From the Heart: Romance, Mystery and Suspense a collection for everyone
Page 44
She sipped her coffee and watched the man she’d feared for most her life. The man who controlled the highway of drugs flowing down the West Coast across the country with deep ties into South America. And no one on Las Seta grew any marijuana or did anything sketchy without Lance Silver’s okay. And as she sipped her coffee and glanced at Lance, she wondered for a moment what she’d opened the door to.
“Granny and Sally would never allow you anywhere near me. I’ve seen your closed gates and have walked by here when I knew you were gone. But no, I’ve never been past the gates. Heard about it, though. It’s lovely.” She glanced around the warm and expensive room, staring at the rich oil paintings on the dark paneled walls that surely cost more than she’d see in a lifetime. This grand mansion that had turned the reclusive, off the grid island of Las Seta upside down when Lance built it. She smiled warmly at the man who appeared genuine, honorable. But then, so could a snake just before it struck. “And thank you for… helping me.”
Lance held up the flat of his hand to stop her, “No, Marcie; no need for thanks. I’m happy to help you. Anytime you need anything, you call me.”
She set her hot mug down on the oval table beside her. And for the life of her, couldn’t decide whether she’d just sold her soul to the devil. “So what about the threat to Richard, will you be able to help him? I mean Sam and Diane haven’t been able to find Jane Carter, Sandra’s sister… and we know she made the fake call to set Richard up. It’s as if she dropped off the face of the Earth.”
Lance smiled and folded his hands in his lap. “Jane was found. And what you may not know since you’ve been here for a few hours waiting patiently, the charges against Richard were dropped. And your Maggie will no longer be bothered by any further investigation by Children’s Services into her suitability as a mother. What a horrible, horrible thing to have been done to her after losing her daughter the way she did.” Lance shook his head.
She nodded as a lump tightened in her throat. She couldn’t imagine the power this man before her had with politicians, state officials, and of course, the drug underworld. He knew what everyone was up to. Where they hid, what they were doing. And one call from him could make or break a man. Or so she thought.
“Your Sam doesn’t know you’re here?”
She glanced at her hands, afraid of what showed in her eyes. “No, he doesn’t. I should be going. Sam will be wondering where I am.” Marcie stood up. So did Lance, and he gazed at her in a way that appeared caring in some odd, familiar way. She held out her hand. He took it and kissed the back of her hand before holding it between both his hands.
“Stay for lunch.”
She pulled her hand away. “I can’t.” She hurried out of the study and found her way to the kitchen where Lance’s housekeeper Nellie was cuddling Kyla.
“Thank you for watching her.” Marcie reached for Kyla and cradled her in her arms.
“Oh, she is such a good baby.” The small overweight housekeeper touched Kyla on the arm. “Goodbye Miss Kyla, you come back and see me.”
She turned to leave, and Lance Silver stood in the large archway watching her.
“Yes Marcie, please come back again. I’ll walk you out.”
And he did. Right behind her, holding the front door open for her and standing on the wide stone porch, watching as she drove away.
“Sir, shall I have one of my guys keep an eye on her and Mr. Carre?”
Lance Silver never turned his head to the large balding man who handled all his business affairs. “No, keep the men away from her,” he instructed. “Did Mr. White pose a problem?”
“No sir, he did just as you ordered.”
Lance Silver watched the trail of dust that disappeared with Marcie outside the gate. “I’ll be seeing you again soon, Marcie.”
Chapter Fifty-eight
“Push harder.” The two men on the large wooden raft pushed toward shore as the sun peeked over the horizon. “You know, man, there are easier ways to get to South America.”
“Just keep moving. Is that the village up ahead?”
“We must be careful coming into Columbia this way. Keep your papers with you, Señor.” The shorter Mexican used his oars to move the raft to shore.
The tall American jumped into the shallow water wearing his dark shorts and sandals and pulled the raft the rest of the way to the rocky shore.
In the early morning dawn, the orange and yellow colors flashed as the sun peeked over the horizon. The red-haired man with the light beard from several unshaven days, grabbed his knapsack and tossed it over his shoulder.
“This village have any women?”
“Sí, Señor Dan, lots of pretty single girls. They’ll love a tall good-looking American like you.”
###
Afterword
Thank you so much for reading From the Heart, a collection including three of my all-time favorites, The Forgotten Child, The Gift, and Lost And Found.
If you enjoyed this box set then I’d love to ask you a favor and have you go back to Amazon and provide review. Indie Authors live and die by their reviews, so to all of you who take the extra time to offer a review, I appreciate it so much.
Although this book and all my books have been edited and proofed, editors, proofreaders and I are all human. If you spot a typo, please email me at lorhainne@lorhainneeckhart.com and let me know. Also, I would like to thank everyone who has emailed and told all their family and friends about my books. And if you’d like to know more about my other books please scroll to the next section or visit my website at www.LorhainneEckhart.com
If you’d like to sign up for my newsletter, I promise to not flood you with emails, but I will notify you of all new releases and special promotions.
All the best,
Lorhainne Eckhart
Other Works by Lorhainne Eckhart
What’s next in Finding Love ~ The Outsider Series?
A Baby And A Wedding
Fallen Hero
The Search
The Awakening
Or Grab the box set with all four stories:
The Perfect box set for the western romance fan including A Baby And A Wedding (a short story following The Forgotten Child Brad & Emily’s wedding), Fallen Hero, The Search and The Awakening ~ A western romance box set collection of dramatic romance stories of The Friessen men and the women they love.
To download a sample or purchase Finding Love ~ THE OUTSIDER SERIES, simply click here.
SECRETS – the next book in Finding Love ~ The Outsider Series
“Jed always told me he’d take care of everything. And I believed him, I trusted him, I loved him.”
To download a sample or purchase SECRETS, simply click here.
RUNAWAY
Finding Love~THE OUTSIDER SERIES
“Where’s my wife…” Andy Friessen has been looking for Laura for six months. After she walked out with her son, no goodbye, with no money and leaving everything he bought her, behind. But he knew she’d come crawling back, she needed him. After all he married her to protect her. And any woman would give their right arm to be his wife.
And then for six months his conscience poked at what an ass he’d been: Until he’s served…for divorce.
Even though Andy is the first man she’s every truly loved, and the first to break her heart, Laura plans to never see him again. After all to him she was nothing but a nuisance, someone he could order around, just another woman to warm his bed at night. But Laura is hurt and she’s thought nothing through including the fact she’s keeping the biggest surprise from him yet.
She’s pregnant.
And when Andy finds out … all hell will break loose.
To download a sample or purchase Runaway simply click here.
Walk the Right Road Series
The Choice, Book 1
The Choice, the first book in Walk the Right Road Series:
One Woman…
Two Men…
And a choice that could kill her…
/> Praise for The Choice…
Mystery, romance, and age-old evil collide in this spellbinding thriller, THE CHOICE
“From the Pacific Northwest to New Orleans, with its rich Cajun heritage, dialect, food…and voodoo, comes this spellbinder from Ms Eckhart. From drugs to the DEA, all combines into a masterful book of suspense…you cannot put down, or look away from.”
Elysabeth Fasland
It is Oh So Sexy and intriguing. It pulls you right in, I can’t stop reading, and when I’m not reading, I start to think about the novel”
Behind a Million and One Pages ~Reviewer
To download a sample or purchase The Choice, simply click here.
Merkaba, Walk the Right Road Series #3
Everyone thought he was dead and that’s exactly how he needs it to stay. But the mysterious dark haired beauty has secrets of her own and could ultimately be his undoing.
To download a sample or purchase Merkaba, simply click here.
About the Author
2012 was an amazing year in the publishing world for me, and it started with The Forgotten Child, which landed on the Amazon bestseller list for western romance and romance series. 2013 has seen me posted in the top 100 authors on Amazon for romantic suspense, mystery/thrillers, and police procedural.
Where did it all begin? In 2008, I published my first novel, The Captain’s Lady, a contemporary military romance, through The Wild Rose Press. I’ve since received the rights back from my publisher and I rewrote the book and republished it with a brand new title, SAVED.
I write edgy romantic suspense (Walk the Right Road Series), western romance (Finding Love ~ The Outsider Series), and young adult mystery, and I warn my readers to expect the unexpected. I’m a mother of three children and we live on a small Island in the Pacific Northwest. I encourage you to contact me by email; I do answer every email I receive.
Stay tuned. There is more to come from the Walk the Right Road Series and Finding Love ~ The Outsider Series, as well as a brand new western romance series coming later this fall, THE ONE.
And to my readers and all of you who have shared my stories with your family and friends, a big heartfelt thank you.
Informational Blog Posts on Autism from Blog - The Choice of Giving
Autism is not a social problem
What if your child were diagnosed with Autism?
How do you tell a parent there is something wrong with their child?
Profiting off the back of the special needs
The Forgotten Siblings of Special Needs Children
Why are autistic children no included in community programs?
When you suspect your child has Autism
Autism in Public Schools
How does a child with FAS (Fetal Alcohol Syndrome) get diagnosed with Autism?
How does Autism affect Families
A Blog list of popular posts for families affected by Autism
Contact Information
Lorhainne Eckhart loves to hear from readers!
Contact at:
Email:Lorhainne@LorhainneEckhart.com
Twitter: @LEckhart
Facebook: LorhainneEckhart
Blog: The Choice of Giving
Blog: Illusions
Lorhainne Eckhart Author Website
Copyright
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.
From the Heart ~ COPYRIGHT 2013 © Lorhainne Ekelund
All Rights Reserved
Kindle Edition
Contact Information: Lorhainne@LorhainneEckhart.com
Cover Art by Steven Novak
Editors: Talia Leduc, WildAboutBones, Robert Reed
Table of Contents
Book Cover
Main Menu
About the Author
Other Works by Lorhainne Eckhart
Finding Love~ The Outsider Series
The Forgotten Child
A Baby and A Wedding - Getting married and having a baby … for Emily and Brad everything was perfect, or so they thought until an unexpected surprise threatens to derail their happy day.
Fallen Hero – A young lawyer returns for justice, but finds love instead.
The Search (Short Story) – When her husband goes missing she’s forced to call the one man she shouldn’t.
The Awakening – Can a sexy rancher restore a young woman’s hope?
Secrets – “Jed always told me he’d take care of everything. And I believed him, I trusted him, I loved him.”
Runaway – Andy’s in for a big surprise when he finds his runaway wife.
The Unexpected Storm – He can have any woman, except the one he wants.
Walk the Right Road Series
The Choice - …One woman. Two men. And a choice that could kill her.
Lost and Found – From Romance Junkies “Lost and Found is one the best romantic suspense books I’ve read this year!”
Merkaba – Walk the Right Road Series - . Everyone thought he was dead and that’s exactly how he needs it to stay. But the mysterious dark haired beauty has secrets of her own and could ultimately be his undoing.
Bounty – Some pasts are best forgotten.
Military Romantic Suspense
Saved – A Passionate Tale of Love during the Iraq War.
Young Adult Suspense
The Gift: A 10,000 + word short story - A devastating plane crash and a father’s only hope are the dreams connecting him with his son.
A Father’s Love (Illustrated Children’s Short Story) – Two children struggle to survive when trapped by an angry mother bear.
Box Sets:
Finding Love ~ The Outsider Series
Walk the Right Road Series ~ Danger Deception Devotion
From the Heart
Contact Information
Copyright Information
The Forgotten Child
Chapters:
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
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty-seven
Chapter Twenty-eight
Chapter Twenty-nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-one
Chapter Thirty-two
Chapter Thirty-three
Chapter Thirty-four
Chapter Thirty-five
Chapter Thirty-six
Chapter Thirty-seven
Chapter Thirty-eight
Chapter Thirty-nine
Chapter Forty
&nb
sp; Chapter Forty-one
Chapter Forty-two
Chapter Forty-three
Chapter Forty-four
Chapter Forty-five
Chapter Forty-six
The Gift
Chapters:
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
Lost And Found
Chapters:
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve