Lucas heaved a heavy sigh. There just wasn’t an easy way to break news like this. “It turns out that Roy was Zakia’s stalker.”

“Roy? My Roy? No! There must be some mistake,” she said, pulling away from him. “He wouldn’t do such a thing!” She jumped to her feet and paced the room, her agitation plain to see.

“Winnie, they caught him red-handed. He’s been arrested, and they’re holding him in the Calgary jail to await a preliminary hearing.”

“In jail? I must go to him!” Winnie rushed from the room, Lucas on her heels.

He grabbed her arm to still her forward momentum, the action turning her into his arms.

“Let me go! I need to see Roy.” Tears streaked down her cheeks as she pounded furiously on his chest, but he held tight.

“Shhh! Calm down. He’s not allowed visitors yet. If you want to see him, I can drive you up later.”

“Why Roy? Why are they picking on my boy? He’s been doing so good. He couldn’t have done this.” She collapsed against him and sobbed hysterically.

He eased them back toward the living room and sat on the sofa, pulling her down on his lap to comfort her as best he could. He’d never been much good around crying females. It made him feel helpless in the face of their distress, and he didn’t like feeling that way at all. Not one little whistling bit.

Suddenly, she sat up straight, swiping a hand across her eyes to brush away the tears. “A lawyer! Lucas, we have to get him a good lawyer.”

“Like hell we will! He got himself into this mess, and I’m not about to be the one to bail him out of it,” Lucas thundered.

“But he’s innocent! He has to be! He wouldn’t hurt anyone. Please, Lucas!”

“Nope. He terrorized my family, and I won’t lift a finger to help him.”

Angrily, she stood and faced him. “Roy’s your family, too. You became his step-daddy when we married.”

“Maybe so, but I’ve drawn the line.” Tiredly, he rose to his feet. He didn’t want to hurt her but this emotional outpouring for her no-good scum of a son was wearing on his nerves. “He used us—used family ties to ride along with the round-up. He intended to hurt Luke and his family, and he came damned close to succeedin’. I know this is difficult for you, honey, but you have to realize what’s at stake here.”

“Roy’s life is at stake here! I can’t just sit and do nothing. I’m going up there. I need to hear his side of things.”

“Fine, I’ll take you.”

“No, I don’t think so. You’ve made your position quite plain. I’ll drive myself and get to the bottom of this. They’ve made a mistake, I tell you. A huge mistake.” She turned on her heel, went through to the kitchen, grabbed her purse and car keys then paused at the door. “I pray they’re wrong, Lucas.”

Worried eyes sought his but he couldn’t give her the hope she waited for. “For your sake, I wish they were. Drive safe.”

With a nod in his direction, she left. He watched her from the back porch as she reversed her flashy red Mustang convertible and headed down the driveway, taking a piece of his heart with her. Her eyesight wasn’t what it used to be, and he worried about her. He should have insisted on driving her to the city.

Maybe it’s for the best that he didn’t go near Roy right now. His anger toward the man hadn’t abated one whit. How such a gentle woman could produce the devil’s own spawn was a mystery. Roy didn’t deserve his mother’s love. She’d bailed him out of enough trouble when he was younger. Now this.

Even from behind bars, Roy’s latest shenanigans were still causing trouble in his family. Only this time, it was his marriage on the line, and he knew it.

[end of excerpt]

Over to you, Lorraine:

Writing – my passion, my dream. I started writing adult fiction as a hobby almost three years ago while on medical leave for hand surgery. With the aim of gaining more flexibility in my fingers, I began typing. I just sat at the computer and started writing. 🙂 When I finished that first manuscript seven weeks later, I was thrilled! Then came the process of editing, tweaking, and polishing until I felt it was ready to send.

Boy, was I wrong!!!

Needless to say, I’ve suffered through my share of rejections, but instead of giving up, they made me more determined to succeed. I’ve joined several writing groups and forums and have made many online friends, people who have been supportive and encouraging throughout this journey. By nature, writing is a lonely job, so it helps to have people with whom you can share with and do a little brainstorming. Except when the characters start talking to me. LOL That’s when I can immerse myself in the tale and write for hours on end, crafting their story their way.