Simone O'Henley, recuperating at a remote lakefront cottage after a devastating heart break, finds anything but rest. The noises and moans she hears coming out of a nearby grove of trees terrify her, but are soon tempered by the company of handsome Jackson Taylor. The locals have never heard of him and are convinced he's a land developer ready to snatch up their land at the first opportunity. He convinces Simone he's a simple caretaker looking over land for a friend. Which is he? The suspense leading to the answers almost causes Simone to lose her mind, but in the end true love ends all her questions.
From the Author
I enjoyed writing this book because it is based on a real life Confederate Prison Camp in Ohio. Southern Officers were kept on a small island in Lake Erie to keep them from escaping. Many of them died on the island and are buried there to this day. It broke my heart they never got to go back home to the states they were fighting for. The Daughtetrs of the Confederacy erected a statue of a southern soldier gazing southward. They maintain the graves and surrounding grounds. An interesting, rather forgotten piece of Civil War history.
Excerpt:
She sat on the edge of the bed and wondered what to do. Vinnie, who lay on his stomach in front of the door, raised his head and let out a low, guttural growl every couple minutes. “What is it, boy?” His head cocked, he sniffed at the crack below the door. Did she hear footsteps in the hallway? The cottage was old and the hardwood floors creaked when walked upon. In the next second, she heard the telltale sounds. Someone was in the hallway. There was no doubt. Vinnie stood, backed up and whined as he circled about. Her adrenaline kicked in overtime, but she knew she couldn’t flee. She was trapped, a cornered animal. She grabbed the phone, dialed 911 and listened to it ring over and over. Frantic, she hung up and tried again, but no one picked up on the other end. Just continuous ringing. “This can’t be.” She stared at it upset. “There’s always someone to pick up a 911 call.” She tried one more time, but found it futile. The sound of the footsteps stopped at her door and she couldn’t breathe. She stared at the handle and stood, terrified. The only sound, Vinnie’s low growl followed by his high pitch whine, didn’t help thesituation. Time inched by. Someone stood on the other side of her door, simply stood there directly opposite her. She could feel it. She heard faint breaths and what she feared the most happened. The knob of the door moved. A tiny click, then the minutest movement, hardly noticeable, shook the handle. She broke out in a cold sweat. I’m imagining all this. I’m in a new place and my mind is playing tricks on me like…like before with the mist. It jiggled again and then stopped. Silence. She tried to lick her lips, but her dry mouth made it impossible. When she thought it stopped, a horrific bang hit the door above her head and she jumped back. It sounded like the person on the other side took their fist and walloped hard in frustrated anger. Ready to lose her mind, she heard the sound of quickly retreating footsteps. Vinnie heard them, too, and his growl and constant whine quieted. She didn’t hear any doors open or close, but she knew, she sensed whoever was in the cottage was now gone. Her blood ran through her veins colder than ice water and she rubbed her hands together trying desperately to get warmth back into them. A deep sigh instantly came out and she sat on the bed for what felt like hours, but was only minutes.
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