In the vein of Meg Donohue and Sarah Jio, Cecilia Galanteās second novel delivers the powerful story of one young woman whoās faced with an impossible choiceāone that could have her making the biggest mistake of her life.
Thirteen days. Thatās all Bernadette, āBird,ā Sincavage has left to go until sheās done with her probation and can be free again. Free from making payments to the supermarket she wrote bad checks to. Free from living at home with her overzealous mother whoās constantly nagging her about attending church again. Free to give her four-year-old son, Angus, the normal life he deserves. Her impending freedom and move to Moon Lake, where sheās plunked down a deposit on a brand new apartment, is so close she can almost taste it. What trouble could she possibly get into in just thirteen days?
But trouble does follow in the form of James Rittenhouseāsomeone she worked with a few years ago. At first, Bird is stunned to see James make the evening news when heās arrested for assaulting someone in a local bar. But thatās nothing compared to the shock she gets when she discovers James hiding out in an abandoned church choir loft. Somehow he escaped police custody, broke his leg, and got his hand on a gun, which heās now pointing at her.
Although Bird doesnāt tell anyone she saw James, thereās no way sheās helping him. She canāt screw up her probation or her second chance for a new future. And she has her sonās welfare to think about. Still. If only she could stop thinking about the terrified look in Jamesā eyes and the fact that heās hurt. If only she could forget that once, long ago, James helped her out, and she owes him a debt like no other.
Will Bird jeopardize her future for someone who helped her out in the past? A past that holds secrets sheās not quite sure sheās ready to face? Or will she turn a blind eye and learn to live with the consequences?