Secret Relations, page 30
part #3 of Finn O'Brien Series
The dog rewarded Josie with a sniff and a lick against her cheek. It took five minutes to finish the routine: working clothes gone, sweats and t-shirt on, and her mail checked. Faye had dropped off the partnership papers before leaving for San Diego and a visit with her new grandson. The tile man had piled a ton of Spanish pavers near the backdoor for Josie to lay at her leisure. The house of her dreams – a California bungalow on the Strand – was being renovated at a snail's pace, but Josie was determined to do the work herself. She would make her own home; a place where no one invited in would ever want to leave.
In the kitchen, Josie checked out a nearly empty fridge as she dialed Archer. It was late, but if he were home it wouldn't take much to convince him that he needed to feed her. Josie was punching the final digits of Archer's number when Max rubbed up against her leg, wuffing and pointing his graying snout toward the front door. Josie looked over her shoulder and patted his head, but Max woofed again. She was just about to murmur her assurances when the house seemed to rock. Snarling, Max fell back on his haunches. Josie let out a shout. Someone had thrown themselves against the front door, and whoever was out there wanted in bad. The new door was solid, the deadbolt impossible to break, but the sound scared the shit out of her. The doorknob jiggled frantically for a second before everything fell quiet – everything except Josie's heart and Max's guttural growl.
Bending down, Josie buried one hand in the fur and folds of his head. With the other she picked up the claw hammer from the tool pile. Standing, she smiled at Max. His eyebrows undulated, silently asking if everything was all right now. For an instant Josie thought it might be, until whoever was out there flew at the door with both fists.
"Damn." Josie jumped. Max fell back again, snapping and barking.
Clutching the hammer, Josie sidestepped to the door. She slipped two fingers under the curtain covering the narrow side-window and pulled the fabric back a half an inch. A woman twirled near the hedge. Her head whipped from side to side as she looked for a way into the house. Her white slacks fit like a second skin, and her chiffon blouse crisscrossed over an impressive chest. A butter colored belt draped over her slim hips. Her come-fuck-me sandals had crepe-thin soles and heels as high as a wedding cake. This wasn't a Hermosa Beach babe and Josie had two choices: call the cops or find out what kind of trouble this woman was in. No contest. Josie flipped the lock and threw open the door.
The woman froze; trembling as if surprised to find someone had actually answered. She started forward and raised her hand, took a misstep and crumpled. Instinctively, Josie reached for her. The hammer fell to the floor as the woman clutched at Josie's arm.
"You're here," she breathed.
Close up now, Josie saw her more clearly. The dark hair was longer than she remembered. The heart-shaped face was still perfect save for the tiny scar on the corner of her wide lips. Those long fingered hands that held Josie were as strong as they'd always been. But it was the high arch of the woman's eyebrows and her small, exquisitely green eyes that did more than prick Josie's memory; they shot an arrow clear through it. It had been almost twenty years since Josie had seen those eyes, and the face that looked like a heroine from some Russian revolutionary epic.
"Linda? Linda Sheraton?"
"Oh, God, Josie, please help me."
* * *
<<<>>>
* * *
Get HOSTILE WITNESS now!
* * *
OR
* * *
SIGN UP
FOR MY MAILING LIST
* * *
GET MY 2-BOOK STARTER LIBRARY FREE!
* * *
HOSTILE WITNESS
Book #1 of my best selling The Witness Series
HANNAH’S DIARY
A Spotlight Novella written for my subscribers
* * *
Because you can never have too many books.
Books by Rebecca Forster
THE WITNESS SERIES
* * *
HOSTILE WITNESS Book #1
A prominent judge is brutally murdered. The accused killer is a 16-year-old girl with shocking secrets. Josie Bates takes her case, a decision that will change both their lives forever.
* * *
HANNAH'S DIARY
A Spotlight Novella gift for subscribers
Unsure of where she belongs and what the future holds, Hannah strikes out on her own only to find that dreams can become nightmares and the road home is treacherous.
* * *
SILENT WITNESS Book #2
Josie Bates is blindsided when Archer is accused of murder. Reluctant to come clean about his stepson's suspicious death years ago, Josie finds her faith tested as she defends the man she loves.
* * *
PRIVILEGED WITNESS Book #3
The beautiful wife of a senate candidate falls to her death, his disturbed sister is accused and a critical election is at risk. Josie Bates must face her ex-lover to fight for justice in a world corrupted by lies, power, and abuse.
* * *
EXPERT WITNESS Book #4
When Josie Bates disappears without a trace, Hannah and Archer must pull together to connect the dots between the woman they love, the ruthless attorney she used to be, and all the people who want her gone for good.
* * *
EYEWITNESS Book #5
Three people are massacred in a California beach house; a latchkey kid Josie cares about is accused. The justice she seeks is brutal, barbaric and buried in a blood- soaked past half a world away.
* * *
FORGOTTEN WITNESS Book #6
A madman's ramblings put Josie Bates on the road to finding the teenage runaway she loves. But Josie's journey puts her on a collision course with the United States government that wants to keep the truth secret at any cost.
* * *
DARK WITNESS Book #7
In a remote wilderness, in an unforgiving land, Hannah's life hangs in the balance. To save her, Josie Bates invokes the fierce, primal law that she knows the girl's captors will understand: survival of the fittest.
* * *
FINN O’BRIEN CRIME THRILLERS
* * *
SEVERED RELATIONS Book #1
Two children and their nanny are slaughtered in the home of a rich young attorney and his beautiful wife. Detective Finn O'Brien follows a trail of bodies and shattered relationships that ends with a choice that is both personal and deadly.
* * *
FOREIGN RELATIONS Book #2
When a foreign woman hurtles to her death from a freeway overpass in L.A., Finn O'Brien discovers that she is not what she seems. More than one person wanted her dead, two countries want her forgotten and Finn wants to know why.
* * *
SECRET RELATIONS Book #3
They're illegal. They're undocumented. They're disappearing. To catch a serial killer, Finn O'Brien dives into a shadowy world where life is cheap – even his own.
* * *
MORE THRILLING READS
* * *
BEFORE HER EYES
A mountain grocer is executed and a fading model is missing. Sheriff Dove Connelly embarks on an investigation that drags him into a twilight world where nothing is at it seems, life and death hang in a delicate balance, and his very thoughts could tip the scales toward hell.
* * *
THE MENTOR
When home-grown terrorists bomb an IRS building, fledgling U.S. Attorney Lauren Kingsley looks to her mentor to guide her through a prosecution fraught with peril. Little does she know that those closest to her are the most dangerous people of all.
* * *
BEYOND MALICE
When beautiful, arrogant Nora Royce is accused of murder, her sister, Amanda Cross, is the only one willing to defend her. Outgunned and outmanned, Amanda peels away the layers of entitlement and political protection surrounding L.A.'s legal elites to uncover a truth that could end Amanda's career and both their lives.
* * *
KEEPING COUNSEL
Attorney Tara Linley takes on her best friend's lover as a client and gets more than she bargained for. A killer smile and smooth talking ways can't hide this psychopath's insanity as he pushes the boundaries of client privilege, sexual desire and the limits of friendship.
* * *
CHARACTER WITNESS
(NOT a Josie Bates novel)
Kathleen Cotter, junior partner at a past-its-prime Beverly Hills law firm gets a doozy of a first case. A dead man's ex-wife says its murder; the insurance company says suicide. Kathleen thinks everyone is nuts until she uncovers a trail of lies and corruption that threaten to make her first case her last.
About the Author
Rebecca Forster started writing on a crazy dare. Now she is a USA Today and Amazon best selling author with over 35 novels to her name. She is married to a superior court judge and is the mother of two grown sons. Her thrillers are inspired by real life court and crime drama both in the U.S. and abroad. It's easy to stay in touch with Rebecca and she always writes back.
* * *
http://rebeccaforster.com/
Rebecca Forster, Secret Relations
