I'm so pleased to announce this new release from one of my favorite authors and a fellow Suspense Sister over at our new blog. (Check us out at
http://ow.ly/eVDVv.) If you want a teeth-gritting, edge-of-your-seat read by an author with a heart for Jesus, snag this one.
A serial
killer is targeting illegal aliens in southern Texas. Texas Ranger Cody
Jackson is paired with a local police officer, Liliana
Rodriguez, to investigate the murders.
While
the case brings Cody and Liliana ever closer, the tension between
Americans and Mexican Americans heightens. As Cody and Liliana race to
discover who is behind the murders and bring peace to the area, what they
uncover isn’t what they expected. Will Cody and Liliana’s faith and love be
strong enough to survive the storm of violence?
Review
of Shattered Silence:
"The
second installment in the Texas Rangers series skillfully tackles difficult
topics (domestic abuse and bullying). The characters are easy to relate to, and
the action is intense and fast paced. The second installment in the Texas
Rangers series skillfully tackles difficult topics (domestic abuse and
bullying). The characters are easy to relate to, and the action is intense and
fast paced." 4 ½ Stars, Reviewed by Leslie L. McKee at RT Book
Reviews"
READ AN EXCERPT:
No one sees me. They walk
right by me and don’t even know I am here. I’m invisible.
But that’s all going to
change today. The woman who has agreed to marry me will be here soon. The world
will finally know someone cares about me. It was worth all my savings to bring
her across the border. I’m tired of being alone. Being nobody.
I’m getting married. I won’t
be invisible anymore—at least she’ll see me.
***
Maria
Martinez lay flat on the dust-covered wooden planks, her right eye pressed
against the hole in the floor of the abandoned house. Pedro won’t find me here. I’ll
win this time.
A
sneeze welled up in Maria, and she fought to stop it. She couldn’t. Quickly she
looked through the small opening to make sure Pedro hadn’t come and heard her.
Her older brother always thought he could do everything better than her. Not
this time. He’d never think to look here. He’d think she was too afraid to hide
here. A rattling behind her sent a shot of fear through her. She went still.
Her lungs held her breath and wouldn’t let go.
There’s no such thing as
ghosts. He just told me that to scare me. I’m not a baby. I’m eight.
Her
words fueled her courage, and she popped up to look over her shoulder. Nothing.
Just the wind blowing through the broken window. Maria sank to the floor in
relief and took up her post again. Watching through the hole. If Pedro came
into the house, she’d be ready to hide. He was not going to find her. For once,
she would have the last laugh. He was just two years older, but the way he
acted, you’d think he was Papa.
Another
sound caught her attention. Down below. Footsteps. She started to hop up and
scramble to her hiding place nearby, but a gruff, deep male voice stopped her.
Not Pedro.
Who?
With
her eye glued to the hole again, she waited to see who it was. Another voice—a
woman’s—answered the man, then she laughed. A funny laugh—like Pedro when he
made fun of her.
“Dumb.
Evil eye,” the woman taunted in Spanish.
The man
raised his voice, speaking in the same language so fast Maria had a hard time
keeping up. Mama insisted on only speaking English at home. Now she wished she
was better at Spanish. But she heard some words—the ones he slowed and
emphasized, repeating several times in a louder voice a few cuss words that got
Papa in trouble if he said them at home. The deep gruff voice ended with, “You
will pay.”
The
woman laughed again, but the sound died suddenly. “What are you doing?” she
said in Spanish.
Maria
strained to see the two people. The lady moved into her line of sight as she
stepped back, shaking her head, her long brown hair swirling in the air. Maria
glimpsed the top of a tan cowboy hat that hid the man’s face from her.
The
beautiful lady held up her hands. “No!”
The
fear in that one word chilled Maria.
Before
she could think of what to do, a gunshot, like she’d heard on TV, blasted the
quiet. The lady jerked back. She glanced down at her chest, then up, remaining
upright for a few heartbeats before crumbling to the floor.
Maria
froze. Her mind blanked.
The man
came closer to the still lady on the floor, her unseeing dark eyes staring
right at Maria, pinning her against the wooden planks. She saw the gun as he
lifted his arm and aimed it at the woman. He shot her in the stomach then the
forehead.
Maria
gasped.
The man
must have whirled away. Suddenly he wasn’t in her line of vision. She bolted to
her feet as the sound of heavy footsteps coming up the stairs echoed down the
hallway.
Terror
locked a vise about Maria and held her in place.
Then
her gaze latched onto her hiding place—one she’d found when she’d first come to
the house. She’d laughed out loud that her brother would never find her there.
Now she wasn’t so sure it was perfect.
But the
approaching footfalls prodded her into action. She had no other choice. She
clambered toward the couch as qui- etly as she could. She ripped the seat
cushion off and squeezed herself into the small place someone must have used
before. The pounding of her heartbeat in her ears drowned out the sound of his
footsteps.
The man
threw open a door at the end of the hall. The slam of it against the wall
startled Maria as she set the cushion over her like a shield a knight used in a
movie she’d seen. When he’d stormed a castle, hundreds of arrows rained down on
him. He had survived.
Could
she?
The
scent of mold and dust threatened to set off her sneezing. She held her hand
over her mouth and nose praying that would stop her from making any sound.
As the
man’s footsteps came nearer, her heartbeat reverberated against her skull,
again overriding all other sounds. Surely he could hear it. Find her.
Please, Lord, help me. Mama
said You protect children.
But not
her prayers or her fear calmed her thundering heartbeats. The racket grew
louder inside her chest and clamored in her ears. Her head spun. She uncovered
her mouth to try and breathe deeply. She couldn’t get enough air.
The
door opened, crashing against the wall. She flinched, hoping the seat cushion
hadn’t moved. Please. Please, Lord. I’ll
be good. The footsteps approached the center of the room. Lightheaded,
Maria closed her eyes as if that would hide her from the bad man. Something
scurried over her leg. Something big. A rat? The urge to flee her hiding place
robbed her of any thoughts. She curled herself into the tightest ball she could
and prayed, her chest rising and falling so rapidly. The darkness continued to
swirl behind her closed eyelids.
An
eternity passed. A brush of whiskers reinforced her fright. She tensed,
expecting any second the cushion being plucked off her hiding place or sharp
teeth sinking into her. A warm gush between her legs and the odor of pee
heightened her terror. He would smell it and . . .
I’m going to die. Mama . . .
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Margaret Daley,
an award-winning author of eighty-three books, has been married for over forty
years and is a firm believer in romance and love. When she isn’t traveling,
she’s writing love stories, often with a suspense thread and corralling her
three cats that think they rule her household. To find out more about Margaret
visit her website at http://www.margaretdaley.com.
