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CHAPTER ONE

TAILLIGHTS GLOWED red in the darkness ahead of hi the rural outskirts of Honoria, Georgia He wasn’t deliberately following the other vehicle They just happened to be headed in the same direction on the narrow, hilly road bordered by thick woods on the left and a rain-swollen river on the right

Mac had no particular destination in , delaying his return to the no-frills es to accomplish in this oddball town, and the renovation of the 1920s-era Victorian-style house he’d recently purchased was the excuse he’d use if anyone asked why he was here The real reason he was here—well, sometimes that even seemed like a mystery to him

Because it was a war in the fresh, woodsy air and the sounds of night creatures Neither lifted his mood, nor eased the frustration that he had accomplished so little since his initial visit to Honoria several weeks earlier He was no closer now to solving the ht him here than he’d been when he’d decided to pursue it

The san a steady ascent up a steep, blind hill Mac shifted in the seat of his truck All in all, it had been an unproductive day He was beginning to wonder if boredo bored

A squeal of brakes brought hihtened on the steering wheel when the taillights ahead of hiht side of the road—straight toward the river At the saht-colored van topped the hill in the center of the road, speeding, weaving,on instinct, Mac jerked his wheel to the right, pulling his truck to the side but stopping before it went over the edge The van sped past, disappearing behind him

Muttering a curse, Mac didn’t waste tiet a license-plate nue of the road The slow- with multifaceted reflections of the three-quarter one over Kicking off his shoes, he prepared to dive in

A head broke the water in front of hiasp for air, followed by what ht have been a broken cry of pain and fear Athe woain

He grabbed her ar autoht, slender His hands easily spanned her waist as he treaded water and supported her until she caught her breath It was difficult to see her features in the shadows, but he got the ier than his own thirty-three years

Reassured that she was stable, he asked urgently, “Is there anyone else in the car?”

“No I was alone” Her voice was a choked whisper “It…took et out I had my n, but…”

“It wasn’t as long as itso hard her teeth were chattering The water was cool, but not frigid Sensing that shock was about to set in, he tightened his grip on her “Can you swim? Are you injured?”

“I…I don’t know,” sheto him “I hurt, but I don’t know exactly where yet”

Because itthe circumstances, he merely nodded and wrapped an arm around her to help her toward the bank He would assess her injuries once she was safely out of the water, he decided, beginning to sith steady, rescue-trained strokes

The bank was steep,beneath his hands and feet as he helped the wo her into his arms and carry her up to the side of the road Hard shivers racked her, and he could hear her teeth chattering Da whether she was bleeding anywhere, Mac settled her on the gravel beside the road “I’ll be right back”

He dashed to his truck, water strea little protection fro his disco the lightweight jacket he’d tossed into the passenger seat earlier, he gave the eency dispatcher a clipped su up

The woman was curled into a fetal ball when he returned to her He suspected that if there was enough light, he would see that her lips were blue She wore a T-shirt and shorts, and her feet were bare She’d probably lost her shoes in the river She lay in a puddle of water, tre

“I’ve called for help,” he said, wrapping his jacket snugly around her The thin fabric seemed to make no difference at all; she seeain, and shifted her onto her back, pushing her knees upward so that her legs were higher than her head

Only y, chilled condition, he sth hair frorown accustomed to the darkness and he could make out the woman’s features Her skin was so pale it looked like porcelain in the uess

at her age—mid- to late twenties, perhaps Her hair looked dark, but it was hard to tell for certain “What’s your name?”

“Sharon” Her voice was faint, but coherent, to his relief “Sharon Henderson”

“I’m Mac Cordero”

She pulled a hand from the folds of his jacket and reached out toward him “Thank you”