Excerpt from the Book
“I don’t expect you to believe that I am not guilty of this crime. But there are things that don’t make any sense, avenues the police didn’t pursue because they thought they had their perpetrator,” Melender said.
His expression unreadable, Brogan leaned in. “What avenues?”
“The ransom money for one thing. It was never recovered. There was never any evidence linking me to the financial aspect of the case at all.”
Disbelief flashed across his face, tightening the faint lines on his forehead and around his mouth.
“Read the court transcript, and you’ll see that the prosecutor did not even try to pin the ransom on me.”
He sat back. “Okay, I will.”
“There’s the lack of a body.”
“That’s what your aunt attacked you about, wanting to know where you buried her son.”
“I didn’t bury anybody!” She lowered her voice, frustration nibbling along her spine. She had to convince Brogan to help her. She couldn’t find the killer on her own. … “The prosecutor’s case was all circumstantial evidence that could be interpreted differently if you start at another point.”
“That point being you’re innocent of killing Jesse?”
“That’s right.” A wave of tiredness enveloped her, and she slumped against the back of her chair. “Look, I’m not asking you to believe in my innocence. All I’m asking is that you read the court transcript. If you think I deserved what I got, then no harm, no foul. However, if you see the trial as a miscarriage of justice, then please help me find out what really happened to Jesse.”
The silence built between them as squeals from children splashing in the fountain a few feet away filled the air.
“I Googled you too.” She let the statement pull up a chair and sit down. “You were a very good investigative journalist, despite your unethical ways of getting to the truth.”
His cavalier expression wavered as he dropped his gaze.
“Sometimes, the path to redemption takes some strange turns,” she said softly.
Brogan jerked his head up, meeting her gaze straight on. “You think this investigation could be that path for me.”
“Maybe it’s redemption for both of us.” She firmed her lips. “It depends on you.”
“The truth should matter more than one person, one byline, one story. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt that way.”
“Now you do?” Melender noted the lines of fatigue around the corners of his eyes. This may well be a man with as many demons as she had.
“I want to seek the truth, no matter the personal or professional consequences.” Brogan paused. “But I can’t promise what I find will be what you want to hear.”
“I’m not asking you to find what will please me. I want you to help me find the truth.”
Want to know more about the book?
Journalist Brogan Gilmore had been a rising star when an unethical shortcut on a story leads to his fall from grace. A chance encounter with convicted murderer Melender Harman a few months after her release from prison provides Brogan with a chance for career redemption—if he can land an interview with her.
After serving her 17-year sentence, Melender has one objective: To uncover the truth about what happened to her cousin the night the toddler disappeared. When Brogan pursues her for an exclusive story, she reluctantly agrees if he’ll help her reexamine the original investigation into Jesse’s presumed kidnapping and murder.
While re-investigating the case, Brogan struggles to keep his objectivity as he begins to believe Melender is innocent of the crime—and starts to envision a possible future together. Then a shocking discovery throws their relationship—and investigation—into turmoil.
As Brogan and Melender come closer to solving what happened to Jesse, will their budding relationship survive the truth?
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About the Author
Multi-award-winning and best-selling author of inspirational romantic suspense, Sarah Hamaker loves writing books “where the hero and heroine fall in love while running for their lives.” She’s an AWSA certified writer and speaker coach, and podcaster of “The Romantic Side of Suspense.” She and her husband are therapeutic foster parents with Shineforth. Sarah lives in Virginia with her husband, four children and two cats.
Scavenger Hunt Word Ten: lot
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