It was all that Matt Lamont could do in keeping his life separated from his past, but now things were far from over. When a stranger, Autumn Reynolds, picks him up walking alone and confused along a country road, Matt is reluctant with the assistance that eventually brings him back to a life of meaning. But there happens to be a little matter of dealing with his failing memory. When flashes of that memory begin to surface, they only tell of a seedy lifestyle filled with torment and heartache. Who is he and what had he done? Autumn helps link the pieces of the troubled past and brings him to the inevitable truth, but in the end, might Autumn be the one to ultimately suffer.
Excerpt
He heard soft footsteps come into the living room and tiptoe past him to one of the large glass windows. From the corner of his sight, he watched her part the blinds and look out. For some reason, he wished it was still snowing, but he knew from what had been handed to him in his life thus far, the chances weren’t good with God being so gracious. Gently, he stretched out the stiffness along his upper body. He recoiled, feeling his side catch in pain. Autumn turned around to his colorful array of uttered obscenities.
Autumn smiled. “Good morning,” she said softly. “Snow’s melting.” She didn’t know what else to say. He appeared so compromised lying on the couch, his wavy black hair tousled and his face scruffy, but overall, there was a very appealing factor.
“Melting, huh?” Yeah, he’d already figured as much. Gradually, he propped an arm behind his head, deliberating on her attire of flannel robe and gorilla slippers.
His brow rose in incredibility. “Nice shoes,” he said, feigning a look as if to admire the brown furriness topped with black-pearl-button eyes.
She held one foot up, smiled, and wiggled it in his direction. “Thanks, Dad gave them to me last Christmas.”
Come on, she really wasn’t serious, but the more he studied them, the more he thought them unique, whimsical. They fit her. Innocent and carefree. He forced a smile, wondering why he did, and then it finally faded. She was a mere child, seemingly unfettered from the ways of the real world. Life was cruel and hard, but it was as though she never saw any of it. Maybe she hadn’t. However, he had experienced it firsthand, and for some reason, he suddenly felt envious of the world in which she lived.
Sixty-seven days after departing Flores Island in Europe’s westernmost waters, the schooner Heimdall and her stalwart crew has finally arrived at the mysterious Isla Socorro in the Revillagigedo Archipelagoes. The discoveries they make are astounding
