I thought I would give you all an update on how things are going with my newest story (and series), Who Killed the Ghost in the Library? This will be my first full-length novel (currently 315 pages!), and I’m terribly nervous and excited about it.
I finished entering all the editing notes my beta readers/editors gave me, as well as my own notes, last night, and sent it off for the final read through. It looks like everything is still on track for an August 5th release date. That’s next Tuesday, folks!
It was suggested to me that I should share an excerpt from the story. This was followed by a discussion about what scene I should share with you. I hope you enjoy the part we picked out!
The advantage of riding in a patrol car with lights and sirens is that you get to your destination a lot faster without the fear of getting a ticket. We stopped in front of the nursing home twelve minutes later. There were three other patrol cars there, along with a couple of county sheriff’s cars. An ambulance was parked behind one of the county cars. Ignoring the wave of nausea that swept over me, I ran after Mike and Steve as they ran through the front door.
Nursing homes are like mazes, in my opinion, meant to confuse the mice so they can’t find their way to the cheese. Or in this case, to make sure that the people who lived there couldn’t find their way to the front door. We made a couple of wrong turns before we found the outdoor garden, which is in the center of the complex.
Grandma Alma was sitting in her wheelchair, being checked out by one paramedic while his partner checked out Walt, who was down on the ground. “Grandpa!” Mike said, rushing to his side.
“I’m alright,” Walt said.
He didn’t look alright. There was a bruise on his cheek, a gash on his forehead, and he looked pale. The paramedic treating him looked up at Mike. “I think he might have broken a hip.”
“What about her?” Mike said, pointing at Grandma Alma.
“Sprained wrist, nothing serious.”
Mike turned to the deputy that was standing nearby. “What happened here?”
“We got a call about an assault in progress. By the time we got here, your men were already searching for the suspect.”
His radio crackled. “Suspect in custody.”
“Have them bring him to us.”
The deputy nodded and relayed the message. “What happened, Ms. Alma?” Mike asked.
“I went back to my room to get my binoculars. Walt thought he spotted a bird’s nest in that tree over there,” she said, pointing to a nearby tree. “When I came back out, someone dressed in black was beating up your grandfather. He fell to the ground, and the person pulled out a knife and stood over him, ready to stab him. I rolled up behind him and started yelling and beating him with my cane.” She held up her cane, which was bent in half. “I might have gotten a bit carried away. Whoever it was gave up and ran off.”
“What were you thinking, Grandma?” I chided her. “You could have been killed.”
“I wasn’t about to sit by and be a helpless victim, young lady,” she said sternly. “You know me better than that!”
“She was great,” Walt said, smiling with pride.
My head started spinning again, and I sat down on the bench next to Grandma Alma’s wheelchair. “You smell like smoke,” she said, getting a good whiff of me.
“Sorry about that,” I said. “Someone tried to blow us up.”
I hope that’s grabbed your attention! You’ll just have to wait until Tuesday, August 5th to read the rest of Who Killed the Ghost in the Library?
Author Teresa Watson 