by Paula Munier
A special shout-out to my Scribe Tribe: Susan Reynolds, Meera Lester, John K. Waters, Indi Zeleny, and Mardeene Mitchell. And to my fellow Career Authors: Hank Phillippi Ryan, Dana Isaacson, Brian Andrews, Laura DiSilverio, and Glenn Miller. My pals Michael Neff and Amy Collins provided love, support, and gin when needed (more often than I’d like to admit). And to the magnanimous and magnificent mystery writers who inspired me even as they encouraged and supported me: Lee Child, Ann Cleeves, Jane Cleland, Hallie Ephron, Joe Finder, Lisa Gardner, Kellye Garrett, Elly Griffiths, Kimberly Howe, Larry Kay, Jon Land, William Martin, Spencer Quinn/Peter Abrahams, and Julia Spencer-Fleming.
I’m lucky enough to be published by Minotaur Books, where Pit Bull Pete and a team of amazing publishing professionals have my back: Andy Martin, George Witte, Kelley Ragland, Allison Ziegler, Kayla Jones, Jonathan Bennett, Rowen Davis, David Baldeosingh Rotstein, Hannah O’Grady, Elizabeth R. Curione, and MaryAnn Johanson.
And a final grateful salute to the readers, writers, book bloggers, reviewers, and other book people who have embraced this series. I am forever in your debt.
ALSO BY PAULA MUNIER
A BORROWING OF BONES
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Paula Munier is the USA Today bestselling author of the Mercy Carr mysteries, inspired by the hero working dogs of Mission K9 Rescue, her own Newfoundland-retriever rescue, Bear, and her lifelong passion for crime fiction. The first in the series, A Borrowing of Bones, was nominated for a Mary Higgins Clark Award. She’s also the author of three popular books on writing, Plot Perfect, The Writer’s Guide to Beginnings, and Writing with Quiet Hands, as well as Happier Every Day: Simple Ways to Bring More Peace, Contentment and Joy into Your Life, and the acclaimed memoir Fixing Freddie: The True Story of a Boy, a Mom, and a Very Very Bad Beagle. She lives in New England with her family, rescue dogs Bear and Bliss, and a rescue tabby named Ursula.
Find her at www.paulamunier.com, or sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Epigraph
Opening Day
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
Acknowledgments
Also by Paula Munier
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
First published in the United States by Minotaur Books, an imprint of St. Martin’s Publishing Group
BLIND SEARCH. Copyright © 2019 by Paula Munier. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Publishing Group, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271.
www.minotaurbooks.com
Cover design by Rowen Davis and David Baldeosingh Rotstein
Cover photographs: mountains © Standret/Getty Images; woman © Majivecka/Shutterstock.com; dog (left) © Diana Badmaeva/Shutterstock.com; dog (right) © Aneta Jungerova/Shutterstock.com
The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-1-250-15305-0 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-250-15306-7 (ebook)
eISBN 9781250153067
Our ebooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by email at [email protected].
First Edition: November 2019