals as Romantic Times and The Philadelphia Tribune. She lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Visit the author at www.allisonhobbs.com and www.facebook.com/allison.hobbs.12.

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  COVER DESIGN BY MARION DESIGNS • COVER PHOTO BY KEITH SAUNDERS • AUTHOR PHOTO COURTESY OF KAREN DEMPSEY HAMMOND

  Dear Reader:

  Oh, how I love Allison! This book had me completely captivated to the point where I could not even work on my own for a few days. Brick: Double Dippin’ 4 is the way to keep the ball rolling with exciting characters and storylines that can only come from the mind of a brilliantly imaginative person such as Ms. Hobbs.

  Brick in on the warpath, searching for the person who beat Misty beyond recognition and he is not taking any prisoners. His anger having lain dormant for years as he tried to make a marriage work with Misty’s own mother, it has now been unleashed and anyone with any common sense needs to stay the hell out of his way. But there is still a tender side of Brick, and a complete stranger, with as many issues as himself, brings out his tenderness. Anya has come to Philadelphia seeking revenge against the men who kidnapped, raped, and then stoned her mother to death. She will not rest until justice has been served in the form of vengeance. What happens when two people hell-bent on ridding the world of violent offenders become violent themselves? Read this book and find out. It is a shocker.

  The prior books in this series are: Double Dippin’, Big Juicy Lips: Double Dippin’ 2, and Lipstick Hustla. Also make sure that you join Allison on Wednesday nights as she conducts her weekly chat at 10 PM EST. The topics are always sensual and on point.

  As always, thanks for supporting me and the Strebor Books family. We strive to bring you cutting-edge literature that cannot be found anyplace else. For more information on our titles, please visit us at Zanestore.com. My personal web site is Eroticanoir.com and my online social network is PlanetZane.org.

  Blessings,

  Publisher

  Zane

  Strebor Books

  www.simonandschuster.com

  ALSO BY ALLISON HOBBS

  Scandalicious

  Put a Ring On It

  Lipstick Hustla

  Stealing Candy

  The Sorceress

  Pure Paradise

  Disciplined

  One Taste

  Big Juicy Lips

  The Climax

  A Bona Fide Gold Digger

  The Enchantress

  Double Dippin’

  Dangerously in Love

  Insatiable

  Pandora’s Box

  Strebor Books

  P.O. Box 6505

  Largo, MD 20792

  www.streborbooks.com

  www.SimonandSchuster.com

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

  © 2012 by Allison Hobbs

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means whatsoever. For information address Strebor Books, P.O. Box 6505, Largo, MD 20792.

  ISBN 978-1-59309-417-1

  ISBN 978-1-4516-5687-9 (ebook)

  LCCN 2011938444

  First Strebor Books trade paperback edition July 2012

  Cover design: www.mariondesigns.com

  Cover photograph: © Keith Saunders/Marion Designs

  The Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event. For more information or to book an event, contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at 1-866-248-3049 or visit our website at www.simonspeakers.com.

  FOR KAREEM JOHNSON

  Contents

  Acknowledgments

  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

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  To my publisher, Zane, a chance meeting with you changed my life, taking me from self-published writer to bestselling author. You’ve always been supportive of my work, giving my career the boost that put my books into the hands of thousands of readers. I’m honored to be your friend and part of the Strebor family.

  Charmaine Parker, I’m so proud of you. I thoroughly enjoyed your first novel, and now I’m waiting for book number two!

  Cairo, we bonded during that train ride from Baltimore to Philly. I treasure our friendship.

  Daaimah S. Poole, fellow author and good friend. Thanks for helping me out. You always come through and I’m so grateful.

  Yona Deshommes, thank you for always looking out, and helping me take it to the next level.

  Karen Dempsey Hammond, it would take at least one more lifetime for me to repay the many kindnesses that you have extended over the course of our friendship. Thank you, my friend.

  To all my readers and the fans of the Double Dippin’ series…this one is for you!

  CHAPTER 1

  From an unfathomable distance, he could hear his wife calling him. Too choked up to speak, Brick lay in silent agony with his arms wrapped around Misty’s still warm body. For most of his life, Brick and Misty had been friends. And lovers. Despite all the dirt she’d done…despite his determination to keep Misty out of his life, their bond had not been severed…not even when he married her mother.

  Thomasina entered her daughter’s bedroom and gasped. She bli
ndly grasped the doorjamb to maintain her balance. “Baron! Why are you lying in bed with Misty?” Though she spoke in a hushed tone, there was unmistakable panic in her voice.

  With his back to his wife, Brick could only respond with an anguished groan.

  Thomasina stumbled across the small bedroom. She shook Brick’s massive shoulder roughly. “Misty’s too weak and frail for you to be all over her like that. Let go of my child before you squeeze the life out of her.”

  “She’s gone, Thomasina. Misty’s gone!” He croaked out the words. He reluctantly released Misty, gently resting her head upon the pillow.

  One look at Misty’s vacant gaze and Thomasina shrieked. “Oh, Lord Jesus no! Call 9-1-1, Brick! Why the hell are you just laying there? Hurry! Do something!”

  “Baby, she’s dead. We can’t help her.”

  “Misty is not dead! Move out the way, Baron. I have to try to do some CPR on my baby.”

  “She slipped away peacefully.”

  “Nooo! This can’t be. She was fine when I checked her last. And she…” Thomasina froze mid-sentence. Suddenly the meaning of Brick’s words washed over her like an icy tsunami. “My God, Baron! What have you done?” Thomasina covered her mouth, her eyes huge with fear and disbelief.

  “Her life was pure hell, Thomasina,” Brick said. He stood up and reached for his wife, offering her comfort.

  She shoved Brick away, and fell on the bed, trying desperately to shake Misty into awareness. “Misty, wake up. Wake up for Mommy!”

  Brick tugged his wife’s arm. “She’s at peace.”

  Frantically, Thomasina placed two fingers against the side of Misty’s neck. “She’s not dead!” she exclaimed. “She still has a pulse!” Brick dodged from Thomasina’s path as she raced from the bedroom to call 9-1-1.

  Brick understood that it was a mother’s nature to go to extraordinary lengths to save her child, but he knew without a doubt that Misty was dead. And he was responsible for taking her life. Brushing a shaky hand over his first love’s face, Brick closed Misty’s unseeing eyes.

  Breathlessly, Thomasina returned to Misty’s bedroom with the phone pressed against her ear. “Ma’am, I don’t know what happened. I came in my daughter’s bedroom and found my husband holding her, telling me she’s dead. But he ain’t a doctor and my daughter still has a pulse, goddamnit. Now tell me exactly what I need to do until the ambulance gets here.”

  Thomasina listened to the voice on the other end of the phone, and then spoke in a trembling voice, “I know a little CPR, but I’ll need you to walk me through it.” Her panicked eyes darted from Misty’s unmoving body to Brick’s tear-stained face.

  Trying to calm down, Thomasina inhaled deeply. “The paramedics are on their way, but right now it’s up to me and you to try to get Misty breathing again.”

  Brick had felt the life leave Misty’s body; there was no hope in reviving her. Still, he had to appease his distraught wife. With the back of his hand, Brick wiped tears away. “Whatchu need me to do?”

  “The woman on the phone said we have to get Misty off the bed. Lay her on the floor.”

  Brick lifted Misty’s frail body and tenderly lowered her onto the floor.

  “Here, talk to the 9-1-1 lady. She’s gonna guide me through it.” Thomasina handed Brick the phone, and knelt beside her lifeless daughter.

  Brick took the phone but didn’t say anything to the emergency medical dispatcher. Thomasina seemed to know what she was doing. He watched as Thomasina pushed down on Misty’s tiny chest with both hands, counting loud and desperately with each compression. When she reached number fifteen, she began breathing into Misty’s mouth.

  A sudden and urgent pounding on the front door brought a frightened yell from Little Baron’s bedroom.

  “Let the paramedics in!” Thomasina shouted. She urgently began the compressions again, paying no attention to her toddler son’s cries.

  Having no more use for the EMD, Brick ended the call and rushed out of the room. Out in the hallway, he hesitated briefly when his son let out another distressful wail. Little Baron began throwing a fit when he caught sight of his father. He screamed at the top of his lungs and shook the railing of his crib. But Brick kept moving. There was no time to pick up and console his frantic child.

  “It’s all right, lil man! Daddy’s gon’ be right back to get you!” Brick yelled as he bounded down the stairs.

  Thomasina rode in the ambulance with Misty. Brick stayed behind, getting himself and Little Baron dressed. The ride to the hospital was solemn. His young son seemed to sense that this was a somber occasion, and accepted being strapped in his child seat without squirming or uttering a word of complaint.

  Brick shook his head, imagining Thomasina getting hysterical and becoming inconsolable when the doctor pronounced Misty dead on arrival.

  But once she regained her composure, Thomasina was going to demand some answers. From Brick. He was the last person to see Misty alive, and he imagined that the cops would probably want to have a word with him, too.

  He swiped his hand across his sweaty forehead. The deafening sound of his rapidly beating heart filled the car.

  It had been a mercy killing. Wait…no…he didn’t actually kill Misty. He’d only assisted. Misty begged for that lethal cocktail. She was of a sound mind when she’d swallowed each and every one of those pills. It was straight-up suicide. Misty wanted out of that useless body. She wanted to be with Shane.

  But Thomasina wouldn’t understand. Shit, at this point, Brick didn’t understand. Like old times, he’d allowed Misty to have her way.

  Damn, Misty. Fuck was I thinking? It wasn’t your time yet. I can’t believe I let you talk me into that crazy shit!

  Grim-faced, Brick drove slowly, taking the long route to the hospital.

  CHAPTER 2

  Brick parked in the visitor’s garage at the hospital. Carrying his sleeping son in his arms, he made slow strides toward the elevator.

  Inside the visitor’s lounge, he found Thomasina wringing her hands and pacing. Her face was a mask of grief and anxiety; her eyes red and puffy from crying. Having dressed hurriedly, she was wearing pajama bottoms, a T-shirt, and flip-flops.

  Guilt-ridden, Brick used his free arm to hug his wife.

  “They had to pump Misty’s stomach. The doctor said she overdosed on pills. She’s barely clinging to life, but they’re not giving up.” Thomasina eased out of Brick’s embrace and glanced toward a set of double doors that were marked: No Admittance. “There’s a whole team of doctors working on her back there. Oh, God, please let my baby pull through.”

  Brick frowned in confusion. Misty’s still alive? How can that be possible?

  “The doctors can only do but so much. We need the Lord’s help.” Thomasina had a desperate look in her eyes—like she’d wished she could trade places with Misty.

  Brick felt torn between the two women he loved. Thomasina wanted her daughter back, but from Misty’s perspective, life wasn’t worth living. Misty would be devastated if she woke up and found herself, once again, trapped inside that broken body and confined to a bed.

  Thomasina gazed at Brick with an eyebrow arched. “I can’t figure out how Misty could have overdosed. I’m the one who administered her medication, and I followed the doctor’s orders to a tee.”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong, baby,” Brick mumbled guiltily.

  “But no one else had access to her meds, Baron. Only her nurse and me. The nurse had the past few days off, so that leaves me. And there’s no way I would have overdosed my own child!”

  “I know,” Brick muttered.

  “It’s going to take a few weeks for the toxicology report to reveal exactly what drugs were in her system.”

  “We’ll get through this.” Hoping his words were true, he gave Thomasina’s shoulder a quick squeeze.

  “I’ll never forgive myself if I was so absent-minded that I overdosed my poor, sickly daughter.” Thomasina had a tortured look in her eyes and Brick couldn’t all
ow his wife to blame herself for another moment.

  “I gave Misty the pills,” he confessed softly. Unable to look Thomasina in the eye, he kept his gaze downcast. Needing to do something with his nervous hands, he readjusted his son’s body weight, shifting the toddler’s sleeping body from his right side to his left.

  After resting Little Baron’s head upon his left shoulder, Brick stole a glance at Thomasina. Thomasina’s eyes had turned to slits. Her lips were tight. “You did what?” she asked incredulously.

  “I can explain.”

  She uttered a sound of shock. “I can’t believe what I’m hearing. You’re responsible for this?” She bent at the waist and moaned. “You were supposed to be helping Misty. How could you do something so cruel?”

  Brick hung his head. After a long uncomfortable silence, he looked up. “Thomasina, please listen to me. You know Misty was suffering. She was in so much misery…she didn’t want to be here any longer.”

  Too shocked to speak, Thomasina stared at him with horror all over her face.

  “It was what she wanted,” Brick explained. “Misty had been planning her suicide for a long time.”

  “Misty was paralyzed. She was completely helpless, so how the hell could she get a hold of enough pills to almost kill herself?”

  “Hear me out, baby,” Brick pleaded. “She wasn’t swallowing the pills that you gave her. She was spitting them out, using her good hand to toss her meds under the bed.”

  Thomasina glared at Brick; her lips were bunched together in fury.

  “Baby, I know you’re mad at me, but it wasn’t my idea. After Misty had stashed what she thought was a lethal dosage, she begged me to gather ’em up from under the bed and put ’em in her mouth.”

  “What you did was attempted murder,” Thomasina hissed.

  “You gotta look at it from Misty’s perspective. She was in a lot of pain. Mentally and physically. For her, every day was torture… a slow death. She cried like a baby, telling me how miserable her life was. When she begged me to help her, it was a hard decision, but I love Misty…like a sister,” he added. “It seemed like the right thing to do.”