Happy release day, F.E. Feeley!
Still Waters is the third book in the Memoirs of the Human Wraiths series. It sounds brilliant and I can’t wait to read. Check out the fabulous excerpt below.
Blurb
Promise, Michigan is very much like every other small town across the state. Built on the edge of a lake, the homes sit in neat little rows in cute little neighborhoods. During the summer Promise bustles with tourists who come to spend their vacation dollars and enjoy the lakeโs refreshingly cold water. But Promise holds a terrible secret. In the center of the lake is an abandoned island where a curse is rumored to wait for victims, unabated and deadly. Most think itโs just a story, something used to keep kids out of trouble. Still, everyone gives it a wide berth. Everyone except Bret and Adam. They dare to venture out the night of Bretโs birthday. When they declared their love and promise to get married, they believe no one else heard their whispered wordsโbut they are wrong.
Five years later Adam dies, and Bret returns to his family to heal. But someone is killing the people of Promise in random acts of violence. Bret, with the help of FBI agent Jeff McAllister, must discover the identity of a murderer with death on his mind and revenge in his heart.
Excerpt
She loathed Adam. Loathed what Adam meant to him, who theyโd been, what they were. Bret felt the anger rise like bile in him, but he just shook his head as Kaiser nudged at his hand, feeling the tension in the room.
โWell, Iโm sure heโll turn up just fine,โ she said. โYour father will be home in a few days. You may want to get a head start finding campus housing. I mean, the fall is coming quickly, and itโll take your mind off your friend.โ
โFiancรฉ,โ Bret replied.
โExcuse me?โ she asked, her eyes narrowing.
โFiancรฉ, Mother. I am not leaving behind someone I love becauseโโ
โPlease, donโt try to dignify what the both of you do as love.โ
โOh, right. Because thatโs what you and Dad have? Tell me, when Dad had his affair withโwhat was her nameโฆ Jessica?โwas that love as well?โ Bret fired back with a smile on his lips. His motherโs lips puckered, and he watched as her fury grew.
โYou little son of a bitch, how dare youโโ she said, growing furious, but Bret put up a hand.
โTell the truth? Look, letโs just keep from jumping on the merry-go-round of knives, shall we? Stay out of my way, and Iโll stay out of yours. Deal?โ he asked.
โFine. But I will be telling your father when he gets back,โ she sniffed, putting her hands on her hips and then dropping them in outrage as Bret suddenly burst into laughter.
โOh no,โ he said, grabbing his heart. โOh, please donโt tell Daddy. What will I do with his disapproval?โ
โOh, you donโt care much about his approval, I know. Your father cheated on me because he couldnโt handle having a gay son. It disgusted him,โ she said venomously.
The statement would have hurt him if he hadnโt turned her off a long time ago. He still wanted to slap her. But instead, he decided heโd hit another way.
โMother, your husband cheated on you because when we moved here, his wife became Queen Ice Bitch of Promise Lake. That, and Jessica was twenty-three. So donโt put your Stepford bullshit on me,โ he fired back.
She took an angry step forward, and Kaiser let out a menacing growl that caused her to hesitate. However, the look of fury on her face was replaced with one of stone calm, something that scared Bret even more than their heated war of words.
She was beginning another โhow dare youโ statement, which had become common since her discovery of Bretโs sexuality, when Kaiser let out a series of very loud barks that caused them both to jump. The reflection of two lights across the kitchen wall caused Bret to turn as a car pulled into the driveway.
โKaiser, come on,โ he said, snapping his fingers.
The dog turned from the window and looked at Bret before wagging his tail and following him on his way to the stairs that led up to his room.
โWhere are you going?โ his mother demanded, and Bret turned and was about to respond when a car door slammed and a voice tore through the nightโand right into his heart.
โBret! Bret!โ The voice sobbed and broke the second time.
The tortured sound hit him like a truck. His heart skipped, and the truth he was yet to discover, the hand fate had held, was shown for the first time. Bretโs mouth went dry as his throat constricted, and he swore if he were to try to step forward, he would fall flat, but with another shout of โBret!โ he ran forward. He knew the voice, and Kaiser was hot on his heels while his mother complained about the racket they were causing.
Bret hit the door, his heart lodged in his throat and his knees trembling. Kaiser rushed between his legs to the person standing in the light of the car. Bretโs view was obscured as the beams from the headlights stole his night vision, but Kaiser knew the newcomer and got out of their way as they came into focus.
It was Timmy, Adamโs older brother, and the look on his face screamed through Bretโs body like electricity as realization dawned horribly in his mind. The cards were being laid out on the table.
โNo.โ Bret sobbed, shook his head, and brought his hand up to his mouth. As if shaking his head would somehow slay the dragon, he reached out for Timmy as his knees finally gave out on him. Timmy fell too as he gathered Bret in his arms, as Adamโs mother and father shrouded both boys in grief.
Kaiser, unsure of what was happening, raised his head toward the sky and let out his own mournful wail as they wept, their tears soaking the parched concrete driveway with the truth.
Adam wouldnโt be coming home.
Click here to see the interview F.E. Feeley gave to Because Two Men Are Better Than One.
Buy Now
Dreamspinner Press
Meetย the author
I was born and raised in the city of Detroit where I graduated from high school. Afterward, I joined the military and now am a published author at Dreamspinner Press. Married to the love of my life (John) who lets me write horror novels. I write about ghosts and things that go bump in the night. Well, the other things that go bump in the night. So, if you’re not too scared of the dark, check out my books, I’m sure you’ll like ’em.
Author links
Website
Facebook Page
Leave a Reply