Chapter 1 The Everglades—at midnight—was the last place twenty-three-year-old Andie Moore wanted to be. There was only a pale half-moon providing any light, and she could barely see where she was walking. She was also terrified of snakes and alligators, and there was no doubt that there were alligators all around her. She knew this…
Chapter 1 The ocean was singing in the hushed, undulating tones of low tide on this still, damp night. Nature’s beguiling lullaby swelled and ebbed in Kira Tanner’s body, transfixing her as powerfully as the mist-furred brilliance of the sickle moon hanging in a starless sky. Its cool light frosted the water and spread a…
Chapter 1 The best part about working for the family business is that they can’t fire me without causing all sorts of unwanted drama. The worst part is I can’t ever quit, not unless I want to hear about it every single Thanksgiving for the rest of my life—although I would put up with a…
Prologue Patrick He hit the dog on Locust. It came out of nowhere, a blur of dark motion. He swerved, but not enough—the bumper’s edge caught the animal’s hindquarters, sending it spinning back into the night. Its yelp harmonized with the shriek of braking tires. And then he’d stopped in the middle of the road,…
1: Morgan The key was a blackened talisman, tucked into her leather cuff. She’d gotten in the habit of keeping it there since it had become the only tangible thing she owned when, three months ago, her entire life was reduced to ash and ruin. The fire department had already come and gone by the…
Chapter 1 Misty Murphy Shadows chased each other across the grounds of the Mountaintop Lodge as dappled sunlight streamed through the beautiful orange, red, and golden leaves. Autumn had arrived in Beech Mountain, North Carolina, spreading its glorious colors across the peaks and valleys. With the season came the so-called leaf peepers, tourists from…
Prologue June 9, 2014 To: Bayridgemama475@gmail.com From: Alexisfire475@gmail.com Mother, I’m sorry for what I have to tell you. Maybe if I was more brave, I would say it to your face. But by the time you read this, I’ll be gone. I realize this will be a shock. You know me only as the quiet,…
PROLOGUE The day of the murder (Sunday, December 16) Six thirty in the morning. The Hôtel de Verbier was dark. Outside, it was pitch black and snowing heavily. On the sixth floor, the doors of the service elevator opened. A hotel employee appeared with a breakfast tray and made his way toward Room 622. When…
Chapter 1 I met Brendan Kaiser, the owner of my TV station Channel 10 and about a zillion other properties, for lunch on a sunny spring day at a restaurant called Tri-Bar in lower Manhattan. Tri-Bar is what’s known in New York as a celebrity restaurant. In other words, whenever you read the gossip columns,…
Chapter 1 Lynnel feels the sun cutting into her skin, a harsh reminder of her own mortality. She rolls forward onto her toes and holds her hand up against the sun. The motion puts an old scar on her forearm in her direct line of sight. Her stomach clenches and she steps back into the…
