Up the Lazy River
by
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River Bend Middle School’s bad girl needed to do her roots. … One fake eyelash needed to be reattached to her eye; everything about her was counterfeit. Her face reflected the flashing red lights from the police car. I started to get out of the car, and Gin held me back.
“Stop. Sit. Look.” Her eyes were transfixed on the blackness.
“Someone or something is out there. The shadows are turning gray; it’s moving. See, by the truck door.”
“What should I do?” I turned on the car and moved toward the truck. “There’s a person—”
Even in the dark, I could tell he was big and ugly. I yelled, “He’s jumping to the bed of the truck, and a driver is speeding away from Claire’s!”
Gin and I were in hot pursuit, as hot as an ancient Taurus could go.
Gin yelled, “Turn on the damn lights before you kill us and your dog!”
I turned on the lights, and it was then that I noticed the police car was on our tail. Patterson waved a side-to-side frantic movement. So I waved back. Gin hit me in the shoulder.
“You’re an idiot. At the end of the alley, go the opposite way of the truck; the police want to catch the truck driver, so get out of the way.” She shook her reddish once-curly hair at me and muttered obscenities. At the end of the alley, the black truck turned off its lights and dissolved into the night.
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About the Book
Science teacher Samantha Grant thinks the final step in the pursuit of her new life in picturesque River Bend will be simple. Unfortunately, she could not be more wrong. As she walks into Al Roth’s Roth Restoration Inc., to view the remodeling plans for her newly inherited home, Samantha has no idea she is about to stumble into the middle of a murder mystery.
Told that Al is out of the office by his wife, Claire, Samantha begins poring over the renovation plans. But when foreman Steve Kovacev bursts into the office to report a foul smell in a building, he asks the women to come with him to investigate. Moments later, the trio discovers the remains of Al Roth, community leader, provider of second chances to ex-convicts, and bankroller to his army buddies. When Claire hesitantly agrees to talk with the police, Samantha accompanies her for support—and immediately finds herself plunged into an investigation fueled by deception, revenge, and the kidnapping of her beloved Shih Tzu, Bo.
In this exciting murder mystery set in a sleepy town next to a gentle river, Samantha must rely on her scientific prowess to discover the truth. Now only time will tell if she will find the answers in time to save Bo and prevent another murder.
About the Author
Lea Braden, a retired English teacher from the Midwest, grew up alongside a river and began her creative storytelling at age four when she relayed her latest adventures to her Sunday school class. Lea, her husband, and their two dogs enjoy walks along the river. Up the Lazy River is the first in the Samantha Grant mystery series
.