Feature Friday - by Kelly McMullen Lowe

★.•*¨*★☆Feature Friday☆★*¨*•.★

Title & Author: Shawland Security: Book 1 by Kelly McMullen Lowe

  

★✩★AMAZON PRE-ORDER NOW LIVE ★✩★
Link: Amazon UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Shawland-Security-book-KM-Lowe-ebook/dp/B07N6H1WMJ/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?keywords=shawl+and+security+by+km+lowe&qid=1555094303&s=gateway&sr=8-1-fkmr0

Amazon .com - https://www.amazon.com/Shawland-Security-book-KM-Lowe-ebook/dp/B07N6H1WMJ/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?keywords=shawl+and+security+by+km+lowe&qid=1555094303&s=gateway&sr=8-1-fkmr0

★✩★SYNOPSIS ★✩★
Shawland Security (Book 1)

Shawland Security was a fresh start for Caleb Shawland

Caleb thought that leaving his detective status behind would let him sleep easy at night. He’d be his own boss. He’d finally be able to settle down and have a life. Only, that doesn’t last long.

When Caleb’s ex-partner from the CPD walks into his office and mentions Aria Marshall, his world turns upside down in a heartbeat.

Aria Marshall was his one true love.

Aria Marshall has spent all of her adult life helping people less fortunate in third world countries. Her return home to Chicago was supposed to be the next chapter of her life, only she didn’t expect a predator to be waiting in the wings. She didn’t expect the next ten years of her life to vanish. Only it did, and now she needs to find a way to deal with the abuse and violence she faced.

The moment Caleb stumbles back into Aria’s life, he knows for sure he'll do anything to protect her. No matter what that may be.

Will Caleb capture her predator before any more innocent girls find themselves in Aria’s position.

Will Aria ever be able to get over her ordeal?

★✩★Sneaky Excerpt  ★✩★

     “Taxi.” I hold my hand out to a passing car.

     It’s freezing. The temperature out in Africa is completely different to here. I guess I’ve got used to humid temperatures, not Antarctica temperatures, and believe me, this feels like Antarctica. Snow is lying on the ground, frost and ice is glistening on the roads. It’s like a new experience for me after being away from Chicago for so long.

     A few cabs pass by me, and by now, I’m getting frustrated. I just want to get home to surprise my family, and to get warm.

     I haven’t been home in three years. Skype calls were the only means I had of communicating with my loved ones, and that was only when I was in certain areas. That’s why communication has been limited, but my family understands that I was following my heart, doing a job I love, helping people less fortunate than myself. They brought me up to be kind and compassionate. They tell me every time we communicate how proud of me they are.

      “Come on!” I wave my bag out again.

     I kind of feel like a crazy person, yelling, stomping my feet, and getting frustrated about being ignored. Why have I missed city life?

      A yellow cab pulls in up ahead of me. I stand still, just in case it’s for someone else. But the guy gets out, opens his trunk, and says. “You need a ride?”

     I sigh with relief. Finally, the last leg of my journey. I tell him my parents’ address and get in the back seat. I feel the warmth of his vehicle and shiver as I shut out the cold.

    I’m finally going home. The next phase of my life can begin.

     “Been on holiday?” The driver starts the engine and looks at me through his mirror.

     “Work. I was an aid worker in Africa. Just returning home to surprise my family.”

     I blow warm air into my hands and rub them together.

     I look out at the bright lights that surround Chicago. It does feel good to be home. The busy nightlife, traffic, and city life seeps back into my pores. I close my eyes and take in a steady deep breath.

     I’ve missed home. I’ve missed my family and my old friends. I’ve missed it all… even the Antarctica conditions. There comes a point in your life that you need to be surrounded by familiar things. This is my time.

    When I open my eyes, I notice we’ve steered off the route I expected us to take. I sit up straighter in my seat, because for all I know, roads have changed since the last time I was home. There could be a quicker route for us to get there. Infrastructure is always changing in cities. I might just be over-reacting.

      We pull down a dirt track, nowhere near where I expected to be. The hairs on the back of my neck rise, shivers run through my body, and my heartrate increases. Something suddenly doesn’t feel right to me. I look for the cab driver’s badge that usually hangs over the inside mirror, but there’s nothing there.

     “Where are we? This isn’t the way to my address.”

     I try to rifle through my bag to find my cell, but my hands are beginning to shake.

     “I’m taking you home.” He sniggers.

      I see his eyes in the mirror. They’re glaring lifelessly back at me. Now I know I’m not over-reacting. This guy is crazy. Why didn’t I see that before I entered the vehicle? Why did my mind have to be preoccupied? I internally smack myself for being so stupid.

     “This isn’t the way to my home. Just pull over. I’ll find my own way there.”

     I finally find my cell phone and try to push the on button, but a bump in the track knocks it flying out of my hand. I bend down to get it, but another knock bangs my head on the seat in front of me.

     How can my contentment be taken away so quickly by fear?

     “You are home, little one.”

     He gets out of the cab and I try to open my door to run, but it remains closed. The safety locks are in place, and I feel like a caged animal, awaiting its fate.

     Fuck.

     My door opens and I’m hauled out of the seat by my arm, falling over my feet, landing on all fours. He pushes himself against my backside. I feel his body leaning over the back of me. His hands run through my long hair, sniffing it as it falls around my face.

      “We’re going to have some fun. You’ll like that, won’t you, little one?”

     My fight instinct kicks in and I barrel my elbow into his groin. He falls backwards, giving me time to get up, but it’s short-lived. He captures me again, throws me to the ground, and bangs my head off the concrete. I see stars. I’m dizzy and disorientated.

     My last thought before blackness overtakes me is, this is it. He’s going to kill me.

★✩★Author Links★✩★

Facebook: www.facebook.com/authorkmlowe

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/KMLOWE

Twitter: www.twitter.com/KMLOWE86

Instagram: www.instagram.com/author_k.m_lowe