The Mother

This book will tear you apart.

A mother’s love is everything.

“A teenage boy from Port Rainier has been airlifted to Harbor Hill Hospital. Critical injuries.”

My heart crawls up my throat, and I grip the table. Lost for words. Tears fill my eyes. Ezra.

I already lost my husband to a tragic accident.

I can’t lose my son, too.

I call him again, not wanting to believe the worst. That he hasn’t picked up because he’s the boy in the helicopter.

I check back at the house. Ezra’s been in his room playing video games all night. His phone died. Relief washes through me. He’s okay. But the boy in the hospital is Ezra’s childhood friend Daniel. He was attacked out on the clay fields and left for dead.

The next day I go down to the basement to put on a load of laundry. Ezra’s clothes are in the machine.

Pulse quickening, my hands shake as I stretch the fabric of my son’s clothing, taking in the enormity of what I hold.

I know my stains. My newspaper column is filled with household advice. How to make your floorboards shine. How to treat a pesky stain.

This is no ordinary stain. It’s a bloodstain. A pair of dark denim blue jeans size 31x34, caked in orange clay and dark red blood.

Daniel was beaten to within an inch of his life out on the clay fields. Now he’s on life support.

I know my son can’t be responsible for this. But I can’t stop the nagging thoughts in the back of my mind . . . He’s been so distant ever since his father died.

How well do I really know my boy?

Perfect for fans of Freida McFadden, Jeneva Rose, Colleen Hoover and Keri Beevis.

Please note this is a revised edition of Secrets Mothers Keep.