She hazarded a sideways glance at the driver, but it only heightened her anxiety. Knuckles white, the man in the Armani suit leaned forward, his squinting eyes nearly touching the front window. What the hell is going on? She watched him shake his head, clearly frustrated. “Sorry, Beth, we gotta pull off the road. Can’t see through this fog.” The young woman looked out the passenger window. Foggy, yes, but she could easily see a good fifty feet or so into the densely packed trees that seemed to have swallowed the highway. A thread of unease raised the hairs on her arms. Why did he choose this “short-cut?” If he was worried about the fog, their gradual descent into the valley toward the river would have only increased its thickness. Her stomach lurched when she wondered if she might actually be in danger.
He turned toward her. The expression on his face was as contrite as his words. “Oh, gosh. I’m so sorry, but I’m having a bit of difficulty seeing.” He looked back at the road and took a deep breath. “I have glaucoma. Early onset. I haven’t told too many people yet. My job, you know.” He went back to squinting at the road. Now understanding his strange behavior, she breathed a sigh of relief and berated herself for being so suspicious. Her nursing background immediately rose to the forefront. Beth gave what she hoped he would perceive as a sisterly pat on his arm. “Don’t worry. I understand. Do you want me to drive?” His eyes didn’t leave the road, but his brow furrowed and he tilted his head. She hoped she hadn’t offended him. Having known him only for a day, she didn’t know whether or not his male ego could bruise easily. Then he turned to her. “Yes, I suppose that would be a good idea, Angie. I know a turn-off …”
He scanned the woods. “Yeah, here.” The car swerved abruptly. Startled, she felt an unwanted jolt of adrenaline. He slowed his car as they drove down a narrow gravel road. Okay, that’s weird … why did he call me Angie? And that’s the second time he’s made that slip. What’s with that? Maybe a former girlfriend? Is this a rebound situation? Wife? Nice guy, but this is all too weird. She looked over her shoulder and watched the gravel road disappear into the gray shroud. A few seconds later, the car skidded to a stop. He patted the wheel, reassuring the inanimate object that all would be well. He turned and gave her a warm smile and shrugged his shoulders. “Sorry. I hoped to entertain you with my charming wit, but this damn fog …”
She melted a bit inside. Poor guy, he’s mortified. “Hey,” she said quickly, hoping to stem his embarrassment, “No big deal.” He sighed and fumbled with the door handle. “Oh, well. Safety first, huh? Let’s switch.” Simultaneous clicks while unfastening their seatbelts generated an agreeable chuckle from both man and woman. The small moment of humor helped defuse the remainder of Beth’s tension. Sighing with relief about her former worries, she figured her concerns had about as much substance as the surrounding fog. Beth had met Allen Nordstrom at the hotel bar the night before. A good-looking man with a deceptive solidness under his flannel shirt; he was polite and soft-spoken. In a world of rude, macho men, he seemed to be the exception. With a career in law enforcement, he came to Rochester to investigate some crime, the details of which he apologetically declined to share with her. They hit it off right away sharing a common interest in dogs (both owned golden retrievers) and music … the classics: Beatles and Arrowsmith.
After a half hour of enjoyable chit-chat, he shook her hand and said goodnight. With a twinkle in his eye, he leaned over the table and whispered into her ear his last, humorous anecdote and left her laughing. She watched him walk away and wondered what might have been if things had gone a bit further. For once she’d actually met a really nice guy. A minute later he returned. “Look, please believe me when I tell you this. I’ve never done this before. Well, I mean I’ve talked to women in bars before, but I’ve never come back. I don’t know, it’s just that well…we really connected.” He looked away, obviously frustrated with his fumbling speech.
The man closed his eyes for a moment and turned back to her. “Do you like fish fries?” She laughed. “Yes, but not at ten o’clock at night.” “No,” he said with a chuckle. “I know this great restaurant half an hour south of here. Best fish fry in New York State. I could take you there for lunch tomorrow, and have you back in time for your plenary session at three.” Since she had no scheduled meetings until the last session of the conference, she agreed. He met her in the lobby of the hotel, dressed more formally than the night before. “Sorry, a meeting with some folks at the sheriff’s office,” he explained. Then he proceeded to do all the right things: opened the door for her, entertained her with more stories about his police work. Humorous, no gore. And, he was right. It was the best fish fry she had ever had. She smiled at the memories as she cut through the mist surrounding the car. Chilly, she pulled her coat tighter across her body. Passing each other with a smile, she said “You’re right. We’ll be back before three.”
She felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned, a smile on her face. He smiled back at her and, as though it was as natural as shaking hands, pressed a wet handkerchief against her nose and mouth. Her first reaction was one of disgust. Hadn’t he sneezed into it during their lunch? She instinctively struggled, but he was surprisingly strong and she couldn’t move her head away. She inhaled a sickly-sweet aroma and then drifted into blackness.
~~~
Robert Sells starts off his Latest Novel with a Bang--or a little bit of chloroform... This victim wasn't the first and if he had a choice, it wouldn't be the last...
I will not let the past rule my present …
And Becca was coming home, damaged, only to be caught right in the middle of it all!
Becca had just told Cassie, her best friend, that she was coming home to Mayburg. She tried to let her know that it would not be a permanent move, she just needed to come home and work on her next novel and make her deadline... Which would be a lot harder since it would be a new story that needed to be created, as opposed to writing about true crime. Becca's first book had been more cathartic than to make money and a new career... Worse, the publisher now wanted her to add a murder in her next book! Really? Did anybody actually read her book?!
Twelve years ago, one of her best friends had been murdered... She had been on and off again spending time in therapy, where she did learn that time doesn't necessary heal all wounds... At least she had been able to breathe a little easier... Especially when she gave her a new mantra to say under her breath, whenever needed, "I will not let the past rule my present..."
What could possibly have happened to have this repeated? Was it a recognition of the earlier death? Or was it a copycat? And, she had to wonder, surely, it could not have anything to do with her return???
Damn it! Am I to be haunted again
by this new murder?
No way around it, I was in our main character's corner right from the beginning... We soon learn that not only had her best friend been murdered, her father the Police Chief had committed suicide...
And, would you believe, while she thought that, maybe, if she whispered her mantra hour on the hour, the thought crossed her mind that this murder could be the one to include in her new book... But, hey, this author hasn't stopped laying it on hard for Rebecca... She knew that if she did take this on, she would have to work with the town police... The man with whom she went to the senior prom and attempted to rape her... Seriously, Robert?! Anything else that you want your main character to be dealing with, I thought... LOL
Oh, let's just keep going, shall we? Soon, the boy for whom she had had a big crush in school, but who had actually been her best friend's boyfriend, was now the Sheriff... and she had flashed back to the one day in the hall when he leaned up against the wall, pinning her, flirtingly whispering...
Only to have Angie, come to interrupt him... and he walked off with her, not looking back... But, now, John Talbott knew she was back and soon came calling...
Ok that's two of the three men who had been close to her 12 years ago. The last one had been Angie's older brother! And, yep, there was more tension when he asked her out too!
Really, could it have still another twist? Well, when she finally had the time to look over some of her father's private files, she found his case file for Angie's attack. All three of the men with whom she was now, possibly, romantically involved, was on his suspect list...! Seriously, you just can't make this kinds of stuff up...unless you're Author Sells...having fun on his latest...
After I learned all this...and much more... I had to laugh at Sells' wordplay, with the title of the book... Because I was thinking. Becca, your chance at an affair...with murder...in the picture, is so not a good idea... But, you know what, as the investigation heated up, Rebecca realized one thing, and it made it all worth while, she realized that she was much stronger than she thought she was... And, that she really wanted to ride along to learn as much about the who, what, when and where of this murder mystery that she was committed to include in her next book!
You know what, readers, the real writer, Robert Sells, has created a delightful story even with the mess of murder investigations and what secrets were coming to light. His heroine proved to be more gutsy than even she thought she was...Cool, right?! And the ending was, actually, quite sweet and romantic--at the very end because it took that long to decide just who she was really attracted to enough to explore the future further! Besides ensuring that she didn't pick the serial killer...
There was heartbreak, but a cleansing type of fulfilment that only comes after a long period of living with trauma... And, with a writer investigator who now gets to be an amateur detective who actually gets to work alongside an expert, I was fully into the whodunit! Sit back and enjoy solving the mystery, that has more to do with finding a lover than actually solving the mystery... Just my personal opinion, of course... I was, in my mind, telling Becca, this one...not that one...and, for sure, definitely not the third one! Hope you enjoy as much as I did!
GABixlerReviews
No comments:
Post a Comment