Susan Peterson
Emergency Contact
A book in the Dead Bolt series, 2004
Dear Harlequin Intrigue Reader,
We have another month of spine-tingling romantic thrillers lined up for you-starting with the much anticipated second book in Joanna Wayne’s tantalizing miniseries duo, HIDDEN PASSIONS: FULL MOON MADNESS. In Just Before Dawn, a reclusive mountain man vows to get to the bottom of a single mother’s terrifying nightmares before darkness closes in.
Award-winning author Leigh Riker makes an exciting debut in the Harlequin Intrigue line this May with Double Take. Next, pulses race out of control in Mask of a Hunter by Sylvie Kurtz-the second installment in THE SEEKERS-when a tough operative’s cover story as doting lover to a pretty librarian threatens to blow up.
Be there from the beginning of our brand-new in-line continuity, SHOTGUN SALLYS! In this exciting trilogy, three young women friends uncover a scandal in the town of Mustang Valley, Texas, that puts their lives-and the lives of the men they love-on the line. Don’t miss Out for Justice by Susan Kearney.
To wrap up a month of can’t-miss romantic suspense, Doreen Roberts debuts in the Harlequin Intrigue line with Official Duty, the next title in our COWBOY COPS thematic promotion. It’s a double-murder investigation that forces a woman out of hiding to face her perilous past…and her pent-up feelings for the sexy sheriff who still has her heart in custody. Last but certainly not least, Emergency Contact by Susan Peterson-part of our DEAD BOLT promotion-is an edgy psychological thriller about a traumatized amnesiac who may have been brainwashed to do the unthinkable…
Enjoy all our selections this month!
Sincerely,
Denise O’Sullivan
Senior Editor,
Harlequin Intrigue
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Tess Doe (Ross)-Although unaware of her own identity, Tess knows that she can trust no one, including gentle but probing psychiatrist Ryan Donovan, called in to treat her. Instinct tells her that her enemies are closing in and she must escape before time runs out.
Ryan Donovan, M.D.-Disillusioned with clinical work, he returns to his hometown, determined to bury himself in research. But he quickly finds himself intriguingly involved with the beautiful but perplexing amnesiac who walked out of a local cornfield.
Gen. Thomas Flynn-A member of the ultraconservative organization The Patriot’s Foundation of Family Values, Flynn is a decisive, arrogant man who decides to change the political course of a country by whatever means possible.
Sidney Bloom, M.D.-A brilliant scientist who vehemently believes in the old adage The End Justifies the Means.
Ian McCaffery-A human machine bent on making sure his superior’s plans for change come to fruition.
For you, Dad.
I know we haven’t always seen eye to eye, but your
deep love, warm support and total belief in my talent
have always made me feel appreciated. I love being
one of your four daughters.
Thanks to my critique partners Chris Wenger, Linda Bleser & Tracy Rysavy. You made this all possible.
A special thanks to Patricia Otto, R.N. and Eric Lemza for their wonderful medical insights. Any medical errors are totally my fault and were done in order to make this work of fiction possible.
Chapter One
The morning Tess Doe walked naked out of the Half Moon, Iowa, cornfield, psychiatrist Ryan Donovan was three miles away, wolfing down one of Sally Todd’s homemade sugar doughnuts and sipping some of her fresh-brewed coffee.
“You want a dozen of them to go, Doc?” Sally asked, backing out of the kitchen and balancing a huge metal tray of iced apple turnovers in one hand. She set the tray onto the counter and wiped her flour-smudged hands on her apron.
“Alice will kill me if I bring any of that stuff into the office,” Ryan said, using the corner of a paper napkin to swipe at his mouth.
Shortly after meeting him, his new secretary had lamented to every other secretary on their floor that her new boss could eat like a horse and never gain an ounce. Ryan had taken it as fair warning not to bring in the usual office goodies.
“Pish-posh, the girl just needs to accept the fact that she comes from good farm stock. She needs to celebrate her largeness.”
Ryan didn’t have a response to that one. Sometimes Sally’s hometown philosophy wasn’t debatable. He had a feeling this was one of those times.
Sally grabbed a white baker’s bag off the shelf and snapped it open. Before he could stop her, she’d shoved a dozen sugar and bavarian-cream doughnuts inside and set it on the counter in front of him.
“Did you hear those helicopters overhead last night?” she asked.
“Heard something hovering overhead, but I didn’t have time to go look.” Ryan took a sip of coffee. If there was anything Sally Todd liked better than baking, it was exchanging a bit of gossip.
“When I stopped for gas this morning, Gary said he thought he saw an explosion over by the Carson farm,” Sally said. “But by the time he got there it was too dark to see anything.”
“Wonderful,” Ryan said dryly. “Now we’ll have Gary telling everyone that aliens have landed in Half Moon.”
“Don’t be making fun of poor Gary. People are a tad spooked with that research center being here.”
Ryan laughed. “Talk about small town paranoia. All we’re doing is boring pharmaceutical research.”
Before Sally could comment, her phone rang and she reached around to answer it. Ryan pulled a ten-dollar bill out of his wallet, set it on the counter, and picked up the bag of doughnuts. He nodded to Sally, prepared to head out to work. But she waved at him, signaling for him to wait.
A few seconds later, she hung up the phone. “That was the police dispatcher. She said the Chief is looking for you. Wants you to meet him out at the Carson farm.”
Ryan frowned. “Chief Cole wants to see me?”
“Yep, right away.”
Puzzled, Ryan shrugged. “Okay, I’ll head out there.”
He waved and strolled out onto the main street of Half Moon. A few cars and pickup trucks were parked along Station Street, the main drag through town. Most belonged to the store owners that occupied the not-so-bustling shopping strip that made up downtown Half Moon. No large malls or superstores in this tiny town. But Ryan figured he’d adjust. He’d have to.
Two months ago, weary from battling traffic and short-tempered city folks, he had quit his staff position at Boston’s Neuropsychiatric Hospital and returned home to Half Moon, a tiny, rural farming community. It was only luck that his old mentor, Dr. Sidney Bloom, had a position open for him at the Half Moon Research Center, a small, private facility dedicated to neuropsychiatric research.
Ryan shook his head. Who was he kidding? Crowds, traffic and a busy schedule hadn’t prompted his decision to leave. Failure had forced him to leave. There wasn’t much room for a psychiatrist who didn’t know how to function better than a first-year medical student. A psychiatrist who failed his patients.
He breathed deep, tasting the sweet warmth of summer, and raked a restless hand through his hair. Time to quit analyzing everything. Some things were better left alone. Research, not clinical work, was where he needed to concentrate his talents.
He climbed into his dusty BMW and took off out of town. Fifteen minutes later, he pulled up the winding dirt driveway leading to the Carson farm.