Read Before She Dies (Slaughter Creek) for Free Online

edge of the mountain. The car barreled over the embankment and tumbled down the rocky incline, slamming into the rocks below with such force that Norma flew forward.
    The next minute the world went dark.
    Sometime later, Norma stirred, dazed and confused, her body aching. She tasted blood then panicked when she saw blood tricking down Ben’s cheek. His leg looked crooked, his face pale. She shook his arm, terrified he was dead.
    “Ben…honey, are you all right?”
    He opened one eye. The other was black and blue, swelling shut. A piece of shattered glass was stuck in his thigh, blood soaking his pants.
    “Yes, are you?”
    “I think so,” she whispered as she glanced through the window at the brush and trees where they’d landed.
    Ben pulled her into his arms. “It’ll be okay,” he whispered. “Someone will find us.”
    Tears blurred her vision. She wanted to believe him, but they were way off the road. “If we don’t make it – ”
“Shh,” Ben said as he stroked her arm. “We will make it. We just found each other again.”
    She nodded, her throat thick as she rested her head against his chest. “You’re right. We have to. The girls need us,” Norma said holding onto him tight.
    Although worry mushroomed inside her as the snow continued to fall.
    If they didn’t make it, the girls would be alone.
    No, her parents would take care of them. And Sadie was tenacious; when she got older she’d figure out what was wrong with her twin sister.
    The world was spinning again, but Ben kissed her. A tender, sweet kiss that promised they would be always be together.
    And she knew they would.
    She just prayed someone rescued them soon.
    Then they would find out what was happening to the children in Slaughter Creek…

    Watch for DYING TO TELL ,
    the first exciting installment in the
    Slaughter Creek series, December 25 , 2012
    from Amazon Montlake!
    ISBN: 978-1469276601

Afterword

    Thank you so much for reading BEFORE SHE DIES. I hope this short prequel whets your appetite for my new romantic suspense series set in the fictitious, small rural Tennessee town of SLAUGHTER CREEK.
    Book one DYING TO TELL picks up twenty-five years later with Sadie and Amelia, and is a dark romantic suspense thriller set around a mysterious sanitarium nestled in the mountains.

    If you enjoyed this story, do me a favor and post a review on www.Amazon.com.
    Thanks so much!

DYING TO TELL

    Sadie Nettleton fled Slaughter Creek ten years ago, leaving behind the only home she’d ever known — and the only man she ever loved. Sadie knew Jake Blackwood could never forgive her if he discovered her terrible secret, so she ran and never looked back. But when her grandfather is murdered, and her mentally ill twin sister charged with the crime, Sadie has no choice but to return and face the ghosts of her past…
    For Sheriff Jake Blackwood, time has not dimmed the love he felt for Sadie Nettleton — or the pain of her leaving. But now that she’s back, he’s determined to help her uncover the truth about her grandfather’s death. As their investigation leads them deeper into a world of secrets, lies, and betrayal in Slaughter Creek, Sadie becomes the target of a madman who will do anything to keep the truth buried. Jake would give his life to protect Sadie. But can he again risk giving her his heart?

And here’s a sneak peek at the beginning of
    DYING TO TELL…

    Prologue

    From the moment I decided to kill him, I began to feel relief.
    It had to be done. There was no other way to escape.
    No turning back.
    He had led me to the secret room so many times. He’d taken my soul and left me empty inside.
    Ting. Ting. Ting.
    The chimes began to ring. Crying. Shrill, grating sounds like a knife scraping bone.
    No, he shouted.
    Crying wasn’t allowed.
    I heard the tears anyway. Silent streams of pain. Pleas for help. Prayers to die.
    But no one came.
    Were the screams just in my mind? Or were they real?
    It didn’t matter.
    I had to save