Memory of Murder. Ramona Richards

      

      THE SECRETS OF HER PAST COULD IMPERIL HER FUTURE

      Lindsey Presley certainly can’t imagine why anyone would want her dead—though she knows she wouldn’t be alive today if not for the local cop who saved her from two murder attempts. Deputy Jeff Gage has worked difficult cases, but with only Lindsey’s fractured memories of a broken past to guide him, this is by far his most challenging. For Lindsey, fleeing the town she has come to call home is unthinkable. Separately, they are vulnerable, but together, Jeff and Lindsey just may stand a chance of catching a ruthless killer.

      “Why is this happening?”

      Jeff touched Lindsey’s shoulder. “Get some rest. Ray will run me home, then he’ll be out here till you’re ready to go. I’ll relieve him and take you to the restaurant. You shouldn’t walk—”

      “You really don’t have to—”

      “Lindsey.” He interrupted her, then paused and let out a slow breath. “I know I didn’t take care of you tonight—”

      Without thinking, she cupped his cheek with her free hand, stopping his words. “You did all anyone could do.” The doubt in his eyes made Lindsey ache in a way she didn’t quite understand, but she knew neither of them could deal with it tonight. Slowly she eased her hand away. “I’ll see you at four.” Straightening and pulling open the screen door, Lindsey unlocked her home and reached in to turn on the light.

      Then she screamed.

      RAMONA RICHARDS

      A writer and editor since 1975, Ramona Richards has worked on staff with a number of publishers. Ramona has also freelanced with more than twenty magazine and book publishers and has won awards for both her fiction and nonfiction. She’s written everything from sales-training video scripts to book reviews, and her latest articles have appeared in Today’s Christian Woman, College Bound and Special Ed Today. She sold a story about her daughter to Chicken Soup for the Caregiver’s Soul, and Secrets of Confidence, a book of devotionals, is available from Barbour Publishing.

      In 2004 the God Allows U-Turns Foundation, in conjunction with the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association (AWSA), chose Ramona for their “Strength of Choice” award, and in 2003 AWSA nominated Ramona for Best Fiction Editor of the Year. The Evangelical Press Association presented her with an award for reporting in 2003, and in 1989 she won the Bronze Award for Best Original Dramatic Screenplay at the Houston International Film Festival. A member of the American Christian Fiction Writers and the Romance Writers of America, she has five other novels complete or in development.

      Memory of Murder

      Ramona Richards

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

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      He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

      I will say of the Lord, he is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with

      his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust:

      his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

      Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night;

      nor for the arrow that flieth by day.

      —Psalms 91:1–5

      To Sharon, who has learned to live Psalm 91:5, growing stronger every day.

      Contents

       CHAPTER ONE

       CHAPTER TWO

       CHAPTER THREE

       CHAPTER FOUR

       CHAPTER FIVE

       CHAPTER SIX

       CHAPTER SEVEN

       CHAPTER EIGHT

       CHAPTER NINE

       CHAPTER TEN

       CHAPTER ELEVEN

       CHAPTER TWELVE

       CHAPTER THIRTEEN

       CHAPTER FOURTEEN

       CHAPTER FIFTEEN

       CHAPTER SIXTEEN

       EPILOGUE

       Dear Reader

       Questions for Discussion

       Excerpt

      ONE

      Her every nerve suddenly on edge, Lindsey Presley stared at the blond man confronting Deputy Jeff Gage.

      Reaching behind her, Lindsey double-checked the lock on the front door of her restaurant, then hugged the night-deposit bag more tightly. She prayed she was wrong about the stranger. After all, he didn’t look all that different from other young people in the area. Clean-shaven, short hair, T-shirt, jeans. Barely more than a kid. Average.

      Except for that vintage orange 1968 Pontiac GTO that waited behind him, blocking Jeff’s patrol cruiser. The GTO’s front door stood open, waiting. Its motor idled with the distinctive rumble of a pampered muscle car.

      The top step of the Cape Cod–style building gave Lindsey a view of the entire parking lot. Empty, except for the three of them and the two cars. She blinked hard, distracted as the kid shook his left hand out to one side,