BLEEDING THROUGH

Are two stalkers better than one?

Veterinarian Rachel Goddard and her boyfriend, Deputy Sheriff Tom Bridger, are supervising a group of teens cleaning trash when they find the body of a law student reported missing months ago in northern Virginia. Shelley Beecher had been working for the Innocence Project on the case of Vance Lankford, a local musician imprisoned for murdering fellow band member Brian Hadley. Although both men have roots in rural Mason County, their families haven’t exactly bonded. The Hadleys, who’d threatened Shelley for trying to help Vance, are still tormenting Vance’s parents. Tom has his hands full handling the volatile feud while trying to hunt down a murderer. As she considers the ins and outs of Shelley’s death, Rachel gets a visit from her sister Michelle, who’s terrified by a stalker her husband is not sure exists. The two sisters, who were stolen from their birth mother years before, have yet to come to terms with their past. Rachel confirms the stalker’s reality when she gets threatening phone calls and her office is broken into. Since she once had her own problems with a stalker who’s been committed to a mental hospital, but is currently out on a family visit, she wonders if the two stalkers might be the same. When their two cases combine, Rachel and Tom face imminent danger.

Rachel’s fifth adventure (Under the Dog Star, 2011, etc.) combines nervewracking suspense with a twisty mystery.