In the vein of Meg Donohue and Sarah Jio, Cecilia Galanteâs second novel delivers the powerful story of one young woman whoâs faced with an impossible choiceâone that could have her making the biggest mistake of her life.
Thirteen days. Thatâs all Bernadette, âBird,â Sincavage has left to go until sheâs 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 whoâs 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 sheâs 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 Rittenhouseâsomeone she worked with a few years ago. At first, Bird is stunned to see James make the evening news when heâs arrested for assaulting someone in a local bar. But thatâs 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 heâs now pointing at her.
Although Bird doesnât tell anyone she saw James, thereâs no way sheâs helping him. She canât screw up her probation or her second chance for a new future. And she has her sonâs welfare to think about. Still. If only she could stop thinking about the terrified look in Jamesâ eyes and the fact that heâs 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 sheâs not quite sure sheâs ready to face? Or will she turn a blind eye and learn to live with the consequences?