The Truth About Jane Doe

The Truth About Jane Doe
Linda Warren

Christmas Jane Doe, known as C.J., has grown up with one obsession: finding her parents. Unfortunately, it seems they don't want to be found. Now, after years of fruitless searching, three things happen. C.J. is left an unexpected legacy. Someone tries to stop her search. And Matthew Sloan returns to Coberville. Matthew and C.J. work together to solve the mystery of her birth. Because only when they learn the truth about Jane Doe will Coberville's lies and secrets be exposed.Only when C.J. knows who she REALLY is, can she consider a life with Matthew. Which is what she wants most in this whole world. It's what Matthew wants, too. A hometown life, a hometown love….

“My name is Matthew Sloan, Jr., and I’d like to speak with you, Miss Doe. About your…inheritance.”

“What can I do for you, Mr. Sloan, Jr.?” She said his name slowly, drawing out each syllable in a mocking sort of way. She was baiting him, trying to throw him off guard. C. J. Doe wanted the upper hand. As he watched her toss her hair over her shoulder and felt a warmth curl through his stomach, he had to admit she probably already had the upper hand.

“The Townsends would like to make an offer. As you know, they’re eager to get back the land Victoria left you.”

She didn’t respond, just stared at him with unwavering eyes.

Matthew came right to the point. “They’re willing to offer you a million dollars.”

“The land is not for sale.”

“A million dollars, Miss Doe. Think what you could do with all that money. You can travel, leave Coberville, make a new life for yourself.”

“And what would I be called in this new life, Mr. Sloan, Jr.?”

He was taken aback by the question and for once words failed him.

“Money can’t buy my true identity,” she told him. “I would still be Christmas Jane Doe.”

Dear Reader,

Have you ever thought you might be adopted? Have you ever wished you were adopted? Okay, I won’t go there. But have you ever wondered from whom you got certain traits? I guess we all have. In my case, I don’t have to do much wondering. I look like my mother and act like my father, or so I’ve been told. My brothers and I all have brown eyes and brown hair. We’re all different but share a number of characteristics. That’s being part of a family; it’s in our genes.

But what if your background was a blank sheet? No parents, no one to tell you who you looked or acted like…

I thought about this when I read an article in the paper about a baby girl being found on someone’s doorstep. She had no past, no identity; no one knew who she was or where she came from. I sincerely hope she was adopted by a loving family and has a wonderful life. But I couldn’t stop thinking about her. How would she deal with life, especially once she was old enough to understand? How would people treat her? Would she feel driven to find her biological parents?

That’s how Christmas Jane Doe came to me. You’ll read C.J.’s story in the following pages—complete with a handsome hero and a twenty-first-century fairy-tale ending! After such a beginning, she deserved no less.

Hope you enjoy learning The Truth About Jane Doe.

Linda Warren

THE TRUTH ABOUT JANE DOE

Linda Warren

To the hero in my life,

my husband, Billy, my Sonny.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

EPILOGUE

CHAPTER ONE

A CRISP MARCH WIND tugged at the tall stately cedars that stood guard over the Coberville cemetery. Their fanlike branches swayed with faint sighs, befitting the arrival of another funeral procession.

A long black hearse rolled through the gates. An endless stream of cars and trucks followed, lining the graveled entrance and highway. The whole town had turned out to pay its last respects to Matthew Sloan, Sr.—neighbor, friend, confidant and judge to the small Texas town for more than forty years.

Family and close friends gathered beneath a green canopy. Others huddled together on the lawn. Words of love and praise rang out and blended with the wind.

The service over, Matthew Sloan, Jr., escorted his mother to their car. Soft sobs and sad whispers rippled through the crowd. Belle Sloan trembled and Matthew’s arms tightened around her. He hoped he could get her home before she broke down. His parents had been so close, and he worried that his father’s death was going to be too much for her.

He helped his mother into the passenger seat. “Are you all right, Mom?”

Watery blue eyes focused blankly on him. “I’ll be fine, son,” she answered, her voice shaky.