Quotes from Rita Herron

God gives us all kinds, and we just gots to love 'em however they

Thankfully the rain had softened to a light drizzle, but the murky gray of the sky painted a dreary mausoleum atmosphere.

A nine-one-one operator said a trucker—he didn't think anyone was in the car, but thought we

explained what he'd found.

Loyalty to her adoptive parents warred with her need for the truth about herself. How could she know where to go in life if she didn't know where she'd come from?

Jake didn't like this turn

to stay clear of the downtown

Rays of evening sunshine glinted across the wood rails of the porch, hints of a thunderstorm flickering along the fog over the ridges. A sudden wind whipped through the trees, sending dried leaves to the ground. The sky was at war, Mother Nature caught between the chill of the dead and the wicked heat of the devil as he lingered in the foothills

The killer had challenged her. And Ellie Reeves did not back down from a challenge

Through the window the sun was shining like a beacon, nearly blinding her just as her parents lies had.

I had to protect you because you were my daughter. I had to protect Hiram because he was my blood

Something was going on here, something that wasn't right. It was almost like the killer was lobbing grenades at her with clues pointing to different suspects. Was that part of his game?

She muttered that they'd talk later, then rushed through the door, well aware reporters would hound her. Another round of the vultures stood out front of the courthouse, hungry for details. She darted to the right to avoid them. Cameras flashed as she jogged down the steps and hurried to her rental car

Ever since she was a child, she'd struggled to sleep, but now night was even more her enemy. Sometimes she didn't sleep for days on end and could barely function. Other times she slept fitfully, her nightmares filled with the horrors of her past, the cases that haunted her. Work was her salvation

Not when she was trapped inside these walls. It was a prison she'd made for herself—to keep safe. Only she didn't feel safe. Or alive.

Too afraid of dying to really live.

When the cruelty of what one human could inflict on another stopped bothering them, it would be time to quit

Ellie understood the need to run and start over. She'd felt that way a few weeks ago herself. But her ties to Crooked Creek ran deep, and she'd finally decided she couldn't run far enough to escape her past. She had to stay and face it

Chapter Twelve Ryker tried to formulate a possible scenario around the Darling girls disappearance, but there were too many missing

Ellie had seen the preacher in town, and although Mrs. Jones said the church was open to everyone, he was closed-off. Judgmental. His probing eyes held accusations of sin and damnation, not forgiveness and tolerance

Sorry son of a bitch. No wonder some people criticized small-town law enforcement

Nightmares happened when you slept, and sleep was the demon he chased at night