âShanna, we got a hit on one of the prints at the crime scene,â the lab technician said.
âWho is it?â she asked eagerly, glancing at Quinn beside her. An identity would get them one step closer to finding the killer.
âThis is going to be a bit of a shock,â the technician continued. âWe have a set of fingerprints matching a child whoâs been missing for fourteen years.â
A child? Missing for fourteen years? No. Oh, no. Her stomach twisted. She grabbed the edge of the doorframe for support. âWho?â
âYour sister. Skylar Dawson.â
Skylar. It was Shannaâs fault her little sister had been kidnapped fourteen years ago. Her fault that her parents had divorced, destroying what was left of their family. After fourteen years of not knowing anything, those fingerprints meant that Skylar was alive!
But her sisterâs prints were found at the crime scene, which made her one of the many suspects in Quinnâs half brotherâs death.
Dear Reader,
Iâve always been fascinated by the forensic work of crime-scene investigators. Science was my favorite subject in college, and Iâm impressed at how tiny microscopic details can assist in capturing the bad guys. As a result, I decided to make CSI work the focus of my next few stories.
Shanna Dawson carries a secret guiltâshe knows itâs her fault her younger sister was kidnapped fourteen years ago. Shanna believes Skylar is likely dead, even though the FBI has never found her, and becomes a CSI investigator to help bring other victims the closure sheâd never have.
Campus police officer Quinn Murphy is no stranger to guilt, especially when his younger half brother is murdered at a college party. When Shannaâs missing sisterâs fingerprints show up at Quinnâs brotherâs crime scene, he decides Shannaâs sister is the missing link to his brotherâs murderer.
Past secrets, guilt, love and faith are the main themes in Proof of Life. I hope you enjoy Shanna and Quinnâs story. Iâm always thrilled to hear from my readers, and I can be reached through my website at www.laurascottbooks.com.
Yours in faith,
Laura Scott
Crime-scene investigator Shanna Dawson paused on the threshold to gather her bearings. The dilapidated four-room house reeked of stale beer, cigarette smoke, greasy fast food and the rancid horror of death. As a CSI, she was more accustomed to the latter than the former.
The interior of the house, located a few blocks from Carlyle University, a private college outside of Chicago, was a pigsty; fast-food containers, smelly clothes, dirty dishes and empty beer cans were strewn everywhere. Talk about a CSIâs nightmare.
For a moment she imagined the kids who lived there. The victim, Brady Wallace, was a young college student who shared the place with three other guys. Yet despite the mess, she imagined this was the type of place the so-called popular kids would gravitate to for parties. A college studentâs version of fun and excitement.
Not hers, though. During her four years of college sheâd never been invited to student gatherings. The party scene had never appealed to her. She was too serious, too introspective to indulge in lighthearted activities.
Fun hadnât been a part of her world in a long time.
Suppressing a sigh, she got to work. There was so much evidence to collect, sheâd easily be here for hours. As she walked through the foyer and into the living room, she overheard two cops arguing.
âThis is a homicide investigation, Murphy. Campus police donât have jurisdiction over homicides.â
âI know. But this incident occurred on my turf. Give me a break, Nelson. The victim is my brother.â
âHalf brother,â the detective corrected.
âBrother just the same.â The campus cop, Murphy, was stubborn. After a long moment where it seemed the homicide cop wasnât going to give in, Murphy sighed and scrubbed a hand along his bristly jaw. âAt least give me the courtesy of keeping me informed of the details of your investigation.â
Murphy snagged her attention, mostly because he was the victimâs half brother and because he didnât look much like the local campus cops she was used to. And not just because of his tall, broad-shouldered good looks. His body appeared to be pure muscle, and he wore his wheat-blond hair military short. His face wasnât handsome in the traditional sense but bore deeply worn grooves of experience, as if heâd carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. His green eyes held the shadows of a deep pain she could relate to. She was inexplicably drawn to him, as if he might be a kindred soul, but she forced herself to turn away, examining the crime scene.
Brady Wallaceâs body was lying on the floor, in the walkway between the living room and the kitchen. His bright red hair was matted with blood, the left side of his skull concave where it had been crushed. A heavy marble rugby trophy was lying on the floor beside him, the four-by-four-inch base covered with hair and blood. She imagined microscopic evidence would confirm the blood and tissue matched the victimâs scalp.