Favorite sentences: It was faith in God that would bring her husband home. Even a lucky penny or dime declared, "In God we trust."

Free Excerpt:

Rod joined the search party to help investigate his dad's disappearance. It'd disbanded at

nightfall and picked up the search again at daybreak, but they'd found no sign of his dad. Rod

guided a canoe deep into the marshes and swamps. He'd hunted with his father many times in

these wetlands so he knew where to check. No word or sign of his father made the cold,

Christmas season stab like an ice pick, and his heart ached for his mother, left alone.

He slid the canoe through a wall of cypress trees, deeper and deeper into the heart of the

swamp. He figured his father headed for the hills. White cranes flew from the cypress limbs. The

canoe hit a cypress knee, and Rod gently eased it around a few more. The way they stuck out of

the shallow water, like protruding nubs, they reminded him of his grandmother's warning finger

wagging in his face. They could tear a hole in the bottom of a boat. Thank God my boat survived

the lick. Maybe that's what happened to Dad.

Finally, after twelve hours of searching, Rod spotted his dad's pirogue on the side of the

hill, where they'd hunted the previous year. He tied his canoe to a tree limb. "Dad!" He raced to

the dome tent and unzipped the door. "Dad?" The tent looked as if his dad made camp, but hadn't

yet used it. The sleeping bag was still rolled up in a corner. The butt of his dad's 30-30 stuck out

from under a sleeping bag. The supplies were still there. Outside, there was no sign of a

campfire. It looked as though he never got to hunt. There was no sign of him. Where was he?

Rod picked up the rifle and carried it back to his canoe. He left the other items in case his

dad returned looking for them.

They searched until dark. Rod dreaded giving his mother the disappointing news. She'd

worry even more, because the pirogue was in perfect condition and so was the tent. No leaking

pirogue kept him from coming home. The campsite looked peaceful and serene, not like anything

bad had happened, but still there was no sign of his father.

Mom's on pins and needles, yet she clings to her faith and trust in God. I hear her

faithfully pray for Dad's safe return. Maybe she won't fall apart when she hears the news but oh,

how I dread having to tell her.

A Louisiana swamp, superstitious woman, an accident, April flood, strawberry season, a black cat and a white one. What will come of it all? Can a young couple's love survive this obstacle course? Can Andy convince her they're more than friends? Can he win her mother, Mrs. Myrtle over and be the son she never had? Available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble.com, Desert Breeze Publishing, Kobo, Sony, and Christianbook.com.