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Author Insight
Classic western twists
All this pain--and SHE was the cause??
Book Excerpt
To Swallow the Earth
A girl in a long, commodious nightdress stood in front of the mirror. A brush in her hand was frozen on her shiny dark hair, which rippled to her elbows. Shock and fear registered on her face.
Wade was immobile for a second, as was the girl. As he tipped the gun barrel down, Wade stammered, “Beg pardon, ma’am. This room is registered under the name of P. Laughlin.”
The girl squinted, searching the face of this raw-boned intruder who looked as though he had been run over—and over again. Where there was still skin, three days’ worth of stubble stuck out like iron filings on a magnet. One eye and a lip were grotesquely swollen. His tousled hair held bits of saloon sawdust matted by dried blood, and a bloody sleeve dangled in shreds from his shoulder. Though her mouth was dry, her rancor finally enabled her to spit out, “And suppose it is, does that give you any right to come barging into my room?”
“Excuse me. I only want to know where I can find Pat Laughlin.”
The girl’s quizzical look turned to recognition. With asperity, she said, “I’m Pat Laughlin.”
“Pat?” Wade’s voice was a hoarse croak. He straightened, as though the air had turned cold.
“Patricia Louise Laughlin. What’s so shocking?” she asked in derision. “Is there any stigma attached to it?”
Wade’s numbed senses fumbled to grasp the situation, but the murderous urge that had driven him to this room trumped his shock. Could this woman be the brains, the cipherer behind all that had happened to him?
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