BLURB
The killer held a
knife to her throat—the ultimate decision locked within a dark and deviant gaze.
Determined and dedicated,
forensic pathologist Remie Tallin validates her talent by detailing a victim’s
last moments of life. Returning to Portland signified her new beginning where a
psychopathic stalker designates her a pawn in a seductive game of intrigue.
The
lines between predator and prey blur in hunting a medical genius bent on
resetting the laws of nature. Evidence has never failed to point Remie in the
right direction, yet conflicting discoveries mock the legal system and defy the
scientific arena for clarification.
Detective
McAllister’s return from leave includes a new assignment along with a partner well
versed in subtle sarcasm and innuendos. Discovering the new medical examiner
unconscious at the scene of a grisly murder forces him to unite with his brothers
against a world of chaos where reality shifts according to a psychopath’s
desire.
EXCERPT
“Wendy, I’m t-tellin’ you, the
man’s a serial killer. He has the body of a Greek God, but his mind is full of
squirming maggots.” Gena stifled a sob with a shaking hand, her body wedging
back against the driver’s door after twisting to face her roommate. “He’s more
depraved than any fucker we’ve ever crossed, and he’s going to find me.”
Aftereffects of adrenaline rush magnified tremors in her fingers and lips while
increasingly shallow breaths expelled carbon dioxide faster than her body could
produce it. No doubt, the by-products of dizziness, cramps, and weakness crept
into her awareness. Fear-sweat on her forehead glistened from distant flashes
of lightning.
“Hey, slow down. Take a deep
breath. You’re new to this and easily spooked. Just because men are pigs
doesn’t mean they’re murderers. Take the money he gave you and don’t see him
again. Change your number. Lay low for a bit.” Wendy startled with the
repetitive crash of thunder reverberating in the Honda’s dark and eerie
confines. “Can I at least see what’s
got your panties in a twist?” She reached for the black cloth covering her
friend’s evidence only to be pushed away.
“Oh God, Wendy. You shouldn’t have
come with me. He knows I’m a sophomore, but I didn’t tell him which college. I
don’t want him to find you.”
“Shit, Gena. I may be a student,
but I can take care of myself.” A note of uncertainty snaked through Wendy’s
voice.
From the back seat, Remie
contemplated the wind’s increasing fury, so like her own, sweeping yet erratic.
Parked along a deserted back road hours before dawn didn’t equate to a tranquil
setting when listening to accusations of murder. I should’ve brought Buckeye, even if I had to leave him in the SUV.
She’d just moved back to Portland and lacked the normal discreet channels of
investigation derived from time-developed working relationships. Not that I’ve figured out what the problem
is yet.
Small raindrops pattering the
passenger window progressed to a heavy deluge that silvered with the
dashboard’s ambient light. It was a perfect night to snuggle under a blanket
with a cup of cocoa and a scary book. Living the scenario brought the rancid
taste of bile scalding Remie’s throat.
“Girls, you know I’m a doctor, not
a cop, right? What happened to toning life down to live like normal human
beings? No more adrenaline junkie. Gena, it’s not like you need the money for
tuition. Jesus, if your parents knew what you were doing for thrills, it would
kill them both.” Years of schooling in forensic pathology aged Remie decades in
the eyes of college girls too naïve to avoid such foolish and dangerous
behavior. More than ten years difference thrust her into the role of adopted
mentor to the neighborhood wild child with crazy
tattooed on her brain.
“Jesus. I shouldn’t have involved
you either, Remie. You spent a night in the hospital last week after wrecking
your car.” Unspoken recriminations gathered around Gena like a smoldering
blanket, the flameless combustion withering her resolve.
“I’m fine. The few scrapes and
bruises have already healed.”
“It was just a few tricks for
kicks, no harm. It’s not like I don’t use condoms, and we’ve only done it a
couple times.”
“The harm is that there are real
nutjobs out there. Deranged people you do not want to meet. Trust me. I see the
results of their work every day during necropsies. It’s what I do… remember?”
Visions of Gena, cold on the autopsy table while an ME separated the upper part
of her cranium to create a removable skullcap strengthened Remie’s
determination to see the situation resolved.
“Roomie, what makes you think he
was a killer? Did he threaten you? Did you see a gun?” Wendy laid a calming
hand on her roommate’s arm. “Hell, everybody has guns these days. I’ve got
a.357 stashed in my bedside table.
Let some psycho come to my dorm looking for easy targets—he’ll get a
hollow-point surprise.”
Gena, the cute little kid from the
farm next door with wide hazel eyes and curly brown hair had grown up with a
nose for trouble, yet usually lacked affiliation with high drama. With the
start of the spring semester, the risky escapades should’ve ceased.
“While he was in the can, I picked the lock on his briefcase,
thinking he was some kind of lawyer or something.” If not for the frightened
gaze bouncing between the proof clenched
in her fingers and the nebulous woods on either side of the lonely road, Gena
could’ve been any college student recounting a risky hazing ritual. The tone
and pitch of her voice increased when she unfolded the fabric covering her
stolen treasure. “I saw syringes full of something,
along with empty containers, and these. I also found alcohol swabs and betadine
solution. Who carries betadine in a briefcase?”
“You stole from a John? Are you
crazy?” Wendy snatched the wooden box with a huff and a groan.
Detailing around the container’s
top edge included an intricate inlay bearing a darker grain. Similar designs
decorated urns. “You better hope we can return them before he notices they’re
gone. Where did you hook up?”
Wendy slid the lid back on the
six-by-six inch square. The smooth glide on concealed grooves further testament
to the boosted prize’s value. Shadows shielded the contents from Remie’s view.
Wendy’s high-pitched scream
rendered the burgeoning storm to white noise, instinctual awareness hurling the
box’s contents against the windshield. Their arc proved too fast to visually
track. Two pink lumps, small and irregularly shaped, formed the basis for a new
nightmare.
The rattle and thump of the
container ended when it landed perched on the steering wheel, upside down.
“Fuck! What the hell are those?”
First medical school, then forensic pathology, enlightened Remie to evil’s
worst-case scenarios. Her mom once said that after indoctrination, nothing new
would appear under the sun. Whoever created this mayhem transcended anything
evolved from humanity’s convoluted gene pool.
A sudden
gust of wind and rain blew in as the driver’s door flew open. Gena lurched
forward and hunched away from the torrent of slashing storm riding the invading
cool blast. Her descent into hell included a flash of silver and guttural
laugh.
BUY LINKS
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2L9Rrik
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/2NENjIY
Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/2KWDpDZ
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/2ugxShX
Amazon Box Set Link: http://amzn.to/2nBSVY7
Raffle giveaway –Reily’s Blog
BookBub: Carbon Replacements: https://bit.ly/2N9HvGx
MY REVIEW
*****
I absolutely love Reily Garrett. She is definitely one of my favorite authors.
I was first introduced to her with Tender Echoes, a prequel to the entire McAllisster series; and I think each book gets better and better as she continues to raise the stakes to terrifying new levels and to flesh out characters that readers have come to love.
Following her foray into the dark side of nanotechnology, in Carbon Replacements, Mrs. Garrett immerses the reader once again into the all too frightening dark side of science.
Following the footsteps of a killer connected to unsanctioned stem cell and bioprinting experiments, the McAllister family closes ranks as brother Billy McAllister tries to protect survivor, Medical Examier, and love interest, Remie from becoming both a human experiment and a body on her own slab!
BIO
Reily is a West Coast
girl transplanted to the opposite shore. When she’s not working with her dogs,
you can find her curled up with a book or writing her next story. Past
employment as an ICU nurse, private investigator, and work in the military
police has given her countless experiences in a host of different environments
to add a real world feel to her fiction.
Over time, and
several careers, many incidents have flavored the plots of her stories. Man’s
cruelty and ingenuity for torment and torture is boundless, not contained by an
infinite imagination. Witnessing the after-effects of a teenager mugged at
knifepoint for a pair of tennis shoes, or an elderly woman stabbed repeatedly
with a screwdriver for no apparent reason, left an indelible impression that
will forever haunt her subconscious. In counterpoint, she has observed a woman
stop her vehicle in severe, snowy weather to offer her own winter coat to a stranger, a teenager wearing a threadbare
hoodie. Life’s diversities are endless.
Though her kids
are her life, writing is Reily’s life after. The one enjoyed after the kids are
in bed or after they’re in school and the house is quiet. This is the time she
kicks back with laptop and lapdog to give her imagination free rein.
In reading, take
pleasure in a mental pause as you root for your favorite hero/heroine and bask
in their accomplishments, then share your opinions of them over a coffee with
your best friend (even if he’s four-legged). Life is short. Cherish your time.
AUTHOR LINKS
Website: http://www.reilygarrett.com/
Amazon author page: https://amzn.to/2PjxRTF
Goodreads author page
https://bit.ly/2oi7kYZ
Reily Facebook: goo.gl/Y2wbQY
Reily blog http://bit.ly/22HIwrk
@reily_garrett
https://twitter.com/reily_garrett
Reily’s
Newsletter (blog) http://bit.ly/2oGbKeC
BookBub: https://bit.ly/2mSSOap
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