by Toby Neal
“And an even more exciting collection.” Pietro scrolled through his social media feed on a diamond-encrusted phone. Dressed in a lavender silk suit and taupe fedora, he played the part of gay man about town flawlessly, hiding a shark-like constitution that Pim Wat found comforting—she always knew where she stood with her old friend Pietro.
The lights dimmed. The runway lit up with lines of embedded lighting and strobes encircled the ceiling. Spontaneous applause broke out as the first model strode out in that ground-eating way they affected. Pim Wat checked the rapt faces turned up to watch the progression of the model down the runway, the spin-turn, spin-turn at the end, a hand on a protruding hipbone, the outfit shimmering under the lights.
No one she needed to worry about was watching the show, at least so far. She’d do another scan before it ended. Pim Wat stowed the glasses in their case in her golden clutch purse. She sat back to enjoy the spectacle; phone ready to photograph the outfits she might want to try.
Sophie Smithson, CEO of Honolulu-based Security Solutions, gestured to the small round conference table in the corner of her office. “Welcome to Security Solutions, Dr. Ka’ula. Please have a seat.”
The headmaster of prestigious Kama’aina Schools pulled out a chair and sat. Sophie’s colleague and friend, Pierre Raveaux, seated himself as well. Raveaux, an elegant blade of a man, spoke in his accented voice. “I’m pleased Stuart thought to bring his problem to us, Sophie, after the way things went on our last case.”
Dr. Ka’ula wore a frown that seemed stitched onto his forehead in deep furrows. “Actually, it was Security Solutions’ good work finding that embezzler at the Schools, that brought me back with our current situation.”
Sophie hefted herself out of her office chair to join them, carrying her tech tablet. At almost nine months pregnant, just maneuvering from one side of the room to another was a bit of a project. She wore a simple black A-line shift that minimized her girth, but still, Dr. Ka’ula’s eyes widened as she approached. “I didn’t realize you were expecting.”
“And yet, my brain remains unimpaired.” Sophie forced a smile. Reactions to her pregnancy, especially at a male-dominated security firm, continued to irritate her. “Let’s get down to business. What can Security Solutions do to help?”
Wired Revenge, Paradise Crime Thrillers #13, will continue in 2021. Watch this page on my website for more information: tobyneal.net/WRwb
Acknowledgments
Aloha dear Readers!
I don’t know about you, but I always reach the end of one of these stories with my hair blown back and sweat on my brow, and this one was no different! Whew!
In case you wondered what my “master plan” for the Paradise Crime Thrillers with Sophie is…I haven’t a clue. That’s the honest truth.
I do try to plot these books. Mystery/thrillers are puzzles, and thus, must be planned—but I never plot past the two-thirds mark, because that’s when the characters take over, and that’s when the real fun and surprises begin.
The men and women of these stories have taken on a life of their own on the page, and feel as real to me as they do to you. Steven King says “stories already exist, like fossils, and it’s the writer’s job to exhume them” (paraphrased.) I think it’s more like we writers open a window into a very nearby alternate universe. Readers can then peek in and watch lives, loves, agonies, obsessions, griefs and ultimately, triumphs.
These characters have something to teach us, and while they do, we’re flies on the wall of their world, and grateful for the chance to escape our own.
I wanted to tie everything in this series up with a tidy bow by the end of this book, and once again, Sophie and her friends and family refused to let me do that. Pim Wat is crafty, and refused to die. Connor has made difficult choices whose repercussions are still reverberating. Frank has his daughter close once again, and is loving it. And Sophie? She’s compelled to protect that which is closest and most precious.
As always, thanks to my wonderful support team: Jamie, Don and Bonnie, and Angie, the keeper of the characters! You, and my fabulous ARC team, keep errors to a minimum in these thrill-filled books. Thanks so much!
I hope you will hang in there for more of Sophie’s journey, coming soon in Wired Revenge. Until then, I’ll be writing!
Much aloha, Toby Neal
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Toby’s Bookshelf
PARADISE CRIME SERIES
Paradise Crime Mysteries
Blood Orchids
Torch Ginger
Black Jasmine
Broken Ferns
Twisted Vine
Shattered Palms
Dark Lava
Fire Beach
Rip Tides
Bone Hook
Red Rain
Bitter Feast
Razor Rocks
Paradise Crime Mysteries Novella
Clipped Wings
Paradise Crime Mystery
Special Agent Marcella Scott
Stolen in Paradise
Paradise Crime Suspense Mysteries
Unsound
Paradise Crime Thrillers
Wired In
Wired Rogue
Wired Hard
Wired Dark
Wired Dawn
Wired Justice
Wired Secret
Wired Fear
Wired Courage
Wired Truth
Wired Ghost
Wired Strong
Wired Revenge
Coming 2021
ROMANCES
Toby Jane
The Somewhere Series
Somewhere on St. Thomas
Somewhere in the City
Somewhere in California
The Somewhere Series
Secret Billionaire Romance
Somewhere in Wine Country
Somewhere in Montana
Coming 2020
Somewhere in San Francisco
(Date TBA)
A Second Chance Hawaii Romance
Somewhere on Maui
Co-Authored Romance Thrillers
The Scorch Series
Scorch Road
Cinder Road
Smoke Road
Burnt Road
Flame Road
Smolder Road
YOUNG ADULT
Standalone
Island Fire
NONFICTION
TW Neal
Memoir
Freckled
Open Road
(Coming 2020)
About the Author
Kirkus Reviews calls Neal's writing, "persistently riveting. Masterly."
Award-winning, USA Today bestselling social worker turned author Toby Neal grew up on the island of Kaua`i in Hawaii. Neal is a mental health therapist, a career that has informed the depth and complexity of the characters in her stories. Neal's mysteries and thrillers explore the crimes and issues of Hawaii from the bottom of the ocean to the top of volcanoes. Fans call her stories, "Immersive, addicting, and the next best thing to being there."
Neal also pens romance and romantic thrillers as Toby Jane and writes memoir/nonfiction under TW Neal.
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