Sherri Shackelford - No Safe Place

Booklist Also By Sherri Shackelford Contents Cover Back Cover Text About the Author Booklist Title Page Copyright Introduction Dear Reader Bible Verse Dedication ONE TWO THREE FOUR FIVE SIX SEVEN EIGHT NINE TEN ELEVEN TWELVE THIRTEEN Extract About the Publisher No Safe Place Return to Cowboy Creek His Substitute Mail-Order Bride Montana Courtships Mail-Order Christmas Baby Prairie Courtships The Engagement Bargain The Rancher’s Christmas Proposal A Family for the Holidays A Temporary Family Cowboy Creek Special Delivery Baby Cowboy Creek Christmas “Mistletoe Bride” Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk

Title Page No Safe Place Sherri Shackelford www.millsandboon.co.uk

Copyright ISBN: 978-1-474-09052-0 NO SAFE PLACE © 2018 Sherri Shackelford Published in Great Britain 2018 by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental. By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher. ® and ™ are trademarks owned and used by the trademark owner and/or its licensee. Trademarks marked with ® are registered with the United Kingdom Patent Office and/or the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market and in other countries. www.millsandboon.co.uk Version: 2020-03-02

Introduction The man holding Beth spun toward the noise. The next instant he yelped and stumbled backward, clutching his face. Beth held a canister of pepper spray in her outstretched hand. Corbin dived into his car and roared out of the space, positioning the passenger side before Beth. He leaned over the console and pushed open the door. “Get in!” She scooped up her purse, her frightened gaze swinging between him and her car. The pepper-sprayed man had reached the getaway vehicle. Still blinded, he fumbled with the handle. Beth shook her head. “No.” “Get in!” Corbin ordered. “There’s no time.” A bullet ricocheted off the hood. The getaway driver had a gun. The noise propelled her forward. She leaped into the passenger seat as another bullet shattered the windshield of her car. Beth threw her arms over her face and crouched behind the dash. Corbin sped down the garage ramp in Reverse. When they reached the next level, he spun the wheel. The tires squealed and smoked, circling the car forward. “Put on your seat belt,” he ordered gruffly. Glancing at the review mirror, he caught sight of the car following them. “Hang on. This might get bumpy.”

Dear Reader Dear Reader Contents Cover Back Cover Text About the Author Booklist Title Page Copyright Introduction Dear Reader Bible Verse Dedication ONE TWO THREE FOUR FIVE SIX SEVEN EIGHT NINE TEN ELEVEN TWELVE THIRTEEN Extract About the Publisher , Welcome to my debut book in a different genre! Writing for Love Inspired Suspense has been a new and exciting adventure for me. For the past five years, I’ve been immersed in the historical old West. Switching from bonnets and wagons to cell phones and cyber security has been both challenging and fun. No matter the genre, all writers have their own unique and personal method for creating plots and characters. For me, it’s important that I see the opening scene clearly in my head. In No Safe Place , Beth Greenwood is facing a moral dilemma. The decision she makes at the beginning of the book transforms her life. I’m fascinated by stories involving ordinary people forced into extraordinary circumstances. I hope this book will be the first of many suspense adventures! I love hearing from readers and would enjoy hearing your thoughts on this story. If you’re interested in learning more about this book or other series I have written, I have more information on my website: sherrishackelford.com . I can also be reached by email at sherri@sherrishackelford.com, or at P.O. Box 116, Elkhorn, NE 68022. Happy Reading! Sherri Shackelford

Bible Verse For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? —Mark 8:36

Dedication To Jessica Alvarez and TR, my partners in crime!

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Extract

About the Publisher

Today was a good day to die, as far as days went.

Beth Greenwood focused on the steady blink-blink-blink of the cursor on her screen. One click and her life changed forever, possibly even guaranteeing her death unless she disappeared indefinitely. As her trembling index finger hovered over the mouse button, she glanced at the single photo perched on the bare expanse of her desk. Her dad’s unwavering stare gave her courage.

Her heartbeat stuttered, and her palms grew damp.

A Chicago cop, he’d suffered a debilitating stroke two months before his retirement. His death had been shattering, but knowing he was no longer suffering gave her a modicum of peace. Never much for talk, Officer Greenwood had lived his faith and had led by his example. Though his job had exposed him to temptation, he’d seen his dedication to truth as a higher moral calling. For what shall it profit a man , he’d quote the Bible, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

What, indeed? She checked the email attachment and then clicked the option to schedule the message for arrival the morning after the bank holiday. A muffled thump startled her upright, and her pulse thrummed in her ears.

She whipped around, shooting her mouse off the side of the desk, searching for signs of a lingering coworker. The building usually emptied early on the Friday afternoon before a holiday. She leaned out of her cubicle, and her shoulders sagged. An overflowing trash bin sat in the center of the aisle. Probably the cleaning crew getting an early start on the weekend. She retrieved her battered mouse and set it beside her keyboard.

She logged out of her computer with a few rapid clicks, then stood and reached for her dad’s photo. She’d supplied the FBI with the evidence she’d discovered about the money laundering. It was time to disappear from Quetech Industries for good.

Not that she’d miss the place.

Her job as a forensic accountant was transient by nature, and she’d worked in plenty of office buildings over the years. Quetech Industries had earned the dubious title of being the worst. It was like drowning in a sea of gray. The walls were medium gray. The carpet was dark gray. Even the cubicles were fashioned from light gray plastic.