The Man From Falcon Ridge

The Man From Falcon Ridge
Rita Herron

Escaping a nightmarish past, Hailey Hitchcock fled to a remote Victorian homestead…and fell into the arms of an avenging stranger.Old ghosts echoed through Tin City's "hatchet house," reviving memories of the bloodbath that had taken place within its dilapidated walls. But was it Hailey's unsettling recollections - or Rex Falcon's formidable presence - that sent chills up her spine? When chaos abounded on the blustery cliffside, the primitive falcon trainer swooped to Hailey's rescue.Yet Rex's dark, piercing eyes and tightly coiled strength posed an even greater danger. As escalating threats aroused their forbidden desires, it became clear the house held all the secret answers. Secrets that someone would kill to keep hidden…

The wind hurled a branch across the window, the scraping sound reminding Hailey that she was alone.

She combed the stairs, but found nothing. No sign of the ghost of the child she’d thought she’d seen. The noise must have been the wind blowing debris on the roof.

Still shaken, she pushed back the heavy drape and stared into the darkness, searching for signs that someone was nearby. A light burned from the big stone house at the top of the hill.

Rex Falcon.

Her body grew hot just thinking about his dark eyes.

He was big. Strong. A towering specimen of a man with a muscular body that emanated strength and power. The kind of man who could protect a woman.

The kind who could hurt her with those big hands.

She didn’t intend to get involved with him. Men were trouble.

Especially one as dangerous looking as Rex Falcon.

The Man From Falcon Ridge

Rita Herron

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Award-winning author Rita Herron wrote her first book when she was twelve, but didn’t think real people grew up to be writers. Now she writes so she doesn’t have to get a real job. A former kindergarten teacher and workshop leader, she traded her storytelling for kids for romance, and writes romantic comedies and romantic suspense. She lives in Georgia with her own romance hero and three kids. She loves to hear from readers so please write her at P.O. Box 921225, Norcross, GA 30092-1225, or visit her Web site at www.ritaherron.com.

CAST OF CHARACTERS

Hailey Hitchcock—A woman running from a past she doesn’t remember into a future just as terrifying as the nightmares that plague her.

Rex Falcon—A man determined to find the real killer behind the Hatchet Murders.

Randolph Falcon—Rex’s father. He’s spent the past twenty years of his life in jail for killing the Lyle family—but is he really guilty?

Deke and Brack Falcon—Rex’s brothers are determined to free their father from prison.

Thad Jordan—A man obsessed with Hailey. Will he kill to keep her his?

Lawrence Lyle—The man and his family were brutally murdered twenty years ago. Did he carry the secrets of his family’s murder to his grave?

Sheriff Andy Cohen—He arrested Rex’s father for murder, but did he have ulterior motives?

Bentley McDaver—The prosecutor put Rex’s father in jail for life. Did he have reason to rush the trial?

Carl Pursley—Rex’s father’s defense attorney. Did he help frame him for the murder?

Lindy Lou Lyle—She died in the Hatchet murders, but now her ghost is haunting Hailey.

Ava Riderton—She was Lyle’s secretary. Does she know more than she’s telling?

To Kim Nadelson:

Thanks for all your enthusiasm and

support with my first gothic!

Contents

Prologue

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

Prologue