In the case of Field of Danger, my heroine, April Presley, is tall, athletically lithe, with a slim face and strawberry blonde hair. Daniel Rivers, my determined protector-hero is ex-military, with darker hair and a straightforward nature. After batting around descriptions with a friend of mine, we finally decided on Amanda Righetti and David Boreanaz.

Well . . . I think they’ll make a good couple . . .

—–

“I bet you and Dad talk a lot.”

“I love talking to him.” April grimaced as she noticed the use of the present tense, then chewed her lower lip and looked down at her plate.

After a moment, Daniel cleared his throat, breaking the awkwardness. “Do you want to say grace or should I?”

April hesitated, not really wanting to explain that no one in her life but Levon ever said grace anymore. She only prayed silently these days. Did she really want to admit how out of practice she was at saying even the simplest prayer out loud?

“It’s OK,” he said softly. “I know you’re worn out.” With that, he reached for her hand and bowed his head.

“Lord, thank you for this food and bless it to the nourishment of our bodies. Thank you for keeping us safe so far, and, Lord, I pray you take my father into your arms and reward him for his love for you. Please sustain us, and help us through this dark time. All this I ask in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.”

Daniel squeezed her hand but did not release it. April opened her eyes, even though they stung with tears, and looked at him. Her voice cracked in her throat as she whispered. “That was a great prayer.”

He met her gaze. “Dad taught me.”

She nodded and held tightly to his hand, which felt firm and gentle under her fingers. “We’re going to get through this. One way or another.”

“And I’m not going to let him hurt you. I promise. I promise.”

“I know.”

Then they ate, mostly in a comfortable, comforting silence. As they finished and began cleaning up the kitchen, April finally mustered the nerve to ask Daniel for a favor.

“Do you mind if we take a short side trip before going to the game?”

Curiosity lit his eyes, along with a touch of wariness. “What kind of side trip?”

“Trust me.”

This week, we talk about hats. In Field of Danger, one of the main clues is a dark red hat with a very distinctive mark on it. I specifically chose dark red as the color because those hats are everywhere in Middle Tennessee. Not only is it a major color for a number of college teams, it also shows up on a number of corporate hats.

But April also mentions “Big Orange,” which is a reference to the University of Tennessee sports teams. UT is a major cultural element in Tennessee, and when the faithful gather in Neyland Stadium for a football game in the fall, the STADIUM becomes the fifth largest “city” in Tennessee. It’s one of the largest stadiums in the nation . . . and still far too small to hold everyone who wants tickets.

Football in Tennessee isn’t so much a game as an event. They even write books about it.

————

He put his face directly in front of hers, his black eyes focused solely on hers. He cupped her face with one hand so that she couldn’t turn away. “We already suspect the killer is local. Someone we know. I don’t want you to ignore any insight you may have, any memory. But you can’t let them throw you either. Memories can’t hurt you, and I’m going to make sure the present doesn’t either. I’ll protect you.”

The soothing warmth of his palm had its intended effect, and April took a deep breath, willing her spirit to stay calm. “OK. I don’t really mean to wig out every time I remember something. And I know that every guy in town may have a red hat in his closet.”

He nodded. “At least two ball teams, two corporations . . . and anyone who’s a fan of the University of Alabama.”

“I thought this was mostly University of Tennessee country. Big Orange.”

Daniel sat back and rested one arm on the table. “Mostly. I’m sure quite a few make the trek to Neyland Stadium every fall Saturday, but there are a lot of Tide folks around. The point being . . .”

“. . . lots of red hats.”

]]> http://www.ramonarichards.com/index.php/field-of-danger-4/feed/ 0 http://www.ramonarichards.com/index.php/field-of-danger-2/ http://www.ramonarichards.com/index.php/field-of-danger-2/#comments Fri, 21 Aug 2009 20:25:23 +0000 Ramona http://www.bemispromotions.com/rr/blog/?p=327 Another Friday, another excerpt from Field of Danger. The excerpts will be short, but I hope they will be enjoyable tidbits. With each, I’ll also post a tidbit about the book itself and how I came to write it.

The book is set in Caralinda, Tennessee, in the fictional Bell County where Ray Taylor is sheriff and our Hero, Daniel Rivers is one of his deputies. Geographically, the county is located between Robertson and Sumner counties – although in reality those two counties are adjacent.

I have friends in the area, and I became fascinated with the lay of the land. Unlike some farming areas, the country here is not flat. Instead, it pitches and undulates like an endless green sea. In this photo, a tobacco barn sits in the valley of one of those waves, smoke seeping from every seam.

I knew I had to set a story here . . .

—————

Giving in, Daniel cleared his throat and turned back to Aunt Suke. “I have to take y’all to the station to take your statements. If Ray agrees, we’ll secure the house–” The radio on his belt interrupted them as Martha’s sharp drawl spat out words that made them all go pale.

“All units respond. Shots fired. I repeated, shots fired.” She rattled off the address, then added, “Get the lead out, folks. He’s got them penned down.”

April’s voice cracked, and Daniel sprang for the car, ordering her to stay with Aunt Suke. The two other officers guarding the house raced to their cruiser, ready to pull out behind him. Daniel slammed the car door, barely hearing April’s last words.

“That’s my house.”

In December, Field of Danger launches. Set in northern Middle Tennessee, Field begins what I hope is a new trio of books set in the same location with some of the same characters. The series continues in July with House of Secrets.

Every Friday, I’ll post a new excerpt from the book. If you like what you see, I hope you’ll tune back in for the next glimpse, then buy the book in December to get the rest of the tale. This one was fun to write, and I look forward to hearing people’s responses to it. I’ve already posted one clip, but this is from the very opening, and I hope it catches your attention.

More later.

——–
Chapter 1

When the shotgun went off, April Presley dropped her thermos and screamed.

Hearing her own scream scared her almost as much as the man with the gun did, and April clamped both hands over her mouth as she watched her next door neighbor, Levon Rivers, crumple in the middle of his newly plowed section of the field. Levon and his killer were almost 50 yards away, but even at that distance, April could see the blossom of red on Levon’s chest and a cold brace of fear flooded through her.

Then another screech burst around her tightly clamped hands as the killer swung around to face her, his face a blurry mask of rage. Without hesitation, he lifted the gun and fired again.

April ran.
. . . . . . . .

“I’m not hiding out somewhere, Daniel.”

He watched her closely, understanding her defiance, but also seeing the quiver in her fingertips and the uncertainty in her eyes. He reached for one of her hands, which was frigid, despite the heat of the day. He wrapped it in the warmth of both of his. “I know you want everything to just go back to the way it was. But that’s not going to happen.”

When she started to protest, he tightened his grip and kept talking. “Listen to me! No, don’t just listen. April, I need you to hear me.” Daniel took a deep breath, pressing back the grief that hovered over his heart. “You saw my father get shot. Whether or not you recognized the shooter, he obviously saw you. I don’t think he’ll just trust that the threat he left on your window will keep you quiet.”

“But I didn’t see–”

“He doesn’t know that. He doesn’t know what you’ll tell us, what kind of person you are. He doesn’t know if you’ll be terrified to speak or angry enough to tell us everything.”

Her eyes widened as the truth really began to set in. “You really do think he’ll come after me. Try to kill me.”

Daniel nodded. “I know he will. He confronted my father at the very time and place when no one should have been around. He didn’t know you’d be there with lemonade. He didn’t expect to be seen.”

April closed her eyes a moment, and pressed her other hand on top of his. Her voice was so low and hoarse that he could barely hear her over the noise of the cruiser. “I haven’t taken him lemonade in the past few weeks, since he wasn’t working the field as much. With the lack of rain, the corn hasn’t been doing well.”

She took a deep breath and opened her eyes, focusing on Daniel again. “He told me last Wednesday at church that he planned to plow under half of that field, try an experimental wheat hybrid that’s supposed to be drought resistant. I asked if it wasn’t too late to plant something new and he said he had nothing to lose.”

April’s eyes brightened, as much with anger as tears of grief. “Why wouldn’t anyone kill your father? He was the kindest man on the planet!”

Daniel’s jaw tightened. “I don’t know. But like with you and your house, this is someone who knew my father, just not everything. He knew when Dad would be in the field, but not that you carried him a thermos of lemonade every day when he was.”

“So he’s definitely local.”

Daniel didn’t like saying it, but he had to. “Yes. This is someone close, someone we may even see in church on Sunday.”

April paled even more. “You think he’ll kill me the first time he finds me alone.”

He nodded. “I think that’s a real possibility. And since it’s someone you may have seen around Caralinda, you won’t even know who to be wary of. You can’t trust anyone.”

Her lips became a fine line. “Even you.”

It was a challenge, but he met her stare squarely. “Even me.”

Polly has been gone for awhile, but now she has a new role. In my December book, Field of Danger, I give Polly a place of honor. She belongs to Aunt Suke, who is my heroine’s mentor. Below are two excerpts. The first comes as Aunt Suke volunteers her antebellum home as a safe house for the heroine. At first, the hero, Daniel, is reluctant, but Aunt Suke—and Polly—make a good case.

In the second, the guard outside the house has been pulled away on an emergency, and Aunt Suke goes into a lockdown on the house.

I hope you enjoy these samples. And a small look at a companion who was an important part of my family’s life.

——————

Silence. April looked at Daniel, who shook his head, even though he knew arguing with Aunt Suke had always been a losing battle. “No, Aunt Suke. You could be in danger as well. We can’t guarantee your safety in a house this big, this open.” He gestured around at the rolling fields that surrounded the house.

As if she understood, Polly tilted her head to look at Daniel, then Aunt Suke, whose spine stiffened. “I am in awe of only God. Humans can’t compare. I’ve not been afraid of any man since I was a nurse in Korea in 1951. If enemy artillery didn’t frighten me, a coward with a shotgun is not even in the running.”

“The sheriff won’t–”

“Ray Taylor will listen to reason even if you won’t. This big old house is safer than any old chintzy motel out on the interstate, even with you sitting in front of the door. Lots of hiding places, and that’s providing he gets in and Polly doesn’t get him. You know what she can do.”

Daniel ignored April’s questioning look at Polly. He’d leave it to Aunt Suke to explain the presence of a former K-9 unit dog in her home, one who had been retired from service after she had killed the villain who’d shot her partner. The placid-looking white shepherd had taken out a man carrying two pistols and a combat knife, walking away with only one scar on her shoulder. No one messed with Polly.

Or Aunt Suke, for that matter.

Arms on hips, Aunt Suke braced for battle, her white hair swirling in a sudden breeze. “I have Polly. I have a house with an alarm system and a lot of hiding places. I’m sure April has a cell phone. And that’s before you put a deputy in my drive.”

* * *

Aunt Suke reached for April’s elbow. “It could also be a diversionary tactic. Let’s get inside.” She spoke to the shadowing white shepherd as they reached the porch. “Rounds, Polly.”

Without missing a step, the dog turned and headed for the edge of the yard.

“Where’s she going?”

Aunt Suke guided April inside, then closed and bolted the door. “She’ll circle the yard to see if anything is out of place. Polly will sound an alert if she finds something.”

“That’s handy.”

A wry smile crossed Aunt Suke’s face as she went into the parlor, checked the locks on the windows, and released the heavy drapes from their tiebacks. The room sank into a soft, almost comforting darkness as she spoke. “I’ve lived alone a long time, girl. A smart, well-trained dog is a better investment than mutual funds.”

“What did you mean when you said, ‘You know what she can do’?”

Aunt Suke checked the lock on the front door again, then the window locks and drapes in the music room opposite the parlor. “Polly used to be part of a K-9 unit. Her human partner was shot and killed in the line of duty, and Polly responded more viciously than the dogs are trained to do.”

“She killed the shooter.

Aunt Suke paused, then nodded. “Afterwards, they couldn’t get her to reattach to another officer.”

“But she bonded with you.”

Aunt Suke returned to the foyer, and motioned for April to follow her to the kitchen. “No explaining it. Maybe it was different because I was a woman. But they brought her here for me to take a look-see, and Polly got out of the car, circled the yard once, then came to stand by my side.”

April tried to look at a few of the expensive antique furnishings that lined the way from the front parlor to the kitchen. A hallway tapestry, an ancient vase on a Queen Anne table. Aunt Suke paid them no mind. “Maybe she knew you needed her.”

The older woman stopped and turned, her eyes glinting with humor. “Maybe she did at that. Never looked at it that way.”

“At some level, we all want to be needed.”

Aunt Suke’s look turned somber as she appraised April a moment. “We do indeed. A wise statement from one so young.”

“I’m thirty-two.”

“And you won’t realize until you’re my age exactly how young thirty-two really is.”

]]> http://www.ramonarichards.com/index.php/a-new-role/feed/ 4 http://www.ramonarichards.com/index.php/mondays-devotional-a-matter-of-priorities/ http://www.ramonarichards.com/index.php/mondays-devotional-a-matter-of-priorities/#comments Mon, 08 Dec 2008 23:47:35 +0000 Ramona http://www.bemispromotions.com/rr/blog/?p=284 (Please forgive this past week’s absence. A lot has happened. I’ll explain in Wednesday’s blog entry. Now…on to today’s thoughts.)

—————-

To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 NKJV

Change is a regular part of modern life, as routine as an afternoon thunderstorm in the tropics—and often just as messy. Jobs shift or disappear. Friends move. Babies are born and husbands retire. Children graduate and marry. On top of lives already crammed to the rim with responsibilities and stress, change comes to all of us.

Only one thing in our lives never changes: God. When our world swirls and threatens to shift out of control, we can know that God is never surprised, never caught off guard by anything that happens.

Just as He guided David through dark nights and Joseph through his time in prison, God can show us a secure way through any difficulty. He can turn the roughest times to good. Just as He supported His servants in times past, He will always be with us, watching and loving.

During this season of hustle and bustle, ribbons and bows, parties and gifts, stress and anxieity, take a bit of time to close your eyes and feel His loving and secure hand on your shoulder.

Lord, help me remember your love and guidance when my life turns upside down. Grant me wisdom for the journey and a hope for the future. Amen.

——————–

Today’s Devotional is adapted from Whispers of Wisdom for Busy Women, Barbour, Day 71.

There are too many times when the only peaceful moments in the day are when the children are asleep. Tucked away at last and curled beautifully beneath the covers, their faces relax and their cares melt away. Mom’s worries, however, are not so easily set aside. Being a mother also means worrying about her children’s health, their success in school, and their wisdom in picking friends. Will they make the right choices?

Yet the Widow of Zarephath had an even sharper concern. She only had enough flour to make one more meal for her son and herself. After that, only starvation awaited them. Yet Elijah asked her to make that flour into a biscuit for him, with God’s promise that her food would never run out if she did. She chose to trust, to turn their lives over to the Lord.

Turning our children over to God and trusting Him is undoubtedly one of the hardest steps a mom can take. Yet God is ever faithful, never changing. The Lord who helped a desperate widow remains by our side today.

Father God, help us remember your steadfast love and support, and that you care for our children intimately and eternally. You will not let us fall. Amen.

—————
*Devotional from 365 Whispers of Wisdom for Single Moms (Barbour), p. 98.