The Iron Ring

by Matty Dalrymple

  “We can wait,” said Olivia Riva, sitting back in the chair and resting her laced fingers in her lap.

  “Well, I can’t sit around here while you straighten up this mess with mixed-up contracts,” said Ellerbach. “You take care of it,” he said, directing the comment to Grimwood but not meeting his eyes. He stalked out of the room.

  Grimwood stood. “If you’ll excuse me.”

  And as he headed for the door—hoping that Travis had perhaps not deleted all of the earlier versions—he couldn’t help but notice the smile that Philip Riva and Elizabeth Owen exchanged.

  Acknowledgments

  Many thanks to all the people who generously shared their expertise and advice on various aspects of the story, including Sergeant Rodger Ollis of the Coatesville Police Department; Wade Rogers, PhD, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine; Linda R. Liotti D.O. (a.k.a. Linda Rawlins); David L. Fried, MD, FACP; Sergeant Tim Klarkowski, Public Information Officer of the Surprise, AZ, Police Department; Jonathan P. Thompson (RiverOfLostSouls.com); KB Inglee; Robert Blake Whitehill; and Daavid Kahn.

  Thanks to Jen Blood for taking another of my novels on its shakedown cruise.

  Thanks once again to Mary Dalrymple for continuing her role as early reader, and for her unflagging enthusiasm about my authorial endeavors.

  And, as always, thanks to my partner in crime, Wade Walton, for his tireless support and encouragement.

  Any deviations from strict accuracy—intentional or unintentional—are solely the responsibility of the author.

  Also by Matty Dalrymple

  The Lizzy Ballard Thrillers

  Rock Paper Scissors (Book 1)

  Snakes and Ladders (Book 2)

  The Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels

  The Sense of Death (Book 1)

  The Sense of Reckoning (Book 2)

  The Ann Kinnear Suspense Shorts

  All Deaths Endure

  Close These Eyes

  May Violets Spring

  Write in Water

  About the Author

  Matty Dalrymple is the author of the Ann Kinnear Suspense Novels The Sense of Death and The Sense of Reckoning, the Ann Kinnear Suspense Shorts, including Close These Eyes and May Violets Spring, and the Lizzy Ballard Thrillers Rock Paper Scissors, Snakes and Ladders, and The Iron Ring. Matty lives with her husband, Wade Walton, and their dogs in Chester County, Pennsylvania, which is the setting for much of the action in The Sense of Death and Rock Paper Scissors. They enjoy vacationing on Mt. Desert Island, Maine, where The Sense of Reckoning takes place, and Sedona, Arizona, the setting for much of Snakes and Ladders and The Iron Ring.

  Matty is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, and the Brandywine Valley Writers Group.