InSight

dead all over again.
    She moved into him and raised her hands to his face. “I love you, Luke. Nothing you told me makes any difference. You didn’t kill your father. Even if you gave him the pill, he was a dead man. Some force more powerful than you took him at his moment, and that moment waited until you learned what really happened all those years before. Your mother never left you. When she walked out the door, she loved you as much as I do.”
    “I know that, but I let my father die in front of me, Abby, even if he didn’t deserve a place on this earth. I purposely stood there and watched a man die. But the worst part was Joey leaving and not wanting to be found. He never hurt anyone. I should’ve protected him. I should’ve ― ”
    She covered his mouth with her hand. “You didn’t know. How could you? You’ve paid the penalty by hating yourself far too long. It was the only punishment that made sense to you. You can’t spend the rest of your life paying for something over which you had no control. This is no different than you convincing me I couldn’t have stopped Stewart from killing Macy by remembering something I wasn’t capable of remembering. No different.”
    “Keep telling me that. I need you to say it, to know it, because I need to believe it.”
    “I will, Luke. Every day until you do. You’ve released what you’ve held in so long. That’s the first step in ridding yourself of the guilt that’s consumed you. There’s no punishment for what you’ve done because you deserve none.” She put her arms around him. “I love you, Luke McCallister.
    “And I need you.”
    “What? Would you repeat that last sentence? I’m not sure I read you right.”
    “You did. I said I need you.”
    “Abigael Gallant, you’ve made my day. No, not my day. My life.”

Epilogue
    Sunlight

    A bby dug her feet into the warm sand, unplugged the audio book from her ears, and heard the ocean play its magical music. Her face absorbed the sun’s rays, making wrinkles she’d never see, but she didn’t care because every so often Luke’s hand brushed her arm to remind her he was still there. Like she didn’t know.
    “Come on,” he said. “Let’s go for a swim.”
    He pulled her up, and she wrapped her hand around his arm as they walked toward the water. Daisy followed close behind.
    “Okay, take hold,” Luke said when they got to the water’s edge.
    She put her hand in his and felt his strength. Felt the trust.
    “At the count of three, run straight ahead. Ready?”
    “I’m ready.”
    “One.
    “Two.
    “Three."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

    Polly Iyer was born in a coastal city north of Boston, Massachusetts. After studying at Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston , she lived in Italy , Atlanta , and now resides in the beautiful Piedmont region of South Carolina in an empty nest house with her husband and family pets. Writing novels turned into her passion after careers in fashion, art, and business. Now she spends her time being quite the hermit in comfortable clothes she wouldn't be caught dead wearing on the outside, while she devises ways for life to be complicated for her characters. Better them than her.

    Learn more about Polly and her books at
    www.PollyIyer.com

    Following is an excerpt from
    Murder Déjà Vu
    I hope you enjoy it



Murder Déjà Vu

    Chapter One
    A Meeting of the Minds

    W hat did a man born rich and privileged look like after spending fifteen years in prison and another six hiding in these mountains? Dana parked her Jeep in the gravel driveway next to a rough-looking pickup and skirted around the house to the back. Reece Daughtry sat in an Adirondack chair on the dock, reading. A johnboat bobbed in the lake, complete with fishing rod and tackle box. After swiveling around to see his intruder, he turned back to his book.
    A booming voice echoed over the water. “What do you want?”
    “A fireplace.”
    “I’m not working now.”
    Undeterred, she kept going, waiting for him to tell her she was trespassing. He didn’t. A few well-fed cats poked their heads out of the greenery lining the rock stairs down to the lake. Another snuggled under his chair, and a three-legged mutt hobbled to greet her.
    “Hey, pooch, how’ya doing?” She bent down to rub him, and the dog wiggled his excitement. “Nice dog.”
    “Maybe you didn’t hear me. I’m not building fireplaces right now.”
    He finally turned, and she had her answer. Unshaven, leather-tanned, and lean,