Romantic Suspense
Date Published: February 28, 2017
Publisher: Limitless Publishing
Laney Pearson was shot at point blank range…
With the help of his friend and colleague, Dr. Nathan
George, Josh Stone managed to save her, giving them both a new start and a
second chance at love. But when Laney’s parents try to take their recovering
daughter back to Missouri, Josh fears he’ll lose her...possibly forever.
A mysterious stalker and Laney’s family aren’t the only ones
who want Josh and Laney apart…
Jillian Stone has struggled with her own demons, always
leaning on her brother Josh for support. When she sees him doting on Laney,
spending days on end by her hospital bed, Jillian grows increasingly jealous.
She pictures a life where Laney is gone and she and Josh can be closer...much
closer.
A familiar shadow still threatens the light…
They thought Laney’s stalker was completely erased from
their lives, arrested when he tried to kill her. But they find it wasn’t
Laney’s ex-boyfriend who tormented her for weeks on end, even if he was the one
who pulled the trigger. They are now on the lookout for the real stalker, who
becomes braver with each passing day, always in shadows, never creeping into
the light...
They fear he might be back to finish what he started...sending
Laney to an early grave.
Excerpt:
Dr.
Josh Stone stood helpless as Laney, seemingly in slow motion, fell to the
floor. The thud of her body hitting the tiles shot goose bumps through his
flesh. For a brief moment, he was paralyzed. His girlfriend, also a trauma
nurse, had been shot by the patient they had been taking care of. The sight of
the man sitting up and grabbing Officer Miller’s gun from his holster replayed
in Josh’s brain. The man pointed it at Laney and shot her several times before
anyone was able to subdue him. Now, Josh stood helplessly as she lay motionless
on the floor. How could this happen in his trauma room? Why couldn’t he protect
Laney? His knees seemed to buckle as he sank to Laney’s side, stethoscope
dangling from his neck.
Laney’s
curly blonde hair covered much of her face, but it was clear she was
unconscious. Josh gently shook her, hoping for the slightest response. There
was none. She had been shot in the chest.
Someone
shrieked. One of the ER nurses, Dinah, looked shocked, both hands covering her
mouth. She pointed to the floor. A puddle of blood oozed from under Laney. His
nose wrinkled from the metallic aroma.
Josh
fought the anger raging inside him. He wanted to make the son-of-a-bitch who
shot Laney pay for hurting her.
For
now, he had to let the cops handle it. Josh took a deep breath and struggled to
regain his composure, but failed miserably.
“My
God! Laney! How could this happen?” His face was hot. He swiped at it with his
blood-soaked hands and realized he was crying.
“Dr.
Stone! Dr. Stone!”
Josh
looked up. Dinah’s lips were moving, but her words weren’t computing. A couple
of techs and nurses eased Laney from his arms. Not only did he feel the
emptiness, but it also plagued his heart and his soul.
Josh
helped lift Laney onto a gurney. Dinah placed her hand on his shoulder. “You
need to help her. She needs you now more than ever.”
Dinah
put her cold hands on Josh’s flushed face. “Dr. Stone, I know you’re in shock,
but you need to focus. You’re the only one who can save her.”
Josh
turned his head, causing the frigid hands to fall from his face. He rubbed his
swollen eyes and surveyed the room. The devastation was beyond words. Officer
Miller had the man who shot Laney subdued in handcuffs. He lay on the table
with his disheveled hair covering his face. Someone must have sedated him
because he wasn’t moving. Equipment had been knocked over and supplies thrown
everywhere. Josh’s heart rate sped up as he cast his eyes down at the pool of
blood surrounding his feet.
“Where
is she?”
“They’ve taken her to the OR to get her prepped. You need
to get down there right now. Dr. Nessler is coming in to finish up with this
guy.”
Josh
darted out of the room with an urgency he never felt before. With each step he
took, his pace quickened until he was in a full sprint to the OR.
When
Josh arrived, the anesthesiologist already had Laney intubated and sedated and
was inserting a central line. The nurses had just finished putting in
peripheral IVs.
“Hang
two units of O positive PRBC’s. Tell the blood bank to have more on standby.
She will need them.”
“Are
you sure you want O positive and not O negative?” questioned Sandra, the OR
nurse.
“Yes!
Laney is O positive!” Josh barked.
He
rushed to Laney. He took a step back seeing her naked body lying lifeless on
the table. Blood still seeped from the bullet wounds. He took a deep breath,
steadied himself, and promptly got to work.
“Has
anyone called the cardiothoracic surgeon?”
“Yes,
he’s been called,” Sandra stated.
“Who’s
on call today?” Josh mentally crossed his fingers it was his friend Nathan.
“It’s
Dr. George. He should be here any minute.”
Josh
sighed. “Thank God. Have chest x-rays been performed?”
“Yes,
we also did a CT of her abdomen. There were two bullets that landed there. One
hit the large intestine. The other looks as though it may have grazed the
liver. There doesn’t appear to be any bleeding, so it may not have been hit. A
bullet also went through the right lower lobe of her lung. The worst of the
injuries is her heart. She took a direct hit to her left ventricle. She’s
losing a lot of blood. I have everything set up when you’re ready to go, Dr.
Stone.”
“Let’s
get her chest cracked. We can’t waste a moment. Dr. George will start to work
as soon as he gets here.”
One
of the techs handed Josh a scalpel. He made an incision straight down the
center of Laney’s chest to her abdomen. They would need the entire area to
work. Once the incision was made, the tech handed Josh the saw. He carefully
cut down the middle of the sternum. The sound of metal against bone was raw
like Josh’s emotions. It was surreal to know it was Laney.
Josh
pulled apart Laney’s sternum and held it open with a sternal retractor.
“Oh,
Jesus.”
“Dr.
Stone, what is it?” the nurse asked.
“The bullet went through her ventricle.” Oh my God, she’s
not going to make it. Josh stared at Laney’s heart losing blood at an alarming
rate. If something wasn’t done fast, she would bleed out.
About the Author:
JG Sumner is a Registered Nurse who went rogue. As
good as she was at starting IV's, she enjoys writing the down the stories in
her head even more. Most of the time the characters won't stop pestering
her until she has them down on paper.
JG can often be found with a glass of red wine or prosecco
in front of her computer. When she's not creating, she enjoys the
outdoors hiking, bike riding, snowboarding, and camping.
JG has a very dry sense of humor, and should never be taken
too seriously. She loves to hear from her fans, and even those who aren't
and would love to hear your opinion on her books.
JG writes romantic suspense/thrillers including: A Shot in
the Dark, Into the Light, The Surrender Trilogy including Surrender, Shattered,
and Saved which will be available through Limitless Publishing soon.
Contact
Information
Website: In process
Purchase Links:
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