Say Goodbye

Praise for Say Goodbye

"Rose sends out her Sacramento trilogy (after Say No More) with an irresistible, heart-pounding thrill ride....The twisty plot will keep readers on the edges of their seats as they’re led through a dizzying maze of dangerous situations and even more dangerous villains. Rose has a gift for making readers care deeply about her characters, and she certainly doesn’t disappoint here; Tom and Liza will win readers’ hearts and Hayley steals every scene she’s in. This is a knockout.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Chock-full of twists and scares, this is spine-chilling and heart-satisfying romantic suspense.”—BookPage

Praise for *Say No More

“Rose delivers a pulse-pounding mix of romance and terror in the no-holds-barred sequel to *Say You’re Sorry...*readers looking for high-octane romantic suspense won’t be able to resist.”—*Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“There’s lethal, heart-tripping danger, but the tender love story and powerful friendships provide a positive emotional core to this exciting thriller.”—*BookPage

• Praise for Say You're Sorry

“Fans of Lisa Gardner and J.D. Robb will enjoy this outing and be on pins and needles waiting for the next installments.”—Publishers Weekly

“Complex, thrilling and impossible to put down...An engrossing andexciting start to a new series, and one that busts genre stereotypes along the way.”—BookPage (Top Pick)

“Chilling and remarkably complex, this is a thriller that, for all its length, will keep minds sharp and night lights burning. An excellent series start.”—*Library Journal

“Rose’s *Say You’re Sorry delivers on the promise of a pedal-to-the-metal thriller with plenty of developed characters and converging mysteries....To call this book a page turner is an understatement.”—USA Today

"Jam-packed with wall-to-wall action and heart-stopping, page-turning suspense."—Harlequin Junkie

"Karen Rose never fails to give a fantastic well written thriller that is intense, always on the edge, with fantastic characters, evil villains and a wonderful couple you care for."—The Reading Cafe

"A sterling writer of suspense with a touch of romance."—FreshFiction.com

Autorentext
Karen Rose is the award-winning, #1 international bestselling author of some twenty novels, including the bestselling Baltimore and Cincinnati series. She has been translated into twenty-three languages, and her books have placed on the New York Times, the Sunday Times (UK), and Germany's der Spiegel bestseller lists.

Klappentext

Eden faces a final reckoning when the cult's past victims hunt them down in this explosive, high-stakes thriller in the Sacramento series from New York Times bestselling author Karen Rose.

For decades, Eden has remained hidden in the remote wilds of the Pacific Northwest, with Pastor keeping his cult's followers in thrall for his personal profit and sexual pleasures. But the Founding Elders are splintering, and Pastor's surrogate son, DJ, is scheming to make it all his own.

When two of Eden's newest members send out a cry for help, it reaches FBI special agent Tom Hunter, whose friend and fellow FBI special agent Gideon Reynolds and his sister, Mercy, are themselves escapees of the Eden cult, targeted by the Founding Elders who want them silenced forever. The three have vowed to find the cult and bring it down, and now they finally have a solid lead.

Neutralizing Eden's threat will save captive members and ensure Tom's new friends can live without fear. But when his best friend, ex-army combat medic Liza Barkley, joins the case, it puts her life-and their blossoming love-in danger. With everything they hold dear in the balance, Tom and Liza, together with Gideon and Mercy, must end Eden once and for all.

Story Locale: Sacramento, CA

Series Overview: A romantic-suspense series featuring law enforcement in Sacramento, California, whose professional and private lives collide.

Leseprobe

One

Eden, California

One month later

Wednesday, May 24, 5:30 a.m.

DJ Belmont looked over the list in his hand. "It'll take me forever to get all this shit."

Sister Coleen shrugged in apology, unconcerned about the swear word he'd let drop. They were alone in the clinic-he, Coleen, and Pastor-so Eden rules did not apply.

Rules he'd grown up with. Rules he intended to shred the moment he took over Eden. He was one step closer to his goal, having killed Brother Ephraim a month before. He'd have taken care of all of his problems had he not been shot himself. After a month, his left shoulder still ached and the arm remained basically useless.

The first shot to his shoulder had hurt like fire, and for that he planned to hunt down the bitch who'd pulled the trigger. Her name was Daisy Dawson and her death would serve a dual purpose-payback for the injury and heartbreak for the man who shared her bed.

Gideon Reynolds. The very name had DJ seething with rage. He banked it, unwilling to have to explain it to Coleen and Pastor. Because Gideon was supposed to be dead. Supposed to be dead at DJ's father's hand, in fact.

Except now he knew that Waylon Belmont-DJ's own father-had let Gideon go. He'd set Gideon free from Eden. Lied to everyone when he returned, saying that Gideon had died for the sin of murdering the Founding Elder Edward McPhearson as he'd attempted to flee. Everyone had believed him.

Even me. The banked rage flared anew and he shoved it back. He hadn't realized the extent of his father's betrayal until last month when he'd learned that Gideon was still alive.

His father had been punished, though. It had been DJ's first killing and it had felt so damn good, watching the light dim in that bastard's eyes. He'd been seventeen years old and had finally understood that true power lay in the ability to grant life. Or death.

DJ granted a lot of death.

"It's been a month since your last trip," Coleen said, unaware of his mounting anger. "And you came back wounded, so you couldn't bring back the supplies you'd gone to buy. We had emergency rations, but they're gone. The women stretched the rations as far as they could, but a hundred and fifteen people require a lot of food. We've run out of most of our essentials."

"Yeah, yeah. I get it." They were scraping the bottom of the supply barrels, and DJ was already tired of the jerky that seemed to be their remaining source of protein. "I'll pick up the supplies and scout out a new place for us to live."

That was the plan, anyway. The compound was freezing and hungry, huddling in the caves as they were. The caves had never been intended to be a long-term location, but DJ's injury had forced them to remain far longer than was healthy for any of them. Especially me.

He had other priorities for this trip, however. He'd search for another location if he had time.

She studied his left arm, resting in a sling. "You're sure you're okay to drive?" A tiny brunette in her early fifties, she was Eden's healer, their only medical "expert." To his knowledge, she'd had no formal training, but she'd done the best she could with his wounds.

At least he wasn't dead, although he'd apparently come pretty damn close.

"I'm fine," DJ grunted. He flexed his left shoulder, then moved that arm around, swallowing the pain. "See? Full range of motion."

Which wasn't nearly true. Fortunately, he'd trained for years to shoot with either hand. He wouldn't be completely helpless when he left the compound, but the pain was still excruciating. Sleeping on a pallet on a cold, damp stone floor wasn't helping matters any. He couldn't wait to get to civilization so that h…