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Harry wants out. The daily grind has ground him down and his dreams are fading fast. Desperate times call for desperate measures and as a last-ditch resort he fakes his own death to claim on the insurance planning to set himself up on Easy Street. Wife Lena has her doubts. Harry’s always had a hand in the hustle, but going for broke was never his style. She goes along for the ride just to see how far he’ll take it, down Mexico way, returning “widowed” and soon-to-be wealthy, waits out the weeks till they can reunite. Only Harry sounds funny on the phone. And she knows how he gets when he’s been drinking. Then there’s the irreversible nature of death to consider. Harry’s scheme is seamless but the s
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Extract
Prologue
If I’ve learned one thing it’s that you can never really know someone. Really know them I mean. You live with a man. You learn his ways and moods, his strengths and weaknesses. You come to count on them like you count on the sunrise. Then one day he tells you he’s done with it. The work is too hard and years have caught up with him. The ends no longer justify the means, not just for him, but for you too. And you know he’s been thinking about it. You’ve felt him toss and turn at night and you’ve caught him staring into space. Maybe it’s age or maybe it’s envy, but he suddenly wants so much more out of life, more time and more excitement . . . but mostly more money.
So you tell yourself it’s a mid-life crisis. Chalk it up to male menopause and let him blow off steam. But you can’t help thinking what he’s saying makes sense. It is a crazy way to live. Trade your time for a paycheck and watch life pass right through you. You may think you’re content, but you’ve spent your life in self-denial. If you could see how the haves live you’d hang yourself.
Then he tells you he has a plan. He’s had plans before, some good ones in fact, so you listen. But this plan isn’t like the others. This one makes you wonder who this man really is. He says this plan will set you both free and give you back the rest of your lives.
All you have to do is kill someone. A total stranger, one life for two. And you see this man as you’ve never seen him. And you find yourself wondering if his plan might work.
Thank you, Tom Larsen and Random Things Tours
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About the author
Tom Larsen and his wife lived in the Pennsport section of South Philadelphia – home to Mummers, Flyers and that screw you slant that made this city great – for a decade in the 90s then moved away, then back again. Where the heart is, yo. For a writer auditioning characters, the 19148 zip code is a casting gold mine.
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Book Link
B for Bookreview 