Honeymoon for Three

HONEYMOON FOR THREE

    by

    Alan Cook

    SMASHWORDS EDITION

    “Obsession and stalking plague Gary Blanchard and his new bride, Penny, as they travel to various national parks on their honeymoon… It is a tale well-told, with graphic descriptions of the sites and an exciting conclusion.”
    —Theodore Feit for Spinetingler Magazine

    “The book takes you on a journey across country with a honeymoon couple and an insane and obsessive stalker. Unusual and scary, this is a tale well worth the read. American Authors Association gives this book its highest rating of FIVE STARS!”
    —W. H. McDonald, Jr.

    “ Honeymoon for Three , by Alan Cook, is a delightful tale! Mr. Cook has an amazing talent for creating suspense and tension in his plot.”
    —Debra Gaynor for Reader Views

    PUBLISHED BY:
    Alan Cook on Smashwords
    Honeymoon for Three
    Copyright © 2007 by Alan L. Cook.

    All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

    This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

    Smashwords Edition License Notes

    This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author's work.

    BOOKS BY ALAN COOK

    Run into Trouble
    Gary Blanchard Mysteries:
    Honeymoon for Three
    The Hayloft: a 1950s mystery
    California Mystery:
    Hotline to Murder
    Lillian Morgan mysteries:
    Catch a Falling Knife
    Thirteen Diamonds
    Other fiction:
    Walking to Denver
    Nonfiction:
    Walking the World: Memories and Adventures
    History:
    Freedom’s Light: Quotations from History’s Champions of Freedom
    Poetry:
    The Saga of Bill the Hermit

    ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

    Many thanks to Dawn Dowdle for taking care of the “ands” and “buts.”

    DEDICATION

    To Bonny, my bride forever

    CHAPTER 1
    The ka-ching of the cash register irritated Alfred as he plunked the canned goods into a brown paper bag. Heavy items on the bottom—fragile items and perishables on top. He could bag groceries with his eyes closed. He should be a checker by now.
    Keith had promised to make him a checker months ago. Then, when an opening occurred in the neighborhood grocery store in Lomita, California, he promoted Stephanie instead. Stephanie, the blue-eyed bitch with streaked blond hair who wouldn’t say two words to him, even when he was bagging at her counter, as he was now. She was probably sleeping with Keith. Alfred knew that she laughed at him. Laughed whenever she looked at his potbelly. Maybe not out loud, but inside. If she ever found out he had an outie bellybutton, that would only make matters worse.
    However, none of this mattered anymore. Alfred had a much bigger problem—Penny. She had been acting very strangely the last few weeks. It was almost as if she were a different person. He was afraid of losing her. He was sure she was being unfaithful to him. She was his whole world. Without her, he would be left with nothing. Desperate times called for desperate measures.
    He finished putting the groceries into the bags and the bags into the cart. He glanced at his Timex watch. His shift was over. He looked around the front of the market until he spotted Keith at the courtesy counter. He walked toward Keith, taking off his apron as he went. He wouldn’t need the apron anymore—because he was resigning, effective immediately.
    ***
    The thunder of bowling balls rolling down the alleys and the staccato crack of pins being toppled provided background music to the buzz of