Crime Times Two

by Julie Howard

  Florida, with a warm winter sun, couldn’t have been farther away at this moment. Her wretched grandmother, indifferent to her in life, surely wouldn’t solicit familial healing in death. There could be nothing good out of going to Florida.

  Still. The letter would tell her who her father was, and perhaps what shattered her mother’s life so completely. There was only so much ambiguity a person could handle.

  Meredith wavered. She’d survived twenty-five years without a father and perhaps life was best left that way. Her mother refused to tell her who he was; wouldn’t she be dishonoring her mother by learning his identity now? Choices.

  She scooped up a handful of snow and squeezed tight, compacting the soft fluff into a solid sphere of ice, and hurled it across the parking lot.

  If nothing else, she’d learned there was no escaping the past. Her disastrous marriage, baby Brian, Gemma; there was nothing to do except find a place for these things in her life and mind, and progress forward. A new confidence surged up in her. She knew now she was strong enough to handle the misfortunes and heartaches of her life. She could go to college, have a job, a house, and friends. She could choose to belong to this community, let them tear down her house and help Curtis build a new one.

  If I wanted, I could do anything. I’m a woman with grit. No one’s stopping me except me.

  Jamie was at the door behind her, her tone scolding. “Mom. Get out of the cold.”

  Meredith turned around, her decision already made. She would face the past her mother couldn’t; there was nothing so bad she couldn’t survive it. The past year proved this to her. The lawyer’s letter was dated December fifteenth. She had a month to get to Florida before he destroyed the letter and thus her last opportunity to learn about her father.

  “Let’s all get out of the cold,” she called out through the storm, already anticipating the warmth of the Florida sun. “Do you think this hardware store might sell bathing suits?”

  Jamie rolled her eyes, clearly thinking her mother had gone nuts.

  Meredith laughed as the snow coated her face and hair.

  A word about the author…

  Julie Howard is the author of the Wild Crime series. She is a former journalist and editor who has covered topics ranging from crime to cowboy poetry. She has also published a number of short stories in several literary journals. She is a member of the Idaho Writers Guild and founder of the Boise chapter of Shut Up & Write. Learn more at juliemhoward.com.

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  Also available from The Wild Rose Press, Inc. and other major retailers

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  by Julie Howard

  Meredith has been uprooted to the middle of nowhere with two kids and an abusive husband. After she fantasizes about ways to kill him, he ends up dead. Despite all the evidence pointing to her, Meredith finds an unlikely supporter and friend in the county sheriff. Together, they uncover some ugly truths about her husband and this small, isolated town. Can Meredith make this place a new home for her family, or will the real secret behind her husband’s death send her away for good?

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  As Miren struggles to get answers from scientists, history buffs, and nosy neighbors, she must face the reasons behind her fear of intimacy and commitment and reach out to others to identify a murderer...before she becomes the next victim.