PROMO: Vengeful CONspiracies

 

 

The Sadie Sabatini Mystery Series

Cozy Mystery

Date Published: March 25, 2025

Publisher: Harbor Lane Books, LLC.

 

Sadie Sabatini is settling into her new life in Wilson, Texas. She's making friends and her business, Tesoro, is starting to thrive. But the past is never far behind. When two of her former team members come for a visit, they bring trouble in the form of a mutual enemy set on revenge threatening to disrupt Sadie's fresh start.

She can't turn her back on her team, though. They've been through too much together. The more Sadie tries to help, the more she suspects she might be the target of the con this time. With forces conspiring against her, the outcome of her decisions, both past and present, weigh heavily and make her question the choices she made leading to this point.

When their mutual enemy is found dead, alliances are tested, and wits are matched as the race to the truth reveals who can be trusted and who is running their final con.

 

VENGEFUL CONSPIRACIES is book 2 in the Sadie Sabatini Mystery series by USA Today Bestselling author, Nicole Leiren!

About the Author

Described by those who know her best as perky, quirky and effervescent, USA Today Best-Selling author Nicole Leiren likes to have fun -- in life, with her characters and, of course, her readers. She admits to being sassy (just ask her mother!) and inspiration for her characters are drawn from the real-world heroes and heroines she meets while traversing the country.

Nicole enjoys sharing the love, laughter, mystery, and occasionally a touch of the mayhem she forces her characters to endure—all for the reader’s pleasure! Her real-world heroes and heroines will keep you turning the pages until you reach the whodunit or happily ever after (usually both!)

 

Contact Links

Facebook

Instagram

X

Purchase Link

Amazon

PROMO: The Bipolar Code

 

 

A Memoir of Unraveling, Navigating, and Empowering the Bipolar Mind

Personal Memoirs, Mental Health, Non Fiction

Date Published: March 25, 2025

Publisher: Elite Online Publishing

 

 

The Bipolar Code is a captivating memoir that invites readers to journey through the highs and lows of living with bipolar disorder. With unflinching authenticity, author Bob Stavnitski shares his triumphs and challenges, offering a powerful exploration of resilience, family bonds, and personal growth. Through his story, readers will find inspiration to embrace their own vulnerabilities, navigate relationships, and discover the transformative beauty within adversity. Join this expedition and uncover the strength of the human spirit in the face of life's complexities.

This book is dedicated to all of Bob’s family, loved ones, friends, and caregivers, all the people whose lives time and again have been interrupted by the calamities resulting from our bipolar disorder. Witnesses to events they find hard to fathom happening right before their eyes in their own homes. Those who find themselves repeatedly heartbroken, losing sleep, and lost in a quandary over what to do and how to help their very sick child, partner, sister, brother, or friend find their way through the self-destructive and complicated web woven in their bipolar brains.

Buy the book today, experience the journey, and learn all about Bipolar Bob.

 

About the Author

Bob Stavnitski experienced a seemingly idyllic childhood and enjoyed a successful, frequently stand-out high school experience, anticipating a career in government or diplomacy. Then suddenly, his string of successes ended abruptly, and for a very long time. Unbeknownst to Bob, he would experience major unchecked deepening bipolar depression for fifteen years. He expressed his immediate reaction, “I’m not going to allow mental illness to take the rest of my life away from me.”

Bob spares a little, candidly sharing the story. He is convinced there is beauty, even brilliance, in the bipolar brain and soul that can enhance our understanding of the world around us and allows bipolar individuals to experience truth and beauty in the human condition that others with “normal” brains miss out on. Bob believes that it is possible to accomplish a sustainable comeback and make left-behind dreams become new realities.

Contact Links

Website

Instagram

Youtube

 

Purchase Today

PROMO: Gunnar

 

(Kiss of Death MC)

Motorcycle Club Romance, Suspense, Age Gap

Date Published: March 28, 2025

 

Pippa is the unexpected twist in my life, a complication I never saw coming.

Pippa -- My life has been shaped by some kind of underworld scheming I don’t really understand. Or maybe I don’t want to know. But now I’m living in darkness and violence, unable to break free but unwilling to succumb to the drug induced stupor my captives force on me. Then Gunnar, a fierce man with a dark relentlessness, charges to my rescue like a black knight, taking vengeance on those who have hurt me. Our first meeting isn’t a rescue out of a fairy tale -- it’s pure chaos. Gunnar may be an ex-con, but he protects me with a ferocity I never knew existed.

Gunnar – Pippa’s quiet resilience clashes with the violent life I know. With just a look, the woman claims my heart and life takes on a brand new meaning. I’ve done time -- fifteen long years behind bars, to protect my sister. Now I’ll protect Pippa with a ruthlessness she can’t even imagine.

My past is dark, my future uncertain, and every moment with Pippa makes me realize the lengths I’ll go to keep her. Fate has brought me to the one woman I know I can’t live without.

 

WARNING: Gunnar includes scenes of graphic violence and adult situations including potential triggers for some readers. There’s also a protective hero, an intelligent, insightful heroine, and eventual happy ending. No cheating, as always.

 

 

EXCERPT

“This the day?”

I glanced at my cellmate and now a close friend. I was packing up my personals in our cell, getting ready to leave prison after serving fifteen years of a twenty-year sentence. “Yep.”

“Thought you had a few more years left.”

I shrugged. “I did.”

“Interesting.” Knuckles leaned against the end of the bunk. I paused in my packing to find him watching me intently.

“Yeah,” I drawled slowly. “Thought so myself.”

“You think it was your old man?” Knuckles knew about Cain and ExFil and Bones. He knew my dad had some pull and was likely thinking I’d held out on him.

“If you’re implyin’ I’ve been down-playin’ people I know, I haven’t been. This is as much a surprise for me as it is you.”

“I know.”

OK, now I stopped what I was doing altogether and took a step toward Knuckles. “What’s goin’ on?” Clearly, I’d missed something important.

“You’re a solid guy, Gunnar. I had an… opportunity.”

“What kind of opportunity?” I was preparing myself for a fight, but I had no idea who’d I’d be fighting. Knuckles didn’t usually play politics inside, but one thing I’d learned while in USP Terre Haute was that there wasn’t much men wouldn’t do for a few amenities.

“The kind where I had to make a choice.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Are we gettin’ ready to try to kill each other, Knuckles?”

“Depends on your answer.”

I held my arms out from my side slightly so he could see I wasn’t armed. “Gotta know the question first, man.”

“I was told there was a one-time opportunity for me to get myself or one person of my choosing out early. Call it a favor from someone in the position to make this happen.”

“What’s that got to do with me?”

“If you agree to do something for me, you get to go back to your life a couple years early.”

“I suppose it depends on what it is you want. There are things I won’t do. Even for my freedom. I take it me getting this early parole wasn’t my father’s doing.”

“Even for the man who kept you alive when you first got to the real prison outta Camp Hilton?”

There was nothing easy about the camp and the bastard knew it. He also knew I’d agree with him I was alive now because of him. “Yeah, Knuckles. Even for you. But I hope you know I’d never deny you something without a fuckin’ good reason.”

Knuckles studied me for several seconds before nodding his head slowly. “Yeah. I do know. It’s why I went ahead and pushed the order through. You’re a good man, Gunnar. Of all the people here, I believe you are the one man who has never been a danger to society. Anyone who fucks with your family isn’t considered society and is asking for whatever you dish out.” He snorted out a laugh. “You’re leaving whether you agree to help me or not.”

“What’s the ask, Knuckles?”

“My daughter,” he said. “She’s been taken. One of my enemies found out who she was and used her to get revenge on me.” Knuckles handed me a few photos of a young woman bound and gagged with an expression of abject terror on her face. The thing striking me most about her were her bright green eyes. They shimmered with tears, but there was something about them. A quiet acceptance of what was about to happen, maybe? Not in a sense she’d given up, but like she’d accepted the experience wasn’t going to be pleasant, but was determined to make it through so the task was complete.

“Pippa?” Knuckles had told me of her often enough. He was so proud of his baby girl. He’d managed a fling with one of the nurses in the prison before I got here and the woman had kept in touch over the years, even going so far as to let the girl meet Knuckles. The visit had gone well, but Knuckles had come back to the cell angry and agitated, afraid his enemies might use her to get revenge. That had been about five years ago. I knew there was nothing in the Goddamned world Knuckles wouldn’t do for Pippa, whether it be killing or dying for her.

“Yeah. I’ve had some stuff sent to the Bones MC clubhouse for you. I can’t rescue Pippa on my own and I have no idea if my own club would back me after what happened. The fallout of killin’ those bastards put Kiss of Death in a pretty bad position.”

OK, the name of his club got my attention. “Kiss of Death? Motorcycle Club in Nashville?”

Knuckles nodded. “You know of us, then?”

“Yeah. You could say that.” I had to be careful here. I had no idea how I had managed to form a strong friendship with this man over the course of fifteen years and not realized he’d had ties to Kiss of Death.

“I was vice president before I got put in here. After I went away, things went to shit. Ain’t even sure at this point if they’ll still accept my patch. Damned sure ain’t vice president anymore. So my chances of gettin’ her back on my own are pretty Goddamned slim.”

“You think I have a better shot?”

“Know you do. The new prez of Kiss of Death came from Bones. Vice president too. I can tell by the look on your face you know this.”

“Yeah. What I don’t know is why you kept your ties to them a secret from me.”

“There’s a reason I hadn’t called in that favor before now, Gunnar. I set this in motion the day I found out Torpedo had taken over Kiss of Death. It took a few months for my guy to pull it off so I used that time to gather as much information on the fuckers who took her.”

“I assume the information is in the package you sent back to Bones?”

“Yeah. Let whoever you need see it. Do whatever you have to. But get Pippa away from those bastards.”

I didn’t hesitate but stuck out my hand to Knuckles and he took it. “On my life, brother. I’ll bring Pippa home.”

“No,” he snapped. “You take her back to Bones or Kiss of Death if Torpedo and Bohannon are men you trust. But get her behind locked doors and do not let her out of your sight. If that means you take her as your old lady, then you do it. That’s the ask, Gunnar.”

It took a moment to comprehend what I’d just heard. “Me? You want me to make your daughter my old lady?”

About the Author

Marteeka Karland is an international bestselling author who leads a double life as an erotic romance author by evening and a semi-domesticated housewife by day. Known for her down and dirty MC romances, Marteeka takes pleasure in spinning tales of tenacious, protective heroes and spirited, vulnerable heroines. She staunchly advocates that every character deserves a blissful ending, even, sometimes, the villains in her narratives. Her writings are speckled with intense, raw elements resulting in page-turning delight entwined with seductive escapades leading up to gratifying conclusions that elicit a sigh from her readers.

Away from the pen, Marteeka finds joy in baking and supporting her husband with their gardening activities. The late summer season is set aside for preserving the delightful harvest that springs from their combined efforts (which is mostly his efforts, but you can count it). To stay updated with Marteeka's latest adventures and forthcoming books, make sure to visit her website. Don't forget to register for her newsletter which will pepper you with a potpourri of Teeka's beloved recipes, book suggestions, autograph events, and a plethora of interesting tidbits.

Author Contact Links

Author on Instagram & TikTok: @marteekakarland

Author on Facebook

Publisher on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok: @changelingpress

Pre-Order Today

PROMO: Love Before Covid

 

 

Dark / Drama / Thriller

Date Published: July 28, 2023

Publisher: Troubadour Books

 

“Love before Covid - A raw, philosophical dive into love’s messy reality—unflinching, dark, and unapologetically human. Unlike typical romance novels, LOVE BEFORE COVID is a dialogue-driven exploration of human flaws and ideologies, blending fiction with metaphysical inquiry. It’s not about comfort; it’s about confrontation and insight.”

 

Laced with dark humour, it is best described as traumatic (sur)realism. Love Before Covid takes the reader on a journey through the mind of Joe Pastorius - jazz fan, poet, and victim of horrendous sexual and emotional abuse at the hands of his mother.

The real-time dialogues between the characters that emerge from Joe’s unconscious come via arguably corrupted memories and dystopian dreams. They tell us more about Joe than he could ever know, and perhaps more about our world than you could ever imagine.

Dialogues entail an exploration of clashing perspectives and opinions, that cause reflection. Today though, our world has been infiltrated by online dialogues that tend to feel like wild unfiltered streams of human thought, raw, chaotic and often polarising and devoid of much reflection. Arguably that attitude, and lack of reflection is mirrored by the characters you will encounter. The reflection comes from the reader as the situations unfold. Your moral boundaries will without doubt be pushed to the limit.

You will meet an altruist who can’t stand up for himself, a charming but violent public intellectual, a beautiful dancer who hates fat people, a flirty and gregarious bartender who will do anything to get pregnant, a traumatised art historian who never wants to be a mother, a successful intellectual Mexican writer who is secretly disapproving of her childhood friend’s career as a pornstar, the teenage genius son of that pornstar who has sexual fantasises about his mother, a woman who is pressured into cutting off her penis and a successful therapist who has a habit of ruining people’s lives.

And yes, before you ask, some of the characters in this book eventually catch Covid 19. However, there is always hope. For Joe Pastorious, that comes in the form of the psychopath named Janet Waverley.

 

 

Excerpt

INTRODUCTION

 

Dear Reader,

This book is both a novel and a collection of dialogues.

The dialogues in this book are moving thought experiments. They portray elaborate, unfolding situations which, at every turn, force the reader to examine his or her philosophical intuitions about a range of topics, situations and people.

These dialogues are not merely fiction told in dialogue form. Fiction is drama that may (incidentally) comment upon or examine philosophical issues. Drama normally involves scenes in which dialogue is used to set up and advance a plot. In this book, plots are used to set up and advance the dialogues of the characters.

The dialogues in this book are something like philosophy, because the dramatic elements are merely a pretext to examine the philosophical issues raised by the situations in which the characters talk to each other. The dialogues happen in real time and are often deeply frustrating, as dialogues are in real life. Reading this book, you may feel as though you are listening in on a series of intensely private conversations.

If you heard any of these conversations in real life, you might feel as though you were being privy to a rather juicy bit of gossip. Or you might call the police. You might shed a tear. You might even masturbate (and then read some more traditional philosophy).

Like any piece of philosophy, the writing in this book is sometimes laborious. However, unlike traditional philosophy, the aim of this book is to explore, rather than resolve, a set of philosophical concerns. There are even issues raised in this book that many well-regarded philosophers find quite silly – too silly to take seriously as philosophy.

Love Before Covid is thus an attempt to invoke the gadfly spirit of Socrates in the 21st century, largely by abandoning the academic tradition he inspired. This book is expected to irritate both lovers of philosophy, as well as lovers of fiction. It may even irritate people from both sides of the 21st century’s culture wars.

The plot concerns the love life of a man called Joe Pastorious. However, this book does not tell you what to think of Joe, nor does it sing his praises by showing how much he conforms to the most cherished values of our time. Like many non-fictional people, Joe Pastorious is a complex human being. You may love him or hate him. To call him imperfect would be an understatement, but the degree to which he is likeable or loathsome is thoroughly up to you.

There are other fictional people in this book who also dialogue, but they only make appearances because of our protagonist. In some ways, they explain Joe, much more than Joe explains himself.

Joe Pastorious met his wife Janet Waverley in the autumn of 1999. Joe and Janet fell in love in a place called Leicester, which is a small city in the middle of England. Many things have been said of Leicester, but one thing that is not said enough is it is a fantastic place to fall in love. It was the perfect place for Joe and Janet to fall in love. This is true, despite the fact that Joe and Janet’s love is anything but perfect.

To truly understand the imperfect nature of this love, we must go back, not to the beginning, but to an imaginary autumn of 2002. It’s not enough to merely remember this autumn, from the vantage point of an imaginary present. We instead must adopt this moment’s perspective, seeing its events as though they were happening now.

When in the present, one can’t predict the future. Hence, the present is the best place to understand imperfect people. When people are dead and we know absolutely everything they have ever done, this creates an illusion of certainty the present thankfully wipes away. You can’t trust a corpse, because there is nothing about a corpse’s decisions that may hurt or disappoint you.

A living, breathing person is not like this. They are only capable of being truly understood, when they can be trusted. They can only be fully trusted when their future is uncertain.

Love’s power resides in the romance of this uncertainty.

About the Author

During the pandemic Dr Greg Scorzo completed his first novel ‘LOVE BEFORE COVID’ as well as producing an innovative radio play based on 6 chapters from that book, also called – LOVE BEFORE COVID. available on our YouTube Channel.  and via Audioboom with links to all major podcast platforms.

Greg says, “I was interested in the challenge of writing a novel that was formally experimental, while still being easy for a mass audience to read and understand. I love the idea of a piece of philosophy that is simultaneously a work of fiction, and a philosophical thought experiment which can function like a great, twisty roller coaster of a story that asks the reader many questions. Unlike traditional philosophy and many fashionable works of literature, this book purposefully asks questions without giving answers, encouraging readers to think (and emote) for themselves.”

Since gaining his PhD in Philosophy in 2011, Greg Scorzo has aimed to find creative and original ways to take philosophical thinking outside of academia. By using modern accessible philosophical dialogue inpublic talks, podcasts and his novel Love Before Covid, Greg explores clashing perspectives and opinions that cause reflection. Based in Leicester, he was a founding member of Culture on the Offensive and runs the podcast The ‘Art of Thinking’.

Dialogues entail an exploration of clashing perspectives and opinions that cause reflection. Statements and declarations can close minds.

The ‘Art of Thinking’ with Greg Scorzo podcast is available on YouTube where he does friendly philosophical interrogation of ideas  with many interesting thinkers. Also available via Audioboom linking to all major podcast platforms.

His extended essays on Arts and Culture as well as Cultural Issues are available on this platform www.gregscorzo.com

He has a passion and extensive knowledge of film and music.

From 2017 – 2020 Greg Scorzo was active in running over 60 engaging voluntary community sessions, centred around ‘The Art of Thinking’  The focussed on  universal philosophical themes, arts and culture and cultural issues. The ethos behind these events was to encourage the use of EMPATHY, CLARITY and COURAGE in ensuing dialogues with the audience. These were organised by COTO.

He also took up invitations to partner and run sessions at other events, including the Battle of Ideas Festival at the Barbican London, the Philosophy Now conference, Leicester Comedy Festival and  DeMontfort University’s Cultural Exchanges festival. He is always interested to partner up with other like minded people.

 

Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Blog

Goodreads

Instagram

 

Purchase Links

https://mybook.to/LoveBeforeCovid

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Kobo

Publisher

Blog Tour: Übermensch

 

Historical Fiction

Published: 1/15/2025

 

 

A murdered boy. Tortoiseshell eyeglasses. A letter written by a young man to another that reads like a lover's spat. One portable Underwood typewriter. Two confessions.

Will Babe and Manny live or die?

 

It's the early 1920s and arrogant teenagers Noah "Babe" Lieberman and Roman "Manny" Loewe have it all: money, brains, freedom. They reside in the same affluent Chicago neighborhood, come from successful, respectable families, and enjoy privileged lives. Both are intelligent prodigies who graduated high school early. But Roman, an extrovert, is handsome and popular whereas Noah is average-looking and spends most of his time with birds and books. After meeting, they embark on a wild journey of vandalism, burglary, and arson. Their personal relationship escalates, and their criminal acts morph into more sinister behavior as the two flout the laws of the "common" man and live their version of the Übermensch, or "superman" as defined by Friedrich Nietzsche.

One hundred years ago, the world was stunned to learn that Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, two wealthy, brilliant university students, had confessed to kidnapping and murdering fourteen-year-old Bobby Franks. Why did Leopold and Loeb do it? For "pure love of excitement, or the imaginary love of thrills, doing something different," they said.

 

D.L. Scarpe's Übermensch fictionalizes the Leopold and Loeb case, focusing on the reason why the gifted teenagers' lives took such an unexpected turn, destroyed three families, and captivated the country in what was dubbed at the time as the "crime of the century."

Quotes From the Book…

Man is the cruelest animal.





Is it better to out-monster the monster or to be quietly devoured?





What is the truth, but a lie agreed upon?





I know of no better life purpose than to perish in attempting the great and the impossible.





Every deep thinker is more afraid of being understood than of being misunderstood.





If these don’t/won’t work let me know and I’ll come up with something else.

About the Author

D.L. Scarpe has always had stories rattling around inside her head, locked up tight, only set free on those endless childhood nights spent swapping tales with her best friend. The story-weaving continued into adulthood–her little secret. However, raising a family; managing a household; building retaining walls, patios, or fire pits from stones (rock “jigsaw puzzles”); refinishing oak floors and furniture; or helping her husband on a roof–although she tried to pay attention when on a roof–kept her too busy for that other side of her to come out. So, it remained a secret.

But kids grow up and bodies get too tired for physical labor, and now it’s time to pursue her own passions and dreams. Working on her bucket list, she picked three things that make her happy, and she’s pursuing them all with no apologies:

Writing.

Shoes.

Tattoos.

 

Contact Links

Website

Instagram

"X"

Facebook

Threads

 

Purchase Link

Amazon

PROMO: Astral Seeds

 

 

Fantasy/Sci-Fi

Date Published: October 28, 2024

 

Astral Seeds marks the dawn of a new reckoning in Eclipse of the Celestial War, where fate is no longer a distant prophecy but a force unraveling in real time. As the Primordial Dragon stirs, its presence sends ripples through the fabric of the universe, shaking the foundations of power and trust. The Dragon Council, once the pillar of order, faces an uprising as the Keepers step from the shadows, weaving their own designs into the celestial tapestry.

Kingdoms stand at the edge of ruin, their rulers caught between survival and sacrifice. Dragon riders and Starborn witches walk the fine line between destiny and destruction, their choices shaping the course of a war far older than any of them realize. As old alliances fracture and new ones emerge from the ashes, the cosmos itself seems to hold its breath, waiting for the spark that will either reignite balance or consume everything in its path.

In a world where even the stars are not beyond corruption, the seeds of war take root in the hearts of those willing to fight for a future still unwritten.

 

Praise for Astral Seeds Eclipse of the Celestial War:

“Loved it! Astral Seeds soars with cosmic stakes, dragons, and prophecies, weaving a vibrant tapestry of epic fantasy sure to captivate dreamers.” Reedsy Discovery

 

“A fascinating fantasy world featuring a great protagonist and cosmic repercussions. Astral Seeds certainly delivers for those fantasy readers with an affinity for stars and astrology. Terra Arcana is an immersive world worth visiting.” Independent Book Review

 

"A Must-Read for Fantasy Enthusiasts" – Readers’ Favorite

 

“Astral Seeds by Jhani Mills was a captivating    fantasy book, full of action, otherworldly powers, and dragons. ” — OnlineBookClub.org

About the Author

Jhani Mills is a passionate storyteller who weaves gripping tales of fantasy, resilience, and cosmic conflict. Her works, including Whispers Where the Wildflowers Bloom and the Astral Seeds series, explore the depths of love, loss, and the enduring strength of the human (and inhuman) spirit. With a talent for crafting intricate worlds and compelling characters, she invites readers on epic journeys where fate, power, and destiny collide.

 

Contact Links

Website

Instagram

Threads

TikTok

BookBuzz

 

Purchase Link

Amazon

Blog Tour: The Woke and the Dead

 

Nostalgia City Mystery #5

Mystery

Date Published: 03-13-2025

Publisher: Archer & Clark

 

A public war between a governor and a theme park lights the fuse on a story of hate groups, murder, corruption, racism, and political espionage.

Ex-cop turned theme-park cab driver Lyle Deming finds the body of a park visitor during an LGBTQ event. The dead man catered gay weddings. Was it a hate crime?

Arizona governor Rod Gudgel, running for reelection, calls it a random shooting. He mocks Nostalgia City theme park for its inclusiveness, uses homophobic and racist slurs, and later challenges the safety of its rides.

Park CEO, “Max” Maxwell lambasts the governor’s prejudice and insensitivity, and the fight is on—in public and undercover.  Maxwell drafts Lyle to investigate the murder while Kate Sorensen, his 6’-2½” public affairs VP, goes on the offensive in the media.

When an assault rifle attack kills and injures park employees demonstrating for gay rights at a Gudgel campaign office, Nostalgia City mourns, and Kate slams the governor’s unsympathetic response to the slaughter. While the FBI and sheriff’s deputies investigate the crime, the governor redoubles his efforts to regulate the park out of business.

Looking for a shooting suspect, Lyle gets a little too close to an armed hate group—with a possible connection to the governor. His lady friend Kate flies to Montana where she digs into the governor’s unseemly past uncovering a trail of malfeasance dating back two decades and arousing Gudgel allies who want to stop her at all cost.

With Lyle’s wry humor and Kate’s stick-to-itiveness the story moves quickly as mysteries and subplots multiply and loop together threatening the park, their relationship, and their lives.

 

Excerpt

CHAPTER 43

Lyle listened to Jim Croce singing “Time in a Bottle” as he accelerated. He wanted to get to the barbecue early to make it easier to meet people as they arrived. Apparently, a handful of other guys had a similar idea.

Lyle parked in front of a broad adobe Southwest territorial style home. A gravel drive led around the side of the house and continued through heavy oak gates opened wide. Brick-bordered cactus gardens connected by narrow gravel paths circled the backyard that covered a half acre or more. In the middle, conversation groups of teak tables and chairs, shaded by umbrellas, surrounded a curving, lighted swimming pool.

At the far side of the pool, a clutch of five men in casual clothes stood talking near a fire pit. As Lyle approached, his shoes crunching on the gravel, they all looked up and the conversation ebbed. The words, “I mean it, man,” died in the air.

“C’mere Lyle.” The guy Lyle remembered as Ed, the wild Suburban driver, motioned to him.

Lyle recognized Wylie, the supervisor—and dead shot—from the shooting range. The man extended his hand.

“Lyle, I’m Wylie,” he said with his dimpled-chin smile. “We owe you a thanks for your quick thinking to help save Bobby’s life. Saved him from his own carelessness.”

“Jake and Ed helped. Took all of us to get him treated.”

“Glad you could make it here tonight,” Wiley said. “You can meet the guys and find out about us. And about our mission for the country.”

“That’s why I’m here.” Lyle studied Wylie’s face, wondering if his name was an appropriate adjective.

“We tol’ him some about CB,” Ed added.

Wylie pointed to a galvanized tub loaded with ice and beer in bottles. “Help yourself, Lyle.”

Floodlights along the edge of the house and around a ramada next to a large, smoking barbecue supplemented the setting sun. Lyle looked at the three other men in the group and introduced himself. For a moment he forgot where he was. The clink of glasses, the smell of meat searing on the grill, the light shimmering on the pool surface made him imagine a barbecue with guys who might be in the same bowling league, softball team, or Kiwanis Club. But they were hate group members, possibly killers. He tried to remember the faces.

Lyle wandered to the ice tub and helped himself. He planned to circulate and collect information—casually. His back to the fire pit, he set his beer bottle on a table. He pulled out his phone and, pretending to do something innocuous, he took several pictures of the group. Enlarged, the photos might provide decent mug shots.

“Keeping up on Instagram?” a voice behind him said.

Lyle lowered his phone and turned it off in one motion. “Hey, Jake. You just come from work?” Lyle pointed to his shirt and tie.

“Yeah, working late on specs for a new commercial development. Citizens are worried about more traffic.”

Lyle turned halfway round, looking at the grounds. “This is a beautiful place.”

“Wylie does all right. So you took the invitation to come.”

“I’m interested in the Cadre Brave and would like to know more. What are you guys concerned about?”

“I guess concerned is a good way to describe the group.”

“So help me understand. What’s wrong with the country? What does Cadre Brave want to change?” Lyle picked up his beer and held it in front of him.

“It’s like what Ed and I said the other day. We want to maintain American values. They’re slipping away. The values that our forefathers fought and died for. You think George Washington fought so drag queens could read books to students?”

Yes, exactly. He helped guarantee freedom of self expression. “Did they have drag queens then? The guys did all wear wigs.”

“Seriously, it’s what our heritage represents,” Jake said. “But today, values and priorities are shifting. Back in Washington and here.

“Look, I’m not a racist, but can’t you see how our cities, our culture, are being diluted by the mass of immigrants, illegals?

About the Author

My first three mysteries were published by Black Opal Books with my debut novel earning recommendation from the American Library Association.

I started writing mysteries after a writing career in journalism and marketing. Prior to my novels, Ether Books of the UK published a collection of my flash fiction mysteries and many of my shorts have been published in online literary magazines. During my business career I wrote two books for John Wiley and Sons, one of which was a Library Journal Best Business Book of the Year. I have an MA in journalism and a golden retriever.

I write the kind of mysteries I like to read.  I appreciate stories with twists, turns, and puzzles which appeal to the head. But I also like a mystery that appeals to the heart with a fast pace and challenges and threats that put the protagonists in peril.

 

Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter: @baconauthor

Blog

Goodreads

 

Purchase Links

Amazon

B&N 

Kobo

Apple Books

Smashwords

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway