Shay always pretended to take the pills, faking swallowing, then stuffing them into her shoes when no one was looking. She hid the pills, of course, couldn’t run around and mash them, but they were safely tucked away. Who knew when she might need them? The pills, a knife from the cafeteria, a small pair of scissors from craft time and the tiny screwdriver she’d lifted off the maintenance man’s tool belt he’d laid on the floor when he’d tried to fix the cable TV. All her precious items secreted away in a makeup bag, which was taped to the bottom of a rolling cart holding Connie’s belongings.
If the contraband was ever discovered, it would look like Connie, a forty-something real whack who had kleptomaniac tendencies, had stolen it. That’s right, folks, blame it on Connie the Klepto.
All in good time, Shay thought, forcing herself to be calm. She hated being locked up, but it wouldn’t be forever, and she knew exactly what she would do once she escaped.
She had some scores to settle: Edie was on the list, along with Cooper Trent, that rodeo-riding son of a bitch. But the one she really wanted to deal with was her sister: Jules.
Shaylee’s blood boiled at the thought of her sister. She’d counted on her and Jules, true to form, had let her down, mortified her, caused her to end up here in a hospital with maniacs and morons. Jules was the reason she was here. Make no mistake.
Yes, Shaylee thought, Jules would have to pay and pay with her life.
The Taylor Swift song ended with a familiar guitar chord, then faded into an advertisement for Blue Rock Academy. Her insides went stone cold as Shay listened hard to the ridiculous mother spouting her worries about her daughter, and finally, the daughter, in a younger, cheery voice saying something inane about the school turning her life around.
“Save me,” Shay muttered, one fist clenching.
“And now, I have my daughter back,” the mother assured the listeners in a bright, confident voice.
Shay remembered the campus, the mountains, the icy waters of Lake Superstition, and all of the people who had sworn to help her. They’d all only made things worse.
Even Jules.
Especially Jules.
Idly, Shay wondered who was running the academy now.
Not that it mattered.
She was never going back.
Never!
Not even when she escaped, she thought, smiling inside, her watery reflection leering back at her in the glass, because she knew that her escape would happen very, very soon …
Dear Reader,
I hope you enjoyed Without Mercy! I loved writing this book. From the moment I heard an advertisement for a school for troubled teens on the radio, I knew I had to come up with a story about just such an academy. I imagined all kinds of trouble that could brew within the school’s honored but rotting walls. Since writing the book, I have even imagined going back to the same setting, resurrecting the school along with some of its more memorable students and faculty. Maybe. Someday.
For now, I’ve got some other books in the works and they’ll soon be available. In May of 2018, my sister Nancy Bush and I have a new book on the shelves. One Last Breath is a new thriller and this is a stand-alone book, not part of the Wicked series. We came up with new characters and an interesting plot that blends a runaway-bride story with a twisted murder mystery. The book is a fun ride. Nancy and I wrote separate portions of the book and wove them together. We spent many hours walking or driving and talking about our characters, the setting, and plot. The book starts off with a bang. Literally. At the wedding of Rory Abernathy and Liam Bastian, all hell breaks out. Not only is the wedding party assaulted by a sniper, but the bride fends off a would-be assassin and literally runs for her life to disappear … or so she hopes in this love story/thriller. I think you’ll like One Last Breath!
Then in July, Liar, Liar, my next stand-alone thriller, will be available. This one’s a little different for me. Set in Las Vegas and Northern California, the story starts with the suicide of a flamboyant Marilyn Monroe impersonator who never quite made it to the big time. The thing is, the impersonator vanished years earlier after “selling” one of her twin babies to the child’s father, a shady character himself, but pulling a switcheroo in the process. The father got the child he didn’t want in the swap and possibly died in the desert. Now, upon what appears to be the death of DiDi Storm, the impersonator, it’s up to her daughter, Remmi, to ferret out the truth and find her missing half-sibling if the child survived the gruesome explosion. She must also keep her own secrets of her past well hidden while avoiding Noah Scott, the boy she once loved and who is tied inextricably to the tragedy of the past. Liar, Liar is a thrill ride and I loved writing it.
Also, this summer, You Will Pay, my best-selling hardcover from last year, will be available as a paperback. This is the story of a dead body being discovered on the shores of the ocean near Cape Horseshoe, where years ago a counselor at a camp disappeared. Now it seems as if her remains—or someone else’s—have been found and everyone who had been at the camp that summer is forced to return to unbury their secrets, face the ghosts of the past, and try to stay alive. Who knows the truth? Does the missing camper’s ghost still haunt the dunes over the Pacific? Who terrorized the camp long ago, and is the killer back? Check out You Will Pay.
For those of you who are waiting for the next installment of the Grizzly Falls series featuring Detectives Regan Pescoli and Selena Alvarez, look for Willing to Die, coming in 2019. Also, there will be another book in the New Orleans series. That’s right: The boys— Detectives Montoya and Bentz—will be back in late 2019.
For more info on these stories and others, check out www.lisa jackson.com or visit my Facebook and Twitter pages. Join the party!
Thanks!
Lisa
Please turn the page
for a very special Q&A
with Lisa Jackson!
How did you come up with the idea for Without Mercy?