Murder on the Mountain

By Cassandra Clairage

Caro Austin's neighbor has committed suicide after a long battle with mental health problems--or has she? Caro becomes drawn in when she soon finds herself a suspect in the death of a sex offender, with only attorney Prentiss Tompkins to defend her. Nothing is as it seems in this case of decades old crime, child molestation, impersonation, and even a possible rekindled romantic flame. This may be Caro's last chance to find happiness; will she take it?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cassandra Clairage
• Release date: Nov 29, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311988942

Cassandra Clairage

Award winning Alabama author Cassandra Clairage lives in historic downtown Athens with her husband and two Maine Coon cats. You'll find her works on Smashwords, Barnes and Noble, and other sites featuring the finest in modern fiction.

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Caro Loves a Mystery: Murder on the Mountain

Copyright 2015 Cassandra Clairage

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Sirens screamed, seemingly close by, and Caro blinked the eye that wasn’t buried in her pillow. What time…? Before Caro Austin could mentally finish the question, she again plummeted into the world of sweet sleep from which she had been so rudely pulled on the dawn of what promised to be a perfect spring day.

*****

Did you hear, Miss Caro? Lou eagerly opened the door to the Chat-N-Chew diner for the younger blond woman, indeed Colbert County’s bestselling author. Your neighbor shot her boyfriend last night, then killed herself.

Caro hadn’t heard, but she was pretty sure whatever the story was, it would seem more interesting after she had consumed today’s special—barbecued ribs. Why hadn’t she worn an old tee-shirt? Most of the lunch crowd had already returned to whatever their usual day held for them, and Caro planned on eating her ribs just the way she liked them…messy.

Sitting at a booth, Caro smiled at her friend Lou Mitchell and ordered ribs with coconut pie. Once the stocky waitress handed the written order to Joe in the kitchen, Caro was sure she’d be bombarded with all the details of the most recent crime to rock the area in which she’d grown up. Sometimes her childhood home was what friends in L.A. would call boring, but acclaimed mystery writer Caro Austin knew differently. She never failed to find new fodder for the adventures of her detective creation Tisha Banks among the foibles of those who called northwest Alabama home.

Caro barely had time to check her phone before Lou brought out what had to be the largest order of ribs she had ever seen. Good; Caro would eat while her friend talked.

"It was Miss Kitty Samanski. You know, just up the side road from your house. Nobody even knew she had