A petite widow, medical secretary and sole support of her
young son and grandparents, is framed for the murder of her boss. Wealthy
village residents conspire with the DA to indicte her and stop further
investigation. The medical examiner thinks the shooter was a tall individual.
When his report is shoved aside, he starts his own side-investigation trying to
clear her and in the process he falls in love with her.
Lucinda Byrne lost her husband and parents at sea. When she
discovers the body of her boss, his A-List society finacee, backed up by her
powerful family and a corrupt DA, acuses Lucinda of murder. She struggles on shielding her five-year-old
son, her feisty grandfather and arthritic grandmother from the ugliness of her
situation. She mistrusts the dapper ME, thinking he's a ladies' man, but soon
realizes he may be the only one in her corner.
Hank Jansen, the county ME who's had his share of pain and
loss, doesn't know if this little widow was in on the murder, but he knows by
the trajectory of the bullet she's too short to have pulled the trigger. His
professional opinion ignored, he begins his own investigation and at least one
cop accuses him of an ethics violation. He certainly can't deny he's fallen
head over heals for the accused, and also is crazy about her son. A huge problem
is there's a leak inside the investigation and the murderer is always one step
ahead of them.
Interview
Q: How did you develop the plot
for DARKEST HOUR and how did you come up with the name?
Nike:
In my Sanctuary
Point series, one novel flows out of another.
Main characters in one novel will appear as subordinate characters
in the next one. Hank
Jansen, the Nassau County Medical Examiner, first appeared in my Christmas/New
Year's novel in the series, GOODBYE NOEL. Then he popped up at the murder scene
in PERILOUS SHADOWS. I got to like him and thought he'd be a terrific hero. He
is the most flawed of my heroes, but like all my others, he seeks to right injustice. So, he needed a heroine, but I wanted a
gal who would be put off by him at first. So, I created a widow with a young
son who
is dignified and protective of her family. At
first she thinks Hank is a ladies' man and too cavalier for her taste. Then, of course, he grows on her. It helps that
he's practically the only one who thinks she's innocent of murder. The name DARKEST HOUR came to mind because things in this story get
so scary for the heroine.
Q: In DARKEST HOUR, your heroine Lucinda Byrne
isn't as
feisty as your previous heroines have been. Can you comment on that?
A: Lucinda Byrne certainly is strong, but she doesn't shoot from the hip the way my
other heroines did. She's much more careful. I think a woman can show strength in many ways. Lucinda is a widow,
the mother of her five-year old son, and the sole support of her grandparents.
Her strength comes through as she handles her responsibilities with courage and
grace while powerful individuals in the village seek to destroy her. Don't get
me wrong, I enjoy writing spunky heroines, but in this story, I wanted Lucinda
to have poise and dignity, first and foremost. Still, she can and does stand up
for herself to the village detective and to Hank Jansen, the medical examiner,
who she's falling in love with in spite of the fact that she doesn't know if
she can trust him.
Q:
Is there anything that happened in the writing
of this novel that surprised you?
A: I thought my heroine Lucinda Byrne had two sweet grandparents who
would stay in the background and just...well look sweet. However, Nellie and
Daniel Walsh took me by surprise. I hadn't planned on Mrs. Walsh having
crippling arthritis and on that illness becoming a subtheme in the novel. So, I
had to research how severe arthritis was treated in the 1940s. As his wife's
role in the novel grew and blossomed, Mr. Walsh also made himself known as an
elderly gentleman of honor and dignity with quite a backbone. Then I began to
depict them engaging each other as a married couple. They weren't content to
remain in the background. They insisted on coming to life.
Excerpt
From
Chapter one…
A black coach
resembling an ambulance drove into the lot. An older man in overalls pulled a
collapsible gurney out of the back and raised its bed to hip level. Its chrome gleamed.
The night
orderly and two nurses getting off the night shift stopped to watch.
The brown-haired
man pointed to the gurney and his voice carried. "They finally allocated
some funds my way. Makes transporting much easier. Oscar
and I used to carry them on a stretcher. My back sure is grateful to the board
of supervisors."
The detective
laughed. "Don't you county guys have all the dough you want?"
"Who're you
kidding?"
The gurney's
wheels rumbled across the gravel parking lot. The older man pulled on the
straps of his overalls."Hank, you ready to move the body?"
The stylish man
nodded. "Let's do it." They lifted the body onto the gurney and the
man in overalls covered Dr. McCloud with a white sheet. Blood seeped through
and began spreading.
Lucinda gasped,
took another step back, stumbled, but managed to keep her footing. She
straightened her spine. She still had to go into that building and work a full
day. She had a son to support.
The detective
nodded toward the body. "By the size of the hole in his chest, I'd guess
he was shot with a pistol, maybe at close range. I need to have the bullet as
soon as you recover it."
"Then by
all means, you'll be my guest at the autopsy."
"Gee,
thanks." The detective shook his head.
The debonair man
chuckled, turned, and approached Lucinda.
A tremor ran
down her back. More questioning, and all she wanted to do was run and hide. She
sniffled and wiped her nose with the side of her index finger.
He reached into
his inside pocket and offered her a folded white handkerchief. "It's rough
if you've never seen anything like this. I'm Hank Jansen, the medical examiner,
by the way."
Lucinda's gaze
followed the gurney to the black coach. "He was my boss."
"You work
at the hospital for Dr. McCloud?"
"Yes. I...
I'm his secretary... was, I mean. And Dr. Hinsey's too." She couldn't
believe the doctor's life had ended this way.
Detective Daltry
barked, "Hank, can I speak with you?"
"Excuse
me." The medical examiner stepped away.
"Wait."
Lucinda quickly refolded the handkerchief and handed it back to him. She didn't
know this man. Wouldn't begin to know how to return the white cotton cloth.
"Don't forget this."
"Take it
with you. The day's not over. Things could still get rough." He smiled.
"No, I
can't take your hankie."
"Listen,
I'll pick it up the next time I'm at the hospital. You say you work for Dr.
Hinsey?"
"Hank,"
the detective called, impatience sharp in his tone.
"Yes, Dr.
Hinsey is the head of the maternity ward. I'll launder it and have it ready for
you."
The medical
examiner nodded and smiled. "It's a date. I mean, I'll stop by and pick it
up." He turned and trotted toward the detective.
Lucinda slipped
the handkerchief into her purse. She headed for the main entrance of the
hospital, bent and picked up a fountain pen in the gravel lot.
She pivoted and
advanced toward the two men.
The detective
made a chopping gesture with his hand and raised his voice. "I'm not
fooling, Hank. Don't go putting another notch in your belt. She's a
witness."
"Can't a
fellow do a simple act of kindness?"
"I'm
warning you, stay away from her." The detective spun around and nearly
collided with Lucinda.
Heat rushed to
her face, and she couldn't meet either man's gaze. If the ground would only
open and swallow her. She held the pen out to Detective Daltry.
"Uh...I…I'm sorry. I think you dropped this."
Purchase Links
Author Bio
Like so many writers,
Nike Chillemi started writing at a very young age. She still has the Crayola,
fully illustrated book she penned (penciled might be more accurate) as a little
girl about her then off-the-chart love of horses. Today, you might call her a crime
fictionista. Her passion is crime fiction. She likes her bad guys really
bad and her good guys smarter and better.
She
is the founding board member of the Grace Awards and is its Chairman, a
reader's choice awards for excellence in Christian fiction. She writes
book reviews for The Christian Pulse online magazine. She was an Inspy
Awards 2010 judge in the Suspense/Thriller/Mystery category and a judge in the
2011 and 2012 Carol Awards in the suspense, mystery, and romantic suspense
categories. BURNING HEARTS, the first book in the crime wave that is sweeping
the south shore of Long Island in The Sanctuary Point series, finaled in
the Grace Awards 2011 in the Romance/Historical Romance category. GOODBYE NOEL,
the second book in the series released in December, 2011 won the Grace Award
2011 in the Mystery/Romantic Suspense/Thriller category. PERILOUS SHADOWS,
third in the series released July, 2012, and DARKEST HOUR, the fourth in the
series released in February, 2013. She
is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and the Edgy Christian
Fiction Lovers (Ning). http://nikechillemi.wordpress.com/
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