LITMIR.BIZ

      CAST OF CHARACTERS

      Megan Wells—A psychiatric nurse who just lost her husband, Tom. Was his death an accident or murder?

      Tom Wells—A psychiatrist at the Coastal Island Research Park who lived for his work. Did he die for it, as well?

      Clay Fox—A detective with the Savannah Police Department. He was supposed to meet Tom Wells to get inside information about the research foundation. Was the psychiatrist murdered for his mission?

      Cole Hunter—A man with a new face and no memory who has taken Tom Wells’s place at the research center. Will he take his place with his wife also?

      Dr. Davis Jones—A doctor at the foundation; he loves women, money and prestige, and will do anything to attain them. But would he commit murder?

      Dr. Warner Parnell—A brilliant doctor—is he crossing the line with his medical techniques?

      Arnold Hughes—The CEO and cofounder of the Coastal Research Park—is he really dead or has he returned with a new face and name to run the company?

      April Conway—Megan’s best friend—or is she?

      Connie Blalock—Tom’s secretary—is she as innocent as she seems?

      Daryl Boyd—A schizophrenic patient who claims strange things are happening in the psych ward—is he really as crazy as everyone thinks?

      To

      All those real-life doctors and researchers

       who strive to make the world a better place

       (this series is NOT about you!)

      and

      my husband, Lee,

       for being one of those doctors,

       and for always stopping to answer my questions

      and

       last but not least,

      Melissa Endlich

       for liking my crazy ideas instead of calling the funny farm!

      Always, Rita

      Contents

      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 One

      “Your husband is dead, Mrs. Wells.” Detective Larson sat down in the armchair across from Megan, his expression grave. “His body washed up on the shore a few hours ago.”

      Megan clutched her abdomen, the horror of finally hearing her fears confirmed seeping through her body like a slow-spreading virus. It had been six agonizing weeks since Tom had disappeared. Six weeks of not knowing.

      Nausea rose to Megan’s throat at the images that speared her. She dropped her head forward into her hands and tried to breathe.

      “I’ll get you a glass of water.”

      Megan nodded, too numb to do anything else, while the detective hurried to the kitchen.

      Behind her, Megan heard the officer opening cabinet doors, turning on the faucet, but the sounds barely registered. Seconds later, he returned and handed her the glass. Megan sipped slowly, grateful for the wetness soothing her parched throat. “Do you know what happened to him?”

      The cop’s muddy complexion paled as if he, too, had seen the grisly images that had come unbidden to Megan’s mind. Had he been there when they’d dragged her husband from the sea and actually seen Tom’s body? The ice clinked in the glass as Megan’s hands shook. She didn’t want to know the details.

      “Most likely drowned, but the coroner’s doing an autopsy.” Detective Larson shrugged. “I’m not sure how much he’ll be able to determine…”

      He let the sentence trail off and Megan clenched the glass of water as if it were a life jacket and she was being dragged into the undertow herself.

      “You said he liked to fish sometimes, to take his mind off his work. My first guess would be that he was out late, and didn’t realize how far he’d drifted off shore, got caught in the tides and fell overboard.”

      Megan’s gaze swung to his. “But Tom was an

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