A thrilling standalone mystery featuring a San Diego florist grappling with post-traumatic amnesia. The only witness to a murder she can’t remember, her handwritten notes and razor-sharp wits are all she has to solve the crime—and save her life.
After surviving a terrible attack, Quinn Fleming has recovered in every way but one—her ability to retain new memories. Now, months later, it appears to the outside world as if the San Diego florist’s life is back to normal. But Quinn is barely holding on, relying on a notebook she carries with her at all times, a record of her entire existence since the assault. So when she witnesses a murder in the shadowy alley behind the florist shop, Quinn immediately writes down every terrifying detail of the incident before her amnesia wipes it away.
By the time the police arrive, there’s no body, no crime scene, and no clues. The killing seems as erased from reality as it is from Quinn’s mind . . . until the flashbacks begin. Suddenly, fragments of memories are surfacing—mere glimpses of that horrible night, but enough to convince Quinn that somewhere, locked in her subconscious, is the key to solving the case . . . and she’s not the only one who knows. Somebody else has realized Quinn is a threat that needs to be eliminated. Now, with her life on the line and only her notes to guide her, Quinn sets out to find a killer she doesn’t remember, but can’t forget . . .
ECHOES OF MEMORY by Sara Driscoll is a fascinating suspense/crime thriller police procedural featuring a protagonist with a severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) who witnesses a murder, or did she? This standalone slow burn thriller has a sense of foreboding throughout that kept me turning the pages.
Quinn Fleming is a florist in San Diego who survived a horrific mugging. She is back to work, but her TBI has her finding ways to compensate for her inability to retain new memories. She relies on recording everything she must remember in a notebook she always carries with her. After work, as she is emptying the shop’s trash in the back alley, she witnesses a murder as she hides in the shadows.
Detective Nura Reyes knows about Quinn’s attack and challenges and believes her tale of witnessing a murder even though there is no proof. Bits and pieces of that night return in flashbacks, dreams, and Quinn’s art, so when she goes to find proof that what she saw was real, someone else realizes she is a threat. Det. Reyes is now in a race to uncover the truth with Quinn’s life on the line.
This is such an interesting plot twist with a protagonist that does not remember anything past approximately an hour unless it is reinforced by repetition or a traumatic incident. Her coping skills were amazing and yet she was embarrassed when anyone found out about them. The explanations of her TBI complications are well integrated throughout the story between Quinn’s actions and thoughts and her TBI therapy group instructor, Will. The plot does start out a little slow, but there is always a shadow of foreboding and as more clues come together, the plot pace increases exponentially. This is an all-around gripping story.
I highly recommend this intense crime thriller/police procedural.
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About the Author
Sara Driscoll is the pen name of Jen J. Danna, coauthor of the Abbott and Lowell Forensic Mysteries and author of the FBI K-9s and the NYPD Negotiators. After over thirty years in infectious diseases research, Jen hung up her lab coat to concentrate on her real love—writing “exceptional” thrillers (Publishers Weekly). She is a member of the Crime Writers of Canada and lives with her husband and four rescued cats outside of Toronto, Ontario.
Ten years ago, fifteen-year-old Scarlett Crosby was held captive in a terrifying ordeal with a girl named Della. Scarlett escaped, their predator was killed, and Della simply vanished. Detective Kevin Dawson always wondered if Della even existed.
A decade later, Scarlett is a successful artist. As hard as she tries to move on, the mysterious Della remains her inescapable obsession. Then a girl’s body is discovered—a link to Scarlett’s horrific past—and all her old traumas resurface. So does Della. Scarlett has seen her hiding in plain sight. The girl who knows Scarlett’s secrets, who understands the desperate compromises Scarlett made to endure hell, and who, like Scarlett, embraced the darkness to survive.
As a suspicious Detective Dawson once again comes calling, and obsessions turn deadly, Scarlett fears there isn’t a living soul she can trust. As for Della, who’s watching from afar, what could she possibly want from Scarlett now? And what new nightmare lies ahead?
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Elise’s Thoughts
Another Girl Lost by Mary Burton has suspense, intrigue, and mystery. This plot will keep readers wondering if her characters are like the ones in the book Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn or are they real heroines, especially after the victim becomes a suspect.
Ten years ago, fifteen-year-old Scarlett Crosby was held captive in a terrifying ordeal with a girl named Della. Scarlett escaped, their predator was killed, and Della simply vanished. A decade later, Scarlett is a successful artist. As hard as she tries to move on, the mysterious Della remains her inescapable obsession.
Della knew Scarlett’s secrets, understanding the desperate compromises Scarlett made to endure hell, and who, like Scarlett, embraced the darkness to survive, considering they were abused. The scenes of abuse are somewhat disturbing but not graphically described. Now Scarlett is confronted when a girl’s body is discovered, a link to her horrific past, and all her old traumas resurface. Nobody except Scarlett believes that Della ever existed, including Detective Kevin Dawson, who killed her captor and rescued her initially. But Scarlett still feels as if Della is around every corner.
Detective Dawson and his partner Margo Larson are both trying to pin on Scarlett the murder of the girl discovered. They no longer see her as a victim but now a suspect. Scarlett believes that it was Della who participated in the murder, but no one believes Della is alive. The detectives believe Della was made up to help Scarlett cope with her terrible situation or to give her an alibi for the murdered girl found.
What makes the plot very interesting is how it goes back and forth between present and past. Readers get to know Scarlett better realizing she was broken while trapped in the basement, trying to build a normal life, and how she is dangerously obsessed with Della. Although broken, she is did not permanently break even with her psychological and physical abuse.
It is interesting how the main characters are all involved in subterfuge and deception. All the characters are complex. The plot is gripping, engaging, twisty, dark, with triggers and twists.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: What is the idea for the story?
Mary Burton: This is stand-alone. I wanted to use gaslighting, how a woman believes she knows the truth but everyone around her is convinced she is wrong. I thought that is a good jump off point to have the heroine remember something while everyone around her is trying to convince her that might not be true.
EC: You like the heroines to be complex?
MB: I wanted my heroines to have imperfections that push the boundaries and are dealing with their own demons and imperfections. Their intentions are very good people with their methods unconventional. They are also trying to be independent.
EC: How would you describe Della?
MB: She is connected to the heroine, Scarlett. Scarlett thinks she comes back for her own reasons to want to control her. She was trapped with Scarlett, which bonded them in many ways. She discovered the body of another girl when trapped with Scarlett by the rapist. She embraced the darkness. While trapped with Scarlett she used hate and fear to her advantage.
EC: How would you describe Scarlett?
MB: She is frustrated that people think she is lying or confused about Della returning. She is clear-headed. She has not let go of Della. She is angry about Della, even obsessed with her, and cannot move on. This is why she keeps repainting Della’s picture. I think she is broken, trying to put herself back together, but the cracks are there. She is getting stronger, but still is fragile. Scarlett is searching for normalization. She is trying to leave her past behind, but it is not letting her go. Scarlett is trying to distance herself from the darkness, which was helped by the Judge.
EC: How would you describe Margo?
MB: She is broken and damaged, and she did some bad things in the name of justice. She is desperate for love and attention. She is angry and readers can see that in how she has handled her former cases. She is looking for retribution and has a destructive pattern. She likes being on the edge, taking dangerous assignments, and has an edgier relationship with Detective Dawson. Margo very much likes control and manipulates people. She presses the boundaries and sometimes breaks them. She wants to set Scarlett up. She is very persuasive and a bit of a sociopath. She knows how to use people’s emotions against them.
EC: What role does Detective Dawson play?
MB: He likes to give orders. He is determined and has tunnel vision. He is not a perfect guy and is not a great detective. His loyalty to Margo is his Achilles heel. He is manipulated by Margo.
EC: What about the rapist Reed?
MB: He is pure evil. He found Della who became his facilitator and helper. He is a psychopath who will do physical harm.
EC: Next book?
MB: It will be another stand alone with a complicated heroine who is trying to piece together clues from a cold case. No title yet.
THANK YOU!!
***
BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
In the 1950s, Oscar Hammerstein is asked to write the lyrics to a musical based on the life of a woman named Maria von Trapp. He’s intrigued to learn that she was once a novice who hoped to live quietly as an Austrian nun before her abbey sent her away to teach a widowed baron’s sickly child. What should have been a ten-month assignment, however, unexpectedly turned into a marriage proposal. And when the family was forced to flee their home to escape the Nazis, it was Maria who instructed them on how to survive using nothing but the power of their voices.
It’s an inspirational story, to be sure, and as half of the famous Rodgers & Hammerstein duo, Hammerstein knows it has big Broadway potential. Yet much of Maria’s life will have to be reinvented for the stage, and with the horrors of war still fresh in people’s minds, Hammerstein can’t let audiences see just how close the von Trapp’s came to losing their lives.
But when Maria sees the script that is supposedly based on her life, she becomes so incensed that she sets off to confront Hammerstein in person. Told that he’s busy, she is asked to express her concerns to his secretary, Fran, instead. The pair strike up an unlikely friendship as Maria tells Fran about her life, contradicting much of what will eventually appear in The Sound of Music.
A tale of love, loss, and the difficult choices that we are often forced to make, Maria is a powerful reminder that the truth is usually more complicated—and certainly more compelling—than the stories immortalized by Hollywood.
MARIA: A Novel of Maria von Trapp by Michelle Moran is an engaging biographical historical fiction novel that takes the reader on a journey into the real life of Maria von Trapp compared to the Maria von Trapp portrayed in The Sound of Music. It is a story that is fictionalized and yet still is able to demonstrate the truth of a life is usually more complicated.
Oscar Hammerstein is asked to compose the music for a Broadway play based on the life of Maria von Trapp and her singing family. While it is an inspirational story, it must be condensed for the stage and when Maria sees the script, she is very angry and wants to confront Hammerstein. Hammerstein sends his secretary, Fran, to meet with Maria and find out what she objects to in the musical.
Fran is excited to meet Maria and as she listens to Maria’s life story they become unlikely friends over the week of conversations, but she knows it is too late to change the musical and worries that Maria could cause problems with the press. She begins to understand why Maria is upset, so she writes her report hoping Mr. Hammerstein can do something.
This story is one that you will want to curl up on the couch with and read in one sitting. The differences between the real Maria and the Maria of The Sound of Music are fascinating. She was not an easy woman by any means after a difficult childhood and yet it was her ambition, resilience, and grit that got the family through many difficult times. Families are complicated. I also found the snippets of Oscar Hammerstein’s life interesting. I know that whenever I watch the movie again, I will still love it for what it is, a fun musical movie, but it is not what the real-life von Trapp’s experienced, and their lives were much more complicated than what you see on the screen.
I highly recommend this compelling biographical historical fiction novel!
***
About the Author
Michelle Moran is the international bestselling author of seven historical novels. A native of southern California, she attended Pomona College, then earned a Masters Degree from the Claremont Graduate University. During her six years as a public high school teacher she used her summers to travel around the world, and it was her experiences as a volunteer on archaeological digs that inspired her to write historical fiction.
In 2012 Michelle was married in India, inspiring her seventh book, Rebel Queen, which is set in the East. Her hobbies include hiking, traveling, and archaeology. She is also fascinated by archaeogenetics, particularly since her children’s heritages are so mixed. But above all these things Michelle is passionate about reading and can often be found with her nose in a good book. A frequent traveler, she currently resides with her husband, son, and daughter in the US. Her books have been translated into more than twenty languages.
Six experienced saturation divers are locked inside a hyperbaric chamber. Calm and professional, they know that rapid decompression would be fatal and so they work in shifts, breathing helium, and surviving in hot, close quarters.
Then one of them is found dead in his bunk.
With four days of decompression to go before the locked hatch to the chamber can be safely opened, the group must watch one another’s backs at all times. And when another diver is discovered unresponsive, everyone is on edge. What…or who…is taking them out one by one? And will any of them still be alive by the time the four days is up or will paranoia, exhaustion, suspicion, and pressure destroy them all?
THE CHAMBER by Will Dean is a psychological crime thriller/mystery with the ultimate locked room. Six experienced saturation divers begin to die, one-by-one, in their place of work, a hyperbaric chamber. If you are claustrophobic, this may not be the book for you, but you will be missing out on an amazing who-dun-it thriller that leaves you questioning your assumptions all the way to the last page.
Locked in a hyperbaric chamber is a tight and hot environment in which to live as six professional saturation divers work in shifts on deep sea oil rigs. They all depend on each other for their lives and know there is no exit until after decompression. After only one dive shift, one of the divers is discovered dead in his bunk and then it happens again. The divers can find no reason for these deaths and do not know who to trust. Now, as the company calls a halt to the month-long job, the divers must wait through four days of decompression as they continue to die one-by-one.
The story is told by Ellen Brooke, one of few female saturation divers, and she is in the chamber with five other experienced divers. Ellen is a wife and mother who does not know if she will return home. As the clock ticks down the time of decompression, the dead bodies increase and so does the level of suspicion and conspiracy theories. I always thought I was slightly claustrophobic until I read this book and now, I know I am much more claustrophobic than I believed. This is definitely not a job for the feint of heart.
I loved this book! I learned about a career I knew nothing about and would never attempt but found fascinating. I changed my mind so many times as to who or what was killing the divers. This mystery/thriller is fast paced, even with the explanations of sat diving and the countdown to the end builds to a heart pounding climax. No spoilers here, but make sure you read to the very last page.
I highly recommend this psychological crime thriller/mystery!
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About the Author
Will Dean grew up in the East Midlands of the United Kingdom. After studying law at the London School of Economics and working in London, he settled in rural Sweden where he built a wooden house in a vast forest, and it’s from this base that he compulsively reads and writes. His debut novel, Dark Pines, was selected for Zoe Ball’s book club on ITV, shortlisted for the National Book Award (UK), TheGuardian’s Not the Booker prize, and was named a Telegraph book of the year. He is also the author of The Last One, First Born, The Last Thing to Burn, which was shortlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year, and The Chamber.
London: 1968. Liz Houghton is languishing as an obituary writer at a London newspaper when a young girl’s disappearance captivates the city. If Liz can break the story, it’s her way into the newsroom. She already has a scoop: her best friend, Marisa, is a police officer assigned to the case.
Liz follows Marisa to Dorset, where they make another disturbing discovery. Over two decades earlier, three girls disappeared while evacuating from London. One was found murdered in the woods near a train line. The other two were never seen again.
As Liz digs deeper, she finds herself drawn to the village of Tydeham, which was requisitioned by the military during the war and left in ruins. After all these years, what could possibly link the missing girls to this abandoned village? And why does a place Liz has never seen before seem so strangely familiar?
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Elise’s Thoughts
The Rose Arbor by Rhys Bowen is more of a suspenseful novel that a historical one. There is a mystery, but also a dose of romance along with the serious topic of memory loss.
The book opens in London 1968 where Liz Houghton has been demoted to obituary writer for a London newspaper. After a young girl has disappeared, Liz decides to investigate, hoping for a scoop. Helping her is her best friend and roommate Marisa who happens to be a police detective.
They venture to Tydeham where during WWII the Army had all the residents relocated because they needed the area for military operations. Now it is a ghost town. But through her investigation Liz discovers that there were three girls who disappeared during WWII while evacuating London for the countryside. One was found murdered in the woods and the other two were never seen again. Helping with her desire to get to the bottom of what happened is James, someone who grew up in Tydeham and is now back trying to salvage some of his parents’ items.
The multiple interrelated story lines raise questions that will keep people engrossed.
***
Author Interview
Elise Cooper: Idea for the story?
Rhys Bowen: I read an article on a real abandoned village on which the story is based. The army had come and said to the people who lived there for generations, that they had three weeks to get out. Then the army took it. The community was given government housing. Many people thought they could come back after the war. But the army had destroyed it completely after they trained for the invasion there. This village was army property since WWII. There are still live ammunitions so no one can go there. This is sad. After I saw this, I wanted to write about it.
EC: What would you say the book is about?
RB: The past is not exactly what people think it was and the different types of mothers.
EC: How would you describe Liz?
RB: She is in her late 20’s. Her father thought it would be a waste of time to educate a girl, so she was sent to a secretarial course. She has been overprotected all her life, being the only child of older parents. She has lacked confidence all her life. She is ambitious and wants to make her way in the world. She now has a job as a newspaper reporter. She jumps at the story where a little girl has vanished from London. She sees this as a way to redeem herself with her employer. Her parents are controlling and manipulative. She is curious, angry at times, and would like to be more daring than she is. She does feel that her parents are smothering.
EC: What role did Marisa play in the story?
RB: Marisa is a detective and Liz’s roommate. She is the opposite of Liz who had a privileged upbringing. Marisa has come from a working-class family. Liz envies her because Marisa’s family is very close. Liz would like to be Marisa.
EC: How would you describe James?
RB: He, like Liz, has been wounded by his upbringing. He lost his mother early on, but she was a woman who made it quite clear she did not love him. He lost his two siblings. Now he is trying to be the support for his father. He and Liz both feel responsible for their parents as they get older. He is a nice and caring person.
EC: What about the relationship?
RB: They click immediately because they both come from similar backgrounds. They bond early on. They take it slowly.
EC: Why the dementia type illness of Liz’s mother?
RB: It plays into the plot because her mother does not remember something terrible that happened. But Liz’s discovery triggers something that has terrible consequences. It helps me plant the clues for the reader that things are not exactly as we thought they were. Liz feels very guilty that her mom is slipping away more and more. It is very hard to take for Liz.
EC: Next books?
RB: It will be in the Royal Spyness series titled We Three Queens coming out in November. King Edward announced he wants to marry Mrs. Simpson causing a huge Constitutional crisis.
The next Molly comes out in March. It is about the early days of the movie industry. Most of the people in the book are real characters. It is titled Silent as The Grave.
My next big stand-alone is a historical novel about a woman who has the perfect wife. One day he announces he wants a divorce. She drives to the South of France and creates a whole new life for herself. The working title is Mrs. Endicott’s Excellent Adventure. It takes place from 1938 to 1947. It will be out in August of next year.
THANK YOU!!
***
BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for IN THE PALE LIGHT by Wesley Smith on this Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tour.
Below you will find a book description, my book review, an excerpt from the book, the author’s bio and social media links, and a Kingsumo giveaway. Enjoy!
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Book Description
When Clay Graham and his family are found slain in the parking lot of his struggling business, the police suspect Clay’s troublemaker brother, Terry. Terry claims he was drunk the night of the murders and passed out at home. With little evidence against Terry to make an arrest, the case soon goes cold.
Shunned from the community, harassed by the locals who believe he’s a murderer, and suffering from an undiagnosed illness, Terry lives alone on his farm, punishing himself for his past indiscretions.
Then Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Henry Miller, who has ties to the town and the Graham murders, shows up with newly discovered evidence that kick-starts the case all over again.
Now, before his illness kills him, Terry sets out, battling against small-town secrets and old grudges, racing against time to stay one step ahead of both the State Police and his own impending death, to finally find out what really happened to his family and hopefully prove himself and innocent man –if he is one.
Genre: Crime Thriller Published by: Watertower Hill Publishing Publication Date: August 13, 2024
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My Book Review
RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars
IN THE PALE LIGHT by Westley Smith is an intense vigilante cold case crime thriller with a man accused of killing his brother’s family racing against his terminal illness and law enforcement to discover the truth. Make sure you set aside a block of time to read this race-against-time thriller because if you are like me, you will not be able to put it down until the final revelation.
Terry Graham is known around town as a drunkard and troublemaker with a terrible temper. When his brother, brother’s wife, and daughter are found shot to death outside their business, everyone believes Terry is responsible, but there is no proof. Shunned in his small hometown for nine years, the case has gone cold until a pair of detectives from the State Police Major Crimes Unit take over this investigation and begin asking questions again.
Pennsylvania State Trooper Henry Miller is back in town with newly discovered evidence to investigate the Graham case that he was the first patrol officer on the scene on the day of the murder. Miller has always had questions about this murder case and now he hopes to find the truth, but Terry seems to have discovered something also and is beating him to people he wants to question.
With Terry barely ahead of the detectives, he is racing against time to discover the truth behind the murders and prove himself innocent.
This book has a protagonist that is not lovable, and has a terrible temper, but you end up cheering him on to find the truth before he succumbs to his illness. Every new discovery had me rethinking the crime; not only who but why. The crime thriller plot is fast-paced and full of twists and surprises. The tension builds to a crescendo that had me reading well past my bedtime.
I highly recommend this engrossing vigilante cold case crime thriller!
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Excerpt
December 25th, 2015
The emergency lights from the Hickory Falls Sheriff’s Department Ford Interceptor flashed across the snow when it pulled into the Graham Video store parking lot. The sheet of white should have been untouched by tires at 6:45 a.m., and the snow-covered green Jetta, sitting in the far left-hand corner of the parking lot should not have been there. Two different sets of tire tracks cut through the pristine snow. One set belonged to the Jetta. The other set made a large circle in the snow before making its way back toward Main Street.
The officer brought the SUV to a stop about five feet from the Jetta; its headlights bathed the car in the frigid darkness. Unable to see past the Jetta’s frosted snow-covered windows, a building sense of unease began to crawl over him, tightening the flesh to his bones.
The officer’s shift had been easy that night. He had not responded to any emergency calls, nor had he had to pull anyone over. A Christmas miracle itself. But all that had changed fifteen minutes ago while he was patrolling Broke Run Road, when Sheriff Will Daniel’s voice came over the radio.
“Call just came in. We got a report of shots fired at the Graham Video store. Caller says they saw a man running across the parking lot, carrying what appeared to be a shotgun. The suspect reportedly got into the passenger side of a blue sedan before it took off with two others inside. Need you to check it out,” Daniel had said.
Why the hell is the sheriff in at this hour? the officer had wondered. Shouldn’t Susan be on the call desk? And what’s going on at the Graham Video store?
Now on scene, with the first cracks of gray sky beginning to materialize through the night horizon, he radioed back into the station.
“I’m at the Graham Video store. I’ve located a V-dub Jetta. It’s an early 2000s model. No sign of anyone else, including the reported blue sedan. Though there are two sets of tire tracks in the snow, indicating another vehicle was present.” He glanced at the video store’s entrance. There were no broken windows and no ajar door to indicate a robbery had occurred. The place appeared buttoned up tight. “No signs of a break-in, Sheriff. Getting out to inspect the vehicle.”
“Ten-four,” Sheriff Daniel’s voice came back over the line. “Proceed with caution.”
Again, the officer thought it was strange that the sheriff was in at that hour, and on Christmas morning. Where was Susan Green? She usually worked the overnight shift; she should still have been at the station, working the dispatch desk. Still, the officer knew, she could have gone home for any number of reasons—the holiday, the storm, or maybe a family member had fallen –ill—and the sheriff had filled in for her. Pushing the thought from his mind, the officer returned to the pressing matter at hand.
Stay focused.Stay sharp.
Stepping from the SUV, the blowing snow and driving wind bit at the officer’s exposed skin, penetrated his clothes. Zipping his jacket up to his chin, he started toward the car, trudging through the shin-deep snow.
As he neared the Jetta, pelted with snow and ice so hard it stung, he noticed a set of footprints leading away from the passenger-side door toward the second set of tire tracks before vanishing. The tracks were nearly filled in with fresh powder, but it was unmistakable what they were. He assumed this was where the person had gotten into the second car—an old blue sedan. Looking back to the Jetta, he saw something smeared along the top of the passenger-side door. Whatever it was had frozen to a hard, ruby-colored substance.
He eased in for a closer look.
Blood!
Frozen blood.
A strange tightness gripped the base of the officer’s neck as if Death had wrapped a cold, boney hand around him and begun to squeeze. His heart rate quickened. He placed his right hand on his sidearm and identified himself.
“This is the Hickory Falls Sheriff’s Department. If there’s anyone inside the vehicle, would you please step out?”
There was no reply. The car was dead still. The only sound across the parking lot was the howling wind and the ice pebbles hitting the closest metal lamp post.
Not wanting to disturb what he believed to be blood on the passenger-side door, the officer lumbered through the deepening snow, around the front of the Jetta, to the driver’s side. Reaching down, he took hold of the handle and pulled.
The driver’s side door was locked.
He took a deep breath of cold air, sending what felt like ice daggers into his lungs as he tried to steel himself for what he might find inside. His teeth began to chatter, and an internal shudder tremored in his core and quickly expanded to the rest of his body.
“I’m asking anyone inside to identify themselves and step out.” He waited, but when no one replied, he said, “If you do not comply, I will be forced to inspect the vehicle. Last warning.”
Silence.
No movement came from within. The car’s stillness bothered him—like it was dead. But that was impossible. Cars could not be deceased like humans or animals. So why was he getting the dreaded feeling that death emanated from it?
Placing his gloved hand on the window, he brushed the light dusting of snow away and bent down to look inside.
The officer recoiled at what he saw or who he saw staring back at him. His feet slipped out from under him, and he went down onto his backside, hard. Snow kicked up when he hit the ground, and for a moment he was cocooned in falling white powder, protected from what he had seen.
But when the snow settled, the officer was again gazing at the driver’s-side door of the Jetta. There, he saw a man’s pale face pressed against the glass, the muscles twisted and tightened in agony. His eyes were open and locked directly on the officer with a vacant, lifeless stare, pleading with him, even in death, to save him.
Too late. I’m too late to save you.
The officer shot to his feet; snow fell off his uniform in large patchy clumps. And though the temperature was in the teens, he felt sweat break out across his back and forehead.
Moving gingerly toward the Jetta again, the officer realized he knew the dead man looking back at him.
Clay Graham—the owner of the Graham Video store.
He removed his Maglite from his belt and turned it on. Bending, he shone the beam through the ice-crusted driver’s-side window and began to scan the car’s interior.
That’s when he saw them.
He pressed a gloved hand over his lips, suppressing the scream that wanted to leap from his throat at the horrific sight of carnage and death inside the Jetta.
It wasn’t just Clay Graham dead inside the car but also his wife, Claire, and their teenage daughter, Sidney.
***
Author Bio
Westley Smith had his first short story, Off to War, published when he was just sixteen.
He is, more recently, the author of two horror novels, Along Came the Tricksters and All Hallows Eve, as well as the thriller Some Kind of Truth. His short fiction has been published in various magazines and websites. Wes lives with his wife and two dogs in the beautiful woodlands of southern Pennsylvania–the perfect place to hide a body.
