Dying For Revenge (The Lady Doc Murders Book 1)
Page 39
“Indeed. Sláinte! I see you got my gift.”
I felt myself flush. “It’s hanging on my wall. Do you remember everything that’s said to you?”
“Writer’s curse.” He took another sip from his glass, and his face lost its humor. “I heard about the arrest. Well done, Jane Wallace. You were right.”
“That’s my job, being right.” My flip answer sounded hollow. I hastened to amend it. “It is my job. It used to be enough to be right. Not so much anymore. What an awful business.” I took another sip of wine. “I ran into Janos at St. Pat’s. Considering the circumstances, he was very kind to me.” More than I deserved, I thought.
Connor regarded me with a curious look, head cocked to the side and eyes narrowed. Then he sat himself up straighter, tilted his head back and smiled that broad, infectious smile of his. “Can’t wait to hear it. It will make a fitting ending to my new book.”
“About the murders? It’s too soon, isn’t it? Not even gone to trial. Surely you have to wait. I thought you asked me here to try to convince me to...” My voice trailed off when I realized how self-centered I was about to sound, how presumptuous.
“Oh, indeed, Jane Wallace, I did, I did indeed. Tis your story I’m going to tell next, and a great work of literature, it will be, too.”
I smiled in spite of myself as I heard his accent broaden, a sure sign of impending manipulation. For once I didn’t mind. I had a lot to sort out, about John and me, about death and life.
“Well, talking it out with you is probably as good as seeing a shrink,” I said. “And a lot cheaper.”
I was rewarded for my candor with a laugh, so genuine and deep that I saw diners turn to look for its source. I looked down, uneasy at being the center of attention. Eoin Connor just took another sip of wine.
“So it is, Woman, so it is.”
He reached across the table to pat my hand and retrieved a tape recorder from the chair to one side of us. He clicked it on and placed it in the empty place where my plate would go, if the waiter ever came. I suspected Eoin had instructed him to keep his distance at least for a while.
His voice was serious and kind and almost devoid of accent as he spoke.
“Now then, Jane Wallace. Tell me about this John of yours.”
And so I did.
If you enjoyed this novel, you might enjoy reading the second book in the Lady Doc Murders: Dying for Compassion, now available on Kindle.
Dying for Compassion by Dr. Barbara Golder (Book 2, The Lady Doc Murders)
Dying for Compassion on Amazon Kindle
Acknowledgements
This book would never have happened without the faith and assistance of so many people. So my thanks…
To Doreen Thistle, my friend and agent, for asking me to write the first chapter after seeing my Second Home Telluride columns and for coaching me through the creative process. You saw in me something I never saw in myself.
To the Corvisiero Literary Agency for taking me on and leading me through the labyrinthine world of publishing.
To Danelle McCafferty who saw the first and very rough draft of Jane’s story. Your good advice led me to see clearly what kind of book I wanted to write.
To Deacon Dennis Dorner, who helped me have the courage to go ahead and rewrite it that way and trust the results to Doreen (and God).
To my Irish priests, Msgr. Leo P. Herbert, Fr. Liam Coyne and one who wishes to remain nameless, for helping me bring Eoin to life, especially to the nameless one for Eoin’s sometimes colorful language.
To Deacon Matthew Gregory, for permitting me to pirate his name for Father Matt.
To my son Nathan for proofing the climbing aspects of the book and to Bruce Laird for taking custody of the law enforcement references. Any mistakes are mine alone. They gave me great advice.
To my daughter, Lorna, for cheering me on when things got bleak. Only another writer knows what giving birth to a book is like.
To Bertin Glennon for his insight and direction as Jane’s journey (and my own) evolved over the course of the book.
To Full Quiver Publishing for the chance to see Jane come to life in print.
To all those who read early drafts and offered suggestions. Your good humor and insights kept me going, especially my Telluride friends.
Jane finally learned what I have long known—that little box canyon is a special place.
And most of all, to Steve, who believed in me and endured late nights and a distracted and sometimes nutty wife as I worked on this book nights and weekends for such a long time. You have always believed in me. You still are not Dead John.
Dr. Barbara Golder
Lookout Mountain
January 2016
About the Author
Dr. Barbara Golder is a late literary bloomer. Although she’s always loved books (and rivals Jane in the 3-deep-on-the-shelf sweepstakes), her paying career gravitated to medicine and law. She has served as a hospital pathologist, forensic pathologist, and laboratory director. Her work in forensic pathology prompted her to get a law degree, which she put to good use as a malpractice attorney and in a boutique practice of medical law, which allowed her to be a stay-at-home mom when her children were young. She has also tried her hand at medical politics, serving as an officer in her state medical association, lobbying at a state and national level on medical issues, writing and lecturing for hire, including a memorable gig teaching nutritionists about the joys of chocolate for eight straight hours, teaching middle and high school science, and, most recently, working for a large disability insurance company from which she is now retired.
Her writing career began when she authored a handbook of forensic medicine for the local medical examiner office in 1984. Over the years she wrote extensively on law and medicine and lectured on medicolegal topics. On a lark, she entered a contest sponsored by the Telluride Times Journal and ended up with a regular humor column that memorialized the vagaries of second-home living on the Western Slope.
She currently lives on Lookout Mountain, Tennessee with two dogs, two cats and her husband of 41 years.
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