Terri Reed's latest Release from Love Inspired Suspense.
I can't wait to read this, and I'm hoping you won't be able to resist it either.
Thanks L.A for having me as your guest today. Did you know that dogs can literally taste the air? In doing research for my K-9 officer, a water search and rescue dog name True for my book Guardian, I discovered that dogs not only have wonderful noses that can detect human scent from the bodily gases rising to the surface in or under water, they also have an organ inside their nasal cavity and into the upper part of their mouth that also is used to smell the air. This special receptor is called Jacobson’s Organ. Many animals have this organ but in dog’s it is highly sensitive, which is why dogs are so good at searching and rescue, both on land and in water.
Excerpt From Guardian:
When they were within shouting distance of the rocks, Leo noticed fishing poles and a tackle box. This must have been where Alicia and her son had been when they’d seen the killer.
Alicia pointed upstream and yelled, “He came from that direction and stopped about three hundred and sixty feet straight out from here.” She gestured to the rocks beneath her feet.
“That’s helpful and gives us a place to start.” Leo stared, admiring the pretty lady. Her hair lifted slightly in the wind that had kicked up. Sunlight reflected in her piercing blue eyes. “You and the officers can head back to the station.” He didn’t want her here to see the body when they found the victim.
Alicia shook her head. “I want to make sure she’s found. Someone has to stand up for her.”
Respecting her decision, he saluted her then turned to Craig. “You heard the lady.”
Craig slowly turned the boat toward the middle of the river. True stood on the bow, his head up, gaze alert. Leo tuned into the dog’s nuances the farther away from shore they traveled. He documented the time and distance from land on the notepad he carried. They circled the area where Alicia had pointed. True showed no signs of alerting.
“Head downstream,” Leo instructed Craig.
Since the body hadn’t been weighted down, it most likely had been swept along by the river’s current. Craig zigzagged the boat from one shore to the other, moving farther and farther away from the spot. Leo wondered if maybe the suspect had come back and removed the woman’s body. Frustration curled in his stomach.
Then True shifted. He licked his lips and shuffled his paws, clear signs he was picking up a scent. Leo’s pulse jumped. The dog’s tail went down as he craned his neck, dipping his nose toward the water. He pivoted, and then leaned over the starboard side. Keeping his snout at the surface of the water, True walked the length of the boat and stepped easily over the bench seat.
Anticipation revving through him, Leo gestured for Craig to make a slow turn. True retraced his steps, barking an alert. He scratched and nipped at the water. Knowing the animal had scent glands in the roof of his mouth, Leo interpreted these actions as the sign this was the spot.
“Good boy.” Leo grasped True’s life vest to keep the dog from jumping in.
Leo nodded at Craig, who shut off the motor, then strapped on a buoyance compensator, his mask and oxygen tank. The man sat on the side of the boat and fell backward into the water. True barked and lunged for the water. Leo continued to hold him back.
“No, boy,” Leo said adjusting his grip on True. “We’re staying here.”
Leo and True both watched the surface of the river. Leo pulled on latex gloves in anticipation of handling the body and prepared the large, waterproof plastic body bag. His gaze darted back to the shore, where Alicia stood sentinel on the rocks, flanked by the two officers.
She held her head up and her shoulders back like a fierce warrior. She was tall and so very appealing. He admired her commitment to being a voice for the victim. Most people would want to bail the second they could. Not Alicia. He liked that about her.
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The Blurb:
PROTECTING THE SINGLE MOM
When a fellow FBI agent is kidnapped and a protected witness vanishes, Leo Gallagher will stop at nothing to find them both. So when he discovers a link between the case and a single mother in Wyoming, Leo and his trusty K-9 partner rush to question Alicia Duncan.
Could she be the key to locating the missing persons? Not if a killer has anything to say about it. Someone is determined to keep Alicia from talking, so Leo and his chocolate Lab must keep her and her little boy safe on their family ranch. With danger lurking around every corner, Leo must work overtime to not lose another person who’s important to him.
Classified K-9 Unit:
These lawmen solve the toughest cases with the help of their brave canine partners.
Bio:
Terri Reed’s romance and romantic suspense novels have appeared on Publisher’s Weekly top 25, Nielsen’s Bookscan top 100 and featured in USA Today, Christian Fiction Magazine and Romantic Times Magazine, finaled in RWA’s RITA contest, National Reader’s Choice Award contest, ACFW’s The Carol Award contest.
Contact Terri: P.O. Box 19555 Portland, OR 97224
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