Warrenton, New York and San Luis, Baja Sur, Mexico – The Present

PURSUIT starts with an evil plan. Robert Haine is CEO of Court Industries, but his substantial salary is not enough for his satisfaction. Established in 1854, Court Industries is the basis of the Court family’s fabulous wealth. There are only two members of that family left, Philip Court and his artistic daughter, Charlotte. Philip is dying of cancer, and Charlotte has suspended her life to stay close to him until the end. For Haine, Philip isn’t dying fast enough, and Charlotte has spurned his courtship, thwarting his first plan to take over the company. At the end of May, Haine plans on becoming a billionaire when the Pentagon signs a contract for his secret Proteus Project. It’s February now, and as he waits, one of his men, the head of Court Industries’ security, is at the hospital finalizing a violent corporate takeover.

When Haine learns something went wrong, that Charlotte escaped his trap, without flinching he uses his resources and influence to make sure Charlotte is accused of murdering her father. When she escapes the warrants out for her arrest and manages to disappear, he goes one step further and hires an assassin to find and kill her.

Wounded, Charlotte had escaped the hospital, but she realized what happened. She recognized her father’s killer. She saw Haine outside the police department talking to the chief of police, she saw the armed men at the gate to the family mansion, and she heard the radio reports. In a perilous flight, Charlotte made her way to San Luis, Baja Sur, Mexico.

From her rented beach house, Charlotte watches a courageous man with horrific scars try to rebuild his body. In the small community, it isn’t hard to discover the man’s identity. Matt Sanders is a former Navy Seal wounded in Afghanistan.

The chemistry slowly builds between Matt and Charlotte, strangers but both attracted to each other. Charlotte’s situation makes it impossible for her to trust anyone, even Matt. He, however, isn’t known for retreating or giving-up, especially when he guesses Charlotte needs his protection. The heat these two generate isn’t due only to the balmy Mexican weather.

In PURSUIT, the good are truly fine people, the evil are loathsome. All are drawn, almost over-drawn, with great attention to detail, as are the plot and the setting. There is one particularly gruesome scene, but it only emphasizes the danger hanging over Charlotte. PURSUIT is an enveloping read that will take over your day and night and should come with a warning: emotionally draining.

Robin Lee