The Gatekeeper. Michelle Gagnon

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      Praise for

       MICHELLE GAGNON

      “Boneyard is a winner!

       A compelling page-turner that pays due attention to the human heart. It’ll keep you up all night.”

      —Jeffery Deaver, New York Times bestselling author

      “A stellar work of mounting suspense and terror. Ritual murder, ancient magic and buried secrets all blend seamlessly in this debut mystery by a major new talent. Not to be missed!”

      —James Rollins, New York Times bestselling author,

       on The Tunnels

      “I defy anyone to read the first chapter of Boneyard and put the book down. With a cast of deftly drawn characters and a beautifully resonant setting, Boneyard is pure reading pleasure-creepy, terrifying and utterly believable. I recommend it with great enthusiasm.”

      —Douglas Preston, New York Times bestselling author

      “The Tunnels starts out scary and only gets worse, or—if you like frightening thrillers—better. Michelle Gagnon is a fresh and confident new voice in crime fiction. An auspicious debut.”

      —John Lescroart, New York Times bestselling author

      “Gagnon’s plot is fast-paced, appropriately detailed in its forensic depictions, and reveals an attention to authentic FBI detection procedures that lets the reader know that the author has done her homework…an engaging and quick read.”

      —Library Journal on Boneyard

      “Michelle Gagnon’s stellar debut is an edge-of-your-seat story of suspense and intrigue. With a deftly crafted plot and a winning protagonist, Gagnon spins a fast-moving yarn that is certain to keep you up late. We will hear more from this talented newcomer. Highly recommended.”

      —Sheldon Siegel, New York Times bestselling author,

       on The Tunnels

      “Michelle Gagnon has written a tremendously fine debut novel that’s as dark, twisty, and thrilling as the tunnels she so hauntingly describes therein. Expect to sleep with the lights on for at least a week after you’ve relished the final page.”

      —Cornelia Read, author of The Crazy School,

       on The Tunnels

      “A great read. Scarily good. The Tunnels takes you into some very dark places, as a bright new talent takes on old-world horrors and scares the living daylights out of you. It’s The Wicker Man meets Silence of the Lambs.”

      —Tony Broadbent, author of The Smoke

       and Spectres in the Smoke

      “A fast-paced novel that taps into primal fears as it unfolds in real tunnels as well as in the labyrinth of the human mind. Things go down fast, decisions have to be made, and Michelle Gagnon has written characters who are up to it. Don’t read this one when you’re alone in the house.”

      —Kirk Russell, author of Deadgame, on The Tunnels

      MICHELLE GAGNON

      THE GATEKEEPER

      For Kate

      “Invictus”

       (Unconquered)

      Out of the night that covers me,

       Black as the Pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul.

      In the fell clutch of circumstance

       I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed.

      Beyond this place of wrath and tears

       Looms but the horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.

      It matters not how strait the gate,

       How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul.

      —William Ernest Henley (1849–1903)

      Contents

      JUNE 25

       Chapter One

      JUNE 28

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Five

      JUNE 29

      Chapter Six

      Chapter Seven

      Chapter Eight

      Chapter Nine

      JUNE 30

      Chapter Ten

      Chapter Eleven

      Chapter Twelve

      Chapter Thirteen

      Chapter Fourteen

      JULY 1

      Chapter Fifteen

      Chapter Sixteen

      Chapter Seventeen

      Chapter Eighteen

      Chapter Nineteen

      Chapter Twenty

      JULY 2

      Chapter Twenty-One

      Chapter Twenty-Two

      Chapter Twenty-Three

      Chapter Twenty-Four

      Chapter Twenty-Five

      Chapter Twenty-Six

      Chapter Twenty-Seven

      Chapter Twenty-Eight

      JULY 3

      Chapter Twenty-Nine

      Chapter Thirty

      Chapter Thirty-One

      Chapter Thirty-Two

      Chapter Thirty-Three

      Chapter Thirty-Four

      Chapter Thirty-Five

      Chapter Thirty-Six

      Chapter Thirty-Seven

      Chapter Thirty-Eight

      Chapter Thirty-Nine

      July 4

      Chapter Forty

      Chapter Forty-One

      Chapter Forty-Two

      Author’s Note

JUNE 25

One

      Madison Grant leaned over the sink, careful not to get her jeans wet as she applied another coat of gloss. She rubbed her lips together, smacked them once, then dabbed the excess with her fingertip. She examined the resulting pink sheen critically—perfect. Stepping back, she tossed the wand into her purse. It was actually her sister’s knockoff Fendi. Bree would totally flip when she realized it was gone. Hopefully that would distract her from checking for other things that had gone missing, like her driver’s license and social security card. Of course by that time the shit would have hit the fan anyway. Their mom would be so freaked out that Bree’s complaints about a stolen purse would fall on deaf ears. At least that’s what Madison was hoping.

      She shrugged on the purse and grabbed the handle of her carry-on. It was their fault for basically ignoring her. Ever since the divorce, Dad was only a voice on the phone, and Mom spent most of the day in her room, shades drawn. And Bree was so busy with her friends, she barely bothered to talk to Madison. No, the only person who