In
a suspense novel, the bad guys always get the short straw in publicity.
Why do they do what they do? What makes them tick? Today we're
interviewing the antagonist pulling the strings in the romantic suspense
novel, Reckless Endangerment.
Q: Who or what are you?
I'm an upstanding citizen in Denver, Colorado. I have
connections that reach far and wide. I have breakfast with the governor, lunch
with the mayor. I'm the kind of man every woman hopes her daughter would marry.
Q: What is your cause about?
I'm an entrepreneur.
Let's face it; there are some people who don't deserve a voice. They're
trash. If they're weak, then that's not my problem. My cause, as you call it, is about creating
an underworld empire where those who are deserving get whatever they want,
whenever they want it.
Q: What’s the most important thing in your life right now?
Two things are most important to me right now: money and
teaching nosy reporters their place.
Q: What do you like or dislike about the other characters
from your book?
Their goodie-two-shoes, holier than thou attitudes about the
world. Some people call them heroes, but I scoff at that. Just like morality,
everyone bends the term hero to fit their preconceived agendas. Maybe I'm a
hero in my own world, did anyone think about that?
Q: Where do you live? Describe it: Is it messy, neat,
avant-garde, sparse, etc.?
I live on an estate in a gated community to keep out the low
lives.
Q: What's the worst thing someone ever did to you?
Told me 'no'. No one
denies me. I always get what I want.
Q: What's the worst thing you've done to someone?
Again, this is a matter of perspective. What someone else
may see as 'worst thing', I see as business. I've smuggled humans across
borders and state lines, killed a few people and am currently using a six year
old as a pawn. But, really, who cares? Like I said, I'm an upstanding citizen.
I've got power...what else matters in the world?
Q: What type of places do you hang out in?
I hang out in the finest clubs with the most beautiful
women...and in the darkest of alleys with the whores. I go where I want, do what I want. It's called privilege.
Q: What annoys you more than anything else?
Weak people and busy bodies.
Q: What would be the perfect gift for you?
I'm in the market for a new jet so that would be nice. I could use one.
An excerpt of Reckless Endangerment...
She
needed to force herself to concentrate on the photographs of chained women in
front of her on the granite countertop. Her day had been nothing if not nerve
rattling between seeing Rourke murdered and enjoying oral sex with her
estranged husband.
Damn,
she craved just one thing in her life that wasn’t complicated. One thing. Was that such an impossible
task?
“I
made a call to the number we think may be Angel’s from our research into
Rourke. I can’t help but wonder how many alarms went off when we started poking
around in the guy’s background before the police were even at the crime scene
this afternoon.” Devon scooped more spinach dip onto her plate before munching
away on a chip.
“You
worry too much.”
“You
don’t worry enough.”
“Worry
is a waste of creative energy.” She grinned and looked up at Devon. “Can you
honestly believe the mayor of Denver would be involved in sex parties and human
trafficking?”
“He’s
a politician, just because he’s charming doesn’t mean he isn’t the scum of the
earth.” Devon shrugged, her eyes forever observant as she stared across the
counter. “Want to tell me about this Colonel you keep sneaking off to see this
week? What’s up with the Marine from Monday?”
“You’ve
been dying to ask me that question, haven’t you?”
“Yep,
just biding my time until you seemed relaxed.”
“And
I seem relaxed now?” She looked at her friend over the rim of her eyeglasses. “We’re
discussing human trafficking and murder and I seem relaxed? That’s a problem,
Dev.”
Outside
thunder rocked the sky. Lightening lit up the room. Late autumn snowstorms came
with lightening and thunder as if the atmosphere was confused. Yep, she was
definitely back home in the Mile High City.
“It is
what it is.” Devon shrugged. “You’re a drama-junkie so this stuff gives you a
fix. Whatever. Answer my question.”
She
folded the laptop closed and considered what Devon said. She didn’t want to be
a drama-junkie, wondered if there was a rehab for such a thing.
“Seriously? That’s how you think of me?”
“Stop
avoiding the question.” Devon closed her laptop, too. “He’s why you’re here,
right? He’s the reason you moved to Denver, bought this gigantic loft? He’s the
reason you keep dodging Jensen who’s been dying to get you into bed ever since
your plane landed at D.I.A. C’mon. ‘Fess up.”
“Seems
like you know all the answers. There is nothing left for me to confess.” She
refilled her coffee, certain that her blood had illegal caffeine content.
“You
want me to beg? I’m begging.” Devon folded her hands like a prayer and batted
her eyes. “Tell me something juicy.”
She
looked at her wedding ring and ached to blurt out the truth. What could it hurt
to tell one person? “Can you keep a secret?”
“Not
usually, but I’ll try.” Devon looked like an eager puppy about to get a new
toy.
“We’re
married. I am technically Hope Cedars.” God, she loved saying that name out
loud. “Or at least it would be technically if I file the name change papers
but—“
“Wait,
wait, wait…” Devon put her hands out in front of her. “That’s why you asked what name the Marine
asked for on Monday. How long have you been married?”
“Eleven
months and two weeks.”
Devon
stared at her as if blindsided. “Almost a year? You were married to him over
there? Isn’t that against some rule or something? How’d you do that? How have
you kept it a secret? Wasn’t that dangerous...a married Marine with his wife,
and not just any wife but a war correspondent...that can’t be legal, can it?”
“Since
when do you care about rules and legalities? Want to see a picture?”
“Do
I want to see a picture? Hell, yeah. Are you kidding me? What? A wedding
picture?” Devon stopped staring and started laughing. “You should see your face
right now. You look like...well, you look happier than I’ve ever seen you. Yes,
I want to see wedding pictures of you and your Marine.”
Feeling
like a silly teenager, she jogged barefoot into the bedroom to retrieve her
copy of the Greek pictures. Laughing, she handed them to Devon.
“Stunning,”
Devon whispered as she examined the photographs. “You all look so happy. Where
were you?”
“Mykonos,
Greece. He had a week’s leave…we were spontaneous.” She held her left hand to
show off the ring. “Isn’t it beautiful?”
Devon’s
mouth fell open as she looked between the ring and the photograph. “So you’re
going public? Why now? After so long? I can’t believe you’re married. You have
a husband. God, I’ve got to meet this guy, he must be a saint to put up with
you.”
“Over
there it would have been dangerous for anyone to know I was his wife—he worried
about me being kidnapped or killed. And then…” her smile slipped, “…it became
more complicated.”
Devon
nodded, understanding in her eyes. “I hope he knows how lucky he is.”
“Yeah,
well, we have a long way to go.” Feeling awkward, she sat back on the stool. “I
think the note refers to him—my secret and my weakness.”
Devon's
gaze locked on the wedding photo. “It’s not too secure at New Horizons. We need
to wrap up this story and have a big party. A welcome home, Colonel and Mrs.
Cedars party. An anniversary party. Two weeks from now, right? Let me plan it
for you two.”
“Let’s
take it one day at a time. Right now he doesn’t know what he wants. Maybe I
don’t either. What do I know about being anyone’s wife?”
Devon's
smile faded. "Don't let this story—"
"It's
not just this story, Dev."
"I'd
still like to meet him—I'll hold off on the party."
"Probably
a good idea." She looked at her cell phone and sighed. Time to go.
Both
lost in their individual thoughts, they left the loft and made their way to the
street where Devon had parked her car. Wind howled, thunder clapped and snow
swirled beneath street lamps. Hope shoved her hands into the pockets of her
jacket and wished she’d changed from the dress into jeans.
“City
Park in a snow storm complete with thunder. Spooky.” Devon maneuvered the car
from the curb. “Tell me about your husband.”
“Not
much to tell,” she muttered.
“Liar.
C’mon. I’ve seen his picture. Yummy.” Devon smacked her lips. “You never tell
me any of the juicy stories…and everyone knows there had to be juicy stories.”
She
tapped her finger on her iPhone and laughed. “You do know I wasn’t on vacation
over there, right?”
“Save
the bullshit for someone who doesn’t know you better. Tell me. Was the sex hot
with the Colonel?”
“Michael.”
She smiled and relaxed against the seat. “And, yes, the sex was hot. Scorching.”
“I knew
it.” Devon tossed back her head and laughed. “Tell me more.”
“He’s
the sexiest man on the planet and an arrogant jerk sometimes. He has a little
boy named Dalton. Very cute.”
“So
you’re a stepmom, too. This keeps getting better. And how is his recovery
going?”
“A conversation for another day, Dev.”
“Gotcha.
I wish I knew more about what happened to you over there.” Devon gave her a
sidelong glance. “You can confide in people, you know. You have more friends
than you think you do. Not all of us think you’re an egotistical hot shot.”
“Gee,
thanks.” She laughed and stretched her legs out in front of her. “Good to know,
Dev. Really.”
“So
he’s hot, huh? How hot?”
“Lava
hot. Molten.”
“Mm…and
why isn’t he in outpatient therapy then? I know I would want my molten, lava
hot husband living with me in my gigantic loft so I could give him some rub
downs after a long day of physical therapy.”
Both
laughed at the direction their conversation had taken.
“Rub
downs?” The idea of her hands moving over his skin again had her squirming in
her seat.
“Mm…yes,
rub downs.”
“Okay,
let’s change the subject.” She hugged her messenger bag against her chest and
tried to shake off the memory of his kiss, the feel of his hard body beneath
her hands, the sight of his head between her thighs. “So what’s in City Park,
do you think? And Fiddlesticks Tavern? That seems like a weird place for money
to be trading places for anything except a pool game.”
“It all screams trouble to me,” Devon said as
she pulled into a parking lot in City Park.
“Becky
the Downer would be very satisfied to know what I’m up to at this very minute.”
She looked at the quiet neighborhood surrounding the park. “The real question
is who is leading us around? I don’t like the anonymity. It’s getting old.”
No
other vehicles occupied the lot behind the Museum of Nature and Science where
they had been told to meet. The downtown skyline illuminated sparkled through
the falling snow.
She
tapped her fingers on her knee and stared toward the park. Even though she
couldn’t see anyone, her instincts told her to leave, chalk this one up as a
waste of time.
“There.”
Devon pointed to a man walking from the lake at the center of the park. “Looks
like he’s coming our way. Should we—”
Two
men in ski masks tapped a gun against the closed windows.
“Fuck,”
Devon said before her door was yanked open and she was hauled out against her
will.
She
froze. She couldn’t breathe.
Hands
grabbed her shoulders and dragged her from the car. The butt of a gun slammed
into her face. She fell only to be hauled back against the side of the car.
Blood trickled into her mouth. Fat spring snowflakes fell into her eyes.
“You
need to find a new job, Ms. Shane.” Hands in her hair, he twisted her neck back
until she looked at him. “Mind your own business. Don’t you have a crippled
husband to worry about? A stepson about to be taken from the only family he’s
ever known? A few nephews who love playing in Washington Park with their
babysitter? Maybe family should be your priority instead of sticking your nose
in where it doesn’t belong.”
“You
don’t scare me. No way I’m stopping now. No way.” She spit blood into his
mask-covered face. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with.”
“Neither
do you.” He wore sunglasses over the holes in the ski mask, gloves on his
hands. All black. He pressed his knee between her legs. “I can get to you any
time I want. I can do whatever I want to you.”
He
held the gun to her forehead, caressed it across her face, down her neck,
between her breasts, slipped it beneath the hemline of her skirt.
“Bastard,”
she muttered between clenched teeth. “You don’t scare me.”
Blood
trickled in front of her eyes.
“I
could kill you.” Hot breath warmed her neck where he lingered. “Or rape you. Or
both. I could do anything to you, Ms. Shane. Or should I say Mrs. Cedars?”
“My
husband could kill you with his bare hands. Remember that.”
“Delusional
and beautiful. A shame to waste all that.”
He
licked the side of her face, ripped the neckline down low, and squeezed her
breast until she cried out in pain.
"You
like that, don't you?" Hot breath licked her ear. "Pain. I think I'd
like disciplining you, teaching you some manners."
"Go.
To. Hell."
He
tossed her to the pavement, kicked her twice in her gut, and laughed when she
cried out in agony.
Then
he disappeared.
She
spit blood. Every inch of her shook. With all of the will she possessed, she
stumbled against the hood of the car. Squinting, she tried to see where they
had gone. Empty parking lot. Snow filled the footprints.
“Devon.”
She clung to the car for balance and stumbled to the driver’s side. Her friend
lay in a heap, blood staining the snow beneath her head. “No, no, Devon. C’mon
now.” She held her friend’s face in her lap and stroked her hair back. “You’ll
be okay. You’ve got to be okay.”
She
shook her head when images of Peter’s head bursting open in front of her filled
her mind. She had knelt over him, too, spitting bits of his hair from her
mouth, and pushing his skull together while machine gun fire had ripped into
the ground at her heels.
She
blinked. That was then. This was now. Devon, not Peter.
Blood
ran down her face from the gash above her eyebrow. She pressed her fingers to it and fought off
the bile that rose in her throat. Weak, almost as if she had no control of her
limbs any longer, she crawled back into the car and fumbled for her cellphone.
Her
hands shook violently. She dropped the phone twice before managing to hold it
steady enough to dial 9-1-1.
Yes, they definitely had an emergency.
Keep reading...
Coming home again isn't always easy. Colonel Michael Cedars
and reporter Hope Shane fell in love in a warzone, but then the world blew up
and splintered their lives in two.
Sometimes heroes fall and take the ones they love down with
them. A Marine accustomed to giving orders, Michael struggles to find his role
in civilian life. Wounded, he faces new battles as he learns to walk again,
struggles with wartime ghosts, and questions his abilities as a husband.
But theirs is a love worth fighting for—and Hope Shane
doesn't surrender. An investigative reporter, she's hot on the trail of a human
trafficking ring. Danger intensifies as she gets closer to the truth, but the
human traffickers know her weakness.
Will Michael become her Achilles Heel? Will her reckless
disregard for rules shatter the fragile bonds of their marriage once and for
all? Is he still the hero she married or has he become a liability that could
get them both killed?
Start reading now!
5 stars Extremely talented
By ChristopherFischerBooks
Although this book is marketed as
romantic suspense it also covers some serious issues, such as people
trafficking and post-traumatic stress disorder, adding further depth to a book
that is rich in plot and personal conflict already. Nothing prepared me for the
literary quality of this novel. Regular romance and suspense fans get more than
enough here to be satisfied by the great chemistry between the main characters
and the intriguing story lines. However, if you - like myself - want a little
bit more out of a book than you will find it in the well-handled and insightful
passages about trafficking and PSD, issues that are handled with care rather
than in an exploitative or decorative manner.
Easton clearly
cares about what she writes and it pays dividends, her book is surprisingly
impressive and certainly recommended.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gritty At Times, Realistic, With
An Immensely Satisfying Romance and Mystery
By J. Faltys. "Joder"
By the end of
Reckless Endangerment I can sum it up by saying it's
Triple-H......heartbreaking, heartwarming, and heartpounding. It's full of
likable and fully fleshed-out characters, realistically depicted issues related
to the aftermath of war, and it presented a fast-paced mystery surrounding
human trafficking that kept me on the edge of my seat. It shows that atrocities
not only occur in faraway lands but outside our front door as well. As two
people deal both mentally and physically with the hand war dealt them it's only
through love and acceptance that true healing can begin and a HEA can be fully
achieved. (Read full review: http://www.amazon.com/Reckless-Endangerment-Amber-Lea-Easton/product-reviews/0615801617/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?showViewpoints=1)
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great read
I love this
book! The author did a great job of writing a contempary novel with all the
twists and turns that make it impossible for you to put the book down!! I am
really impressed with the author's use of hard hitting problems facing today's
society and intergrating them into the story line. This is not just another
cookie cutter, predictable romance!! I highly recommend this book for all who
looking for a novel with a little something extra!
Start reading now!
6 comments:
Hot & delish. Who doesn't love a good bad boy?
I love this idea! Great job.
Love, love, love the interview with the bad guy!! Definitely sharing...
Clever and fresh! Sharing.
Clever. I was confused at first and thought: Weak people and busy bodies. Ouch! This person is one judgmental SOB. And then I went back to the top to see who it was! What trip. Nice work.
Well this guy is a piece of work. Great post and post concept. :)
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