Jenyfer Matthews

I’m here today to talk about my latest Cerridwen release, Endurance, which was released yesterday, Thanksgiving Day in America.

I’m thankful that it released. My History Patrol series has had a problematic life. The first book, Forgiveness, released last year, and was one of my first books ever released. It’s done very well on the contest circuit despite the fact it’s only available in download and has never been in print. I’ve been pleased.

Anyway, long story short: I lost my editor at CP before the book released. The second book, Endurance, had already been bought, so I was assigned a new editor. We whipped that book into shape and she bought the third book.

Yep. That editor left. I was assigned a new editor to get Endurance, book 2, out the door and to work on Temperance, Book 3.

Edits for Temperance, Book 3 (due out next year), are … a struggle. In the first round I saw more edits than I’ve ever seen — more than on all my 8 books that I have out combined. Usually it takes me a day at the most to do edits. This took me several days — almost 10 days, to be precise. I’m not saying the edits weren’t valid. I think many of them were. But some … I’m not so sure if they were really essential.

So I’ve finished the first round of edits and just got the next round. I haven’t even opened the file yet. I’m not even going to look at the next round until sometime in December. I want to savor the release of Endurance and gird my loins for more angst.

I think this is probably a very good lesson for me. Most of my releases at my other publishers have been relatively easy. I’ve had a few covers I’ve whined about, or maybe I misunderstood my editor on some points. But I’ve never had so many detail-oriented edits as I have for the History Patrol books.

Of course, these are complicated books. “Time travel meets reincarnation” is how I phrase it. For Endurance, my off-handed summary is: ‘Endurance, a first-person paranormal time travel reincarnation romance (try saying that fast a few times). It’s first-person male POV, about a man who’s been stranded in time by an immortality virus and has a career as a paid assassin. The woman he’s assigned to kill is the love of his life, reincarnated in this place and time. Nico almost makes a huge mistake and targets Lucinda, but luckily there’s someone there who knows the truth — a telepathic dog named Cerberus, who intervenes.’

Complicated? Yes. But very, very interesting. I hope it and the other books in the series are worth the work. Only time will tell (time travel, get it?)

Endurance
by
J.L. Wilson

Imagine being torn away from all you know and love. And now imagine being torn away from your place in time.

That’s what happened to Nico Haidess who is trapped, not just in time, but in a reincarnation gone wrong.

He’s a Guide with the History Patrol, sent back from 2190 and now stranded in 21st century America. He’s been reunited with the love of his life, Lucinda Delacroix who has been reincarnated in this place and time. There’s only one problem: he doesn’t recognize her as his lost love and she doesn’t recognize him.

To Lucinda, Nico is just a handsome stranger, a man who seems oddly familiar. And to Nico—a paid assassin—Lucinda is just an assignment, a suspected traitor. He must kill her on Easter morning and make it look like an accident.

Luckily one other creature can help. Cerberus is a telepathic dog on special assignment with the History Patrol, sent to bring these two lovers together. Cerberus has a vested interest in the fate of Nico Haidess and he’ll do whatever it takes to see Nico and Lucinda reunited—even if it means dying and defying God to accomplish his purpose.

But the clock is ticking for all of them and time is starting to run out.

I have to admit, I’m not a huge fan of facial hair – in spite of the fact that hubby has sported a goatee for years now. Although some men actually look better with facial hair. I once had a boss who had a goatee when I met him. Apparently it was fairly new because no one else in our office liked it at all. He shaved it off a few months into my employment and I actually missed it. It was a good look for him. At this point I kind of think I’d have a similar reaction if hubby shaved his goatee off. He had lasic eye surgery a few years ago and I still sort of miss his glasses.

I can live with a well maintained goatee (obviously) but full beards and lone mustaches? Not a fan. And clearly from this tongue-in-cheek article, Great Moustaches of Rock, I’m not alone in my feelings about moustaches. Though I’m sure these guys couldn’t care less – they’re rock legends after all.

What do you think about facial hair? Love it? Hate it? A little goes a long way?

I kind of like the five o’clock shadow look but it’s not much fun to get up close and personal with – unless you yourself like to sport the red chin look…

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone out there celebrating today. My family and I are going on an overnight trip to an area of Egypt called Fayyum so our holiday meal will be postponed until Sunday. I’ll tell you all about the trip (with photos!) next week!

When you’re done with your dinner, check out this quiz and see how much you know about Thanksgiving.

And don’t forget to stop by over the weekend when J. L. Wilson is here with her book ENDURANCE from her paranormal romance series The History Patrol.

Looking for just the right gift for your little one this Christmas? Want something unique? Something that will stimulate their imagination? Develop hand-eye coordination while at the same time killing any spark of empathy or compassion they might have?

Have I got the toy for you!

(Click images to enlarge)

Not convinced it’s right for your little one? The blurb on the back speaks for itself:

Having trouble finding the Terror Game in your local toy store? Made in China by HAPPY BABY, request it by name!

Note: This game is not suitable for children under three.

(THREE??? I think they should have stopped after “not suitable”, full stop)


******************************
SSSHHHH!!! Don’t tell, but I’m giving this to my father for Christmas. Should be good for a laugh…

I knew that this weekend would be busy, but I wasn’t expecting how exhausting it would be. It wasn’t as if I was the one doing all the sports!

Wine night on Thursday was so much fun. I put the kids to bed, put my husband on call, and kicked back with my friends. Only three of the ten who said they would come did actually attend but that just meant that there was more wine and food for us. And goodness was there food! One Indian lady who said she would come and then had to cancel due to illness sent her food on anyway – four DOZEN samosas! Between the samosas, the shrimp tray, the sushi, and the pie that another friend brought we had more than enough. I sent everyone home with a box of samosas and was still eating leftover party food all weekend.

My daughter’s weekend was not so good. The antibiotics the doctor prescribed for her were not the correct variety and so her fever persisted. She begged me to play her school tournament on Friday and I almost cracked – I love to watch her play as much as she loves to be out there. I was seriously wavering when a friend gave me a solid reason to say no: dehydration. So I was the mean mom and said no, much to her disappointment – and that of her school team / PE teacher.

Saturday we had to be at the soccer field and ready to play for my son’s tournament at 8AM. He had three rapid fire games, back to back. He played really hard but his team lost the first two games and won their third. They were knocked out of the tournament but ended on a high note (with cupcakes!) so were very happy.

My daughter’s team was scheduled to play at 10AM and I told her she could watch – she wanted to see her coach again and collect her participation trophy and since I had to be there anyway for team mom duties, I said yes. The other team did not show up so their team advanced by forfeit. No quick end as I had hoped. Next game at noon.

We hung around and they played at noon. And as I expected, daughter begged to play. Coach gave us puppy eyes. Other parents pleaded with us. Daughter was medicated and fever free. Hubby and I finally cracked and said she could play, but only defense since that doesn’t require so much running. She did a quarter on defense and we caved in and let her run. She was obviously not tip-top but still managed to score a goal for her team so she was elated.

Her team won that game and had to play another right away, which ended 0-0 and went to penalty kicks and in the end the other team won. Which was a mixed blessing – I would have loved to see them advance because even had they lost the next round they would have been fourth. But at the same time it was already 2PM and I was ready to go home!!

As it turns out, I was right to worry about the cupcakes because the mom I asked to bring them did not. However, because I am a neurotic control freak, I had bags of backup cookies in my bag which the children devoured. Our spread seemed a little paltry compared to some teams I saw who had elaborate cakes decorated with soccer balls. However, I saw many of those cakes being taken away hardly touched while there was very little left at the end of our party.

Daughter collapsed when she came home, fever returned. After a phone consultation with the doctor, her medication has been changed and she seems a bit perkier already. I am doing my best to not only get her well again, but also keep the rest of us healthy. It’s never a good time to get sick but this coming weekend we have an overnight trip scheduled as well as a tennis tournament and the following weekend the children and I fly to the US. I’m popping vitamins like candy.

And I’m oh-so-thankful that soccer season is finished!

Barbara Goodwin has been writing romance novels for five years. A native Californian, she loves dogs, movies, and reading. Her career as a flight attendant with a major U.S. airline gives her unlimited ideas for her novels. Barbara has published five romance novels, four with Cerridwen Press and one with Whiskey Creek Press. She has also written a young adult novel with her nephew. From Dreams To Reality will be published by Cerridwen Press March 19, 2009.

How the Love Beyond Time Series came to be

As I was staring at the bookshelves looking for Christmas romances one holiday season, I realized that I would love to write one of my own. The next year I went to a June wedding in Sisters, Oregon, a beautiful small town on the East side of the Cascade Mountains, and decided to write a western based on that town which is styled after the old west with boardwalks and old-fashioned store fronts.

I finished the 1890s western, No Time For Christmas, and realized I needed to make it a series. My hero, Joshua Forrester had two sons, and the heroine, Adeline Benjamin had two nieces that she’d raised. I knew then that each son and niece needed their own book and decided to write a five book series. My love for time travel stories made it a must that I write these books where each story would take place in a different time period.

As I wrote the ending for No Time For Christmas, I realized it couldn’t be the first book in the series but must be the third. Then I decided that each book should start and end on the same two days no matter how long the hero and heroine were gone in their respective time periods. I chose time periods that I would love to see and researched the history of those times. That helped me develop the story lines for each book. I plugged in my hero and heroine (which I had already written character profiles for) and the rest is…history!

I thoroughly loved writing and researching these books. Book one, No Future Christmas, takes place in 2110 and deals with a corrupt world order. Book two, No Silent Christmas, is about the silent film era and prohibition in 1925. Book four, No Hope For Christmas takes place in 1940 World War II on a real airplane, the Boeing 307 Stratoliner that flew passengers for only one and a half years before it was commissioned for the war effort. I have a real romance with past airplanes where stewardesses made up bunks and catered to their wealthy passengers. Book five, No Diamonds For Christmas, takes place in 1956 on the Queen Mary and has a handsome diamond thief bent on revenge, a cursed diamond and, of course, the haunted Queen Mary!

Enjoy!
Barbara Goodwin

Love Beyond Time Series

No Future Christmas
Book One

Twenty-first century Police officer Mike Forrester can’t believe his eyes. A woman is standing in a glowing tangerine light in the early morning hours after his shift.

He has to see if the vision is real. His hand closes around her wrist and he’s stunned by the hot, intense desire that rushes through him. The world spins and the last thing Mike remembers is the gentle touch of the woman’s hands on his face as she strokes his mouth.

Twenty-second century scientist Shauna Wentworth doesn’t intend to bring Mike Forrester home to her time. But before she can send him back they find themselves in a race against time to uncover a political secret that will rock the world.

Soon the global military police have them listed as number one on their worldwide most wanted list.
While fighting a corrupt world order Mike and Shauna fall deeply in love. Can their love survive between two different worlds?

No Silent Christmas
Book Two

When Firefighter Scott Forrester picks up his brother’s BlackBerry to invite his father for Christmas dinner he hears a high-pitched whine and a tangerine light surrounds him.

In an instant he disappears from the room.

When the color dissipates Scott is standing on a dirt street. Most of the women are dressed in the same, shapeless style from the 1920s. Amid the Barbie-doll dressed women, one stands out. Her long blonde hair and startling blue eyes cause a hot, wild desire to race through Scott. He has never reacted to a woman so intensely before.

Scott finds he’s in 1925, the era of prohibition and gangsters. Until he can get back to his own time he takes the only job offered to him and becomes reluctant silent screen actor.

Scott’s co-star is stunning socialite Maggie Ingram. When a series of accidents almost kill Maggie, Scott begins to suspect matinee idol Carey Chambers. But why would Chambers want Maggie dead? Also, Scott wonders where Chambers gets his illegal liquor.

This is No Silent Christmas for Scott as he navigates the glitz and the glamour of Hollywood in 1925.

No Time for Christmas
Book Three

After losing his wife to a car accident one Christmas season, Joshua Forrester buries his grief in work as a commercial real estate salesman. Twenty years later, and still alone, Joshua is addicted to everything electronic. As he steps out of his condo one morning he’s shocked to find he’s in 1890. His Blackberry doesn’t work, there’s no electricity, and his hometown of Sisters, Oregon looks like a Hollywood movie set from the wild, wild, west days.

But this is no movie.

Adeline Benjamin, the beautiful town spinster, takes him under her wing when he’s thrown in jail for counterfeiting money dated 1980. Joshua is instantly attracted to Addie. Heat burns through him every time he’s near her, but he gains a powerful enemy because of his attraction. Sheriff Hall claims Addie Benjamin as his own and won’t tolerate this stranger taking away his woman.

As Joshua grows to love Addie he must overcome the sheriff’s anger and distrust, accept that he may be on the longest camping trip of his life and find a way to make a living in a time he never thought he’d see.

No Hope for Christmas
Book Four
Coming December 18!

Modern-day flight Attendant Evie Benjamin wants adventure and she gets it when she time travels to 1940. Her first trip, assigned by Transcontinental and Western Air, is to work the first pressurized commercial airplane ever built—the Boeing 307 Stratoliner.

Only the wealthy and the famous can fly the luxury of the “Stratoliner.”

James Jeffries, III owns a worldwide construction company. He also works for MI5 securing information hoping to get the United States to help the British win the war against Germany.

Evie is stunned by her first meeting with James. His voice flows like honey down her spine, calling to her, touching her deep in her soul. When James requests her for a top-secret mission she is plunged into peril and loses her heart in the process. But the secret mission is compromised and Evie and James have to find out who leaked vital information.

How will Evie and James newfound love survive the ravages of time and war amid a pitch-black, nighttime landing, a devastating car accident and other perilous adventures?

No Diamonds for Christmas
Book Five
Coming February 5, 2009!

Beautiful restaurant owner Mary Benjamin time travels to the Queen Mary, circa 1956. When she arrives on the dark ship a masked man rescues her from nearly sliding overboard. At his tender touch an unexpected rush of desire courses through her, weakening her. But will he hurt her?

Accomplished, British jewel thief Gavin MacAfee will do anything to steal the cursed Resurrection Diamond from the Duke of Pemberton. Yet, everything changes for Gavin when he meets Mary under the brilliant stars on the Queen Mary’s deck. A sudden rush of desire and a powerful need for her consumes him.

Mary doesn’t trust Gavin when she meets him without the mask. He’s too cocky, too sure of himself. Soon she finds she’s falling in love with a masked thief who’s tender and kind, yet obviously up to no good.

Buy these books!

I went shopping for coach gifts for my son’s soccer team on Tuesday, thinking that if there were any snags I’d still have time to rethink and do something else. Am I ever glad I did – there were more snags than anything else!

The head coach recently became ill from eating out so a restaurant certificate as an idea, an old standby, was immediately thrown out. Though she is a recent arrival to Egypt I decided against buying her any arts / handicrafts because tastes vary so much with that sort of thing. In the end I decided to get a gift certificate to a local clothing store than sells a nice selection of items made from Egyptian cotton. Everyone agreed it sounded like a great idea.

Only when I got there, they don’t sell gift certificates. In fact, I had to explain what a gift certificate was.

So I made a few phone calls and it was decided that I should go to another shop in the neighborhood, one that sells arts/ handicrafts, and see if I could get a gift certificate there. They not only knew what I was talking about but had pre-printed cards ready. One down, one to go.

After a quick consultation with the assistant coach’s wife, I went to his favorite shop at the mall. They don’t sell gift certificates (Attention Egyptian retailers – you’re really missing the boat on that one!) I then went to a club to which he belongs, planning to get him a restaurant voucher there. Closed.

Keep in mind I was walking everywhere to do this stuff. I was certainly well exercised as I was defeated at every turn.

As it turns out, it seems what he would really like is a case of Corona beer so guess what he’ll be getting? Though he’ll have to pick it up – I’m not schlepping that to the field!

With coach gifts sorted I thought I was home free. Not quite. My daughter, soccer star extraordinaire, child with not one but *two* days of tournaments scheduled this weekend, is sick with a fever and throat infection. There’s something going around our building so I called the doctor at the first signs of illness (He came to us within an hour! Cheaper and easier than an office visit!) Fingers crossed the meds he prescribed will kick in by tomorrow. She’s determined to play for her respective teams. (And I’m more grateful than ever I went out and got the coach presents early!) I hope she recovers quickly because it wouldn’t be nearly so much fun to be out at the field all day Saturday for my team mom duties if my own child wasn’t even well enough to participate!

At present, I’m just determined to remain well enough myself to enjoy wine night tonight!

Since we don’t have a car, I get around mostly on foot. I don’t normally mind walking – in a safe and orderly place. Walking in Cairo is anything but safe and orderly. In fact, pedestrians are considered just one more hazard in the road.

It’s become even more tricky to walk lately since the one decent sidewalk that existed in our neighborhood has recently been torn up. It looks as if they are intending to improve it a bit which would be great:

However, they tore it up with much more speed and enthusiasm than they seem to be reconstructing it. I haven’t seen anyone working on it in a week.

And it seems to be tree trimming season in my neighborhood. It all started when a large tree limb broke and fell onto that sidewalk pictured above. Not only did no one clear it, but it seemed to give people ideas and everyone in the vicinity started adding their own tree trimmings (and other misc trash0 to the pile. That enormous pile has been cleared away to make way for the sidewalk destruction but there are similar piles springing up all over the neighborhood.

I could go on like this all day! It’s kind of fascinating in a way, though it does make it hard to walk along when your path is suddenly blocked by a big pile of tree limbs. And the poor trees! We aren’t talking about precision pruning here either – think a barefoot guy up a tree with a blunt axe, cutting off anything he can reach until all that is left are a few leafy sprigs. It’s a wonder than anything survives.

Only three weeks until we leave for our Christmas holidays in the US. Maybe when we get back, the sidewalk will be fixed…

This week is crazy, as usual. And it’s pretty much a result of poor planning and too much enthusiasm on my part.

Soccer season ends this week and as team mom – for both my children’s teams – I have to coordinate the end of season parties. I’ve written before about the doubt and anxiety I suffer when it’s simply a matter of pitching in and bringing the snack to the weekly game, so imagine what I’m going through now. I was dreaming about who was going to make the cupcakes earlier in the week! Clearly I’m much too involved (or just neurotic). I’m doing my best to delegate jobs to other parents – and I slept much better after I got a volunteer from each team to make cupcakes!

Not only am I worried about providing a suitably festive menu, but I worry about what the children and the other parents on the team will think of what I’ve organized. I tend to be a simple-is-better sort of person when it comes to things like this, so my plan is to have the team party at the field immediately following the last game. Everyone is very busy these days so it seemed to make more sense than trying to regather everyone at a later time. I was confident in that plan until I heard that some other team moms were planning more elaborate dos at Pizza Hut or their country club. What?? Even if I wanted to do something like that, I don’t have the time. So, it’ll be a party at the pitch and if the other parents aren’t impressed they can volunteer next year!

The other thing I volunteered to do was host a party at my house on Thursday night. A good friend of mine had the idea that what we really needed to do was to have a monthly ladies wine night. In theory we would sample different varieties of wine and learn a little something about each one – even if it was just a matter of “I like this one” and “I don’t like that one”. But since the variety of wine one is able to procure in Cairo varies wildly from month to month, mostly we just get together and drink and chat and have a great time. It floats from house to house and this month it’s my turn.

The date was my mistake choice. Can’t actually recall now why I didn’t choose last weekend – there wasn’t so much going on just then.

My friend is a brilliant multitasker and hugely energetic so she’s a great partner to have in such a venture. My job mostly boils down to bundling my children off to tennis lessons and dinner out with my husband and making sure my home is presentable – which some days is no small feat. Having wine night on Thursday could be good timing actually – surely a couple of glasses of good wine and some laughter will help me let go of any remaining soccer party anxiety!

It’s no secret to anyone who’s been reading for a while that I adore pomegranate seeds. Last year I was drinking a lot of pomegranate juice and eating the seeds by the handful. This year we’ve gotten a little crazy with them and have been adding them to all sorts of things.

They are fantastic sprinkled on hummus – in fact, it’s my new favorite lunch. They’re also wonderful with goat cheese on a cracker. And tucked into a pita pocket with halloumi cheese (they roll off the cracker when paired with a harder cheese!) I added some pomegranate seeds to a fruit salad I made the other day with great success and used them for decoration on a pineapple upside down cake I made my son for his birthday (instead of maraschino cherries, which none of us like) I’m thinking that they would be nice coupled with brie too but I haven’t tried that variation yet.

Like apples, they can be stored for a long time and supposedly improve with age. I’m going to have to stock up before the season ends!

Julia Barrett has been writing prose and poetry most of her life. She originally majored in Creative Writing at the University of Iowa, but parenthood necessitated a regular paycheck and an unexpected career in nursing. The author has lived throughout the Mountain West, but she is proud to admit to being a fourth generation Iowan. Ms. Barrett and her husband currently reside in California with their German Shepherd, three cats, and two birds.

Anytime, Darlin’ is a powerful story of love, loss, and a life-and-death struggle for survival. Despite the harsh reality of the storyline, author Julia Barrett has deftly created a powerful character-driven tale. {…} The characterization is strong and the writing taut as the fast-paced love story carries the reader from the opening paragraph to the final scene. Anytime, Darlin’ is highly recommended to anyone who craves explosive suspense.
Night Owl Romance

What inspired Anytime Darlin’?

I believe we are all connected in some way. Sometimes the connections are casual, sometimes deep and lasting. The two main characters in Anytime Darlin’, Devlin and Jake, experience an instantaneous connection that transcends time and space. Unfortunately, they cannot act upon their feelings for years. They each have their own path to follow. As a writer, I followed their paths along with them. I heard their voices. Devlin and Jake told me their story, I simply recorded it. I didn’t always know what they were going to say before they said it or what they were going to do before they did it. And it was not only Devlin and Jake who constantly surprised me, their friends and even their enemies communicated in exactly the same manner. As a writer, it was a most interesting experience. I believe the spontaneity of their story is evident in every word I wrote. Happy reading!

Anytime Darlin’

by

Julia Barrett

Jake McKenna is one of the first responders when a young runaway is found unconscious. She’s desperately ill and has been beaten and sexually assaulted. Jake saves her life and is determined to protect her from the man who is equally determined to destroy her. Ultimately Jake realizes he must allow her to make her own decisions about her future, though it breaks his heart.

Devlin Barre survived the destruction of everything she held dear then learns she has been given into the care of the very person who stole her life. Her risky escape nearly kills her. One man brings her back, Jake. She loves him, but he has his own path to travel. Devlin refuses to become a burden. Brokenhearted, she leaves to rebuild her life.

Years later Jake and Devlin meet again. Has their connection survived? What of the monster who attempted to destroy Devlin? He’s still waiting for the opportunity to finish what he started.

Excerpt

Jake applied the electrodes to her chest and flipped on the portable EKG machine. After a quick glance at her heart rhythm, he began a systematic head-to-toe assessment as Kyle radioed each finding back to the ER. Jake felt sick as he stripped her and ran his hand over every single bruise and abrasion, checking for broken bones and possible internal injuries, anything they might make worse by moving her carelessly. The girl had been badly beaten. Her back was scraped raw and there were thick purple wheals around both wrists. Her left side was swollen and covered with bruises. From the feel of things, Jake suspected at least a couple of broken ribs. He didn’t find needle marks—her arms and legs were clean. This wasn’t likely to be a drug overdose. Leanne and Lou got the IV started and Jake sighed with relief as fluids began flowing. The EKG showed a normal sinus rhythm but she was tachycardic and the woman was right, she was hot. Her axillary temp was one oh three point four. Her lungs sounded congested. Probably pneumonia. Jake suspected she’d been outdoors for several days and she’d probably been guarding her respirations because of the rib pain, which meant she was a sitting duck for pneumonia.

Mike cleared his throat. “He was wearing waffle-stompers,” he said, “look at the marks on her thigh.”

They stared in silence.

Then Jake broke it. “Let’s move it people.”

Kyle and Lou wheeled in the gurney and the four of them lifted the girl gently. As they laid her down, her eyes flew open. Jake was by her head, looking right at her. He started. Her eyes were unexpected, aquamarine with flecks of gold, wide and slightly almond-shaped and when she slowly lowered her lids, her long lashes cast faint shadows on her pale cheeks. Suddenly her eyes opened again and sought his. Jake was surprised by the intensity in her gaze. He saw confusion mingled with pain and a flat-out panic, the kind of panic one would find in a cornered animal.

Jake felt a hand wrap around his as he pushed the gurney.

“It’s okay, darlin,” he whispered soothingly, “it’s okay. We’ll take care of you. We‘re taking you to the hospital.”

He thought her panic increased for a moment but then she nodded, almost imperceptibly and he could tell she understood him.

“You got a name, sweetheart?”

She closed her eyes and shook her head slightly. “No.”

“C’mon, everybody’s got a name,” he coaxed, “it’s all right, you can tell me, sweetheart, nobody’s going to hurt you.”

“Dev,” she said after a moment, so softly beneath the mask that he almost missed it. “Devlin.” Her eyes closed.

“Devlin,” Jake repeated, “I‘m Jake and I won’t let anything happen to you.”

Suddenly the hand in his went rigid and the rapid respirations turned to gasps.

“Heart rate increasing!” called Leanne. “One sixty a minute!”

“Lou,” Jake spoke with deliberate calm, “give me an ET tube now and get the ambu-bag.”

Jake and Lou worked fast and had the girl intubated before Kyle could even put the vehicle in gear. Mike slammed the ambulance doors shut.

“I’m right behind you,” he called.

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