By
USA Today Bestselling Author
Teresa Reasor

Superstition, Kentucky harbors the largest supernatural population in the state. Mythical creatures and people with unusual abilities rub shoulders with average men and women in the small mountain town.

Vet Harper Montgomery has a secret. She’s a powerful psychic who hides behind her professional persona—until she has a vision of a child being abducted and rescues her.

When she starts experiencing more unusual visions and reports them, she captures a Superstition police detective’s interest.

Detective Miles Barrett is new to Superstition, Kentucky, and unaware of the hidden part of the population he serves, until he meets Harper. He doesn’t believe in her ability, but he’s searching for a monster who’s already killed four women while leaving behind almost no evidence, so he’s willing to give Harper a chance.

For the first time in her life, Harper is having more and more trouble controlling her gift, until she realizes she’s under attack by an evil too powerful to comprehend.

This book grabs you right on the first page with Harper Montgomery waking with a vision. A vision that is happening now, not in the future. A child is in danger and she has to help.

When Detective Miles Barrett gets the call about a body, I had to chuckle, his cat Phoebe is a typical cat especially when disturbed. However, the body is intimately connected to the other cases they’ve been looking into.

When Harper manages to rescue the child and get her to the hospital, she’s not totally truthful with the detectives. She can’t tell them about her visions, the reactions she’s had in the past are proof of that.

When Miles goes to interview Harper further, their attraction is immediate and they both manage to suppress it. There could be nothing between them until this case closes anyway.

As the investigation goes forward the leads are few and far between, Miles intercepted a reporter who was hoping to figure out who helped the girl and stopped him from looking further into the vet clinic staff.

He also finds himself unable to put Harper out of his mind so when he goes for a run and spots her, he joins her run. They agree to also have breakfast together as they continue their run. That’s delayed when they come upon an injured swan.

This is a favorite scene.

Harper kept busy calming the swan, murmuring soothing nonsense and moving her hand over the area that seemed injured and infusing the calm she was striving for toward the bird. She retrieved her phone from her zipped pocket and dialed a familiar number. “Ben, do you know anyone who is an expert in birds, especially?”

“Yeah, I just happen to know someone.”

“Of course you do.” She chuckled. “I have an injured swan at the jogging park. She’s got a fish hook embedded in her wing and the line is wrapped around her body. I think she’s been like this for a couple of days.”

“I’ll call him. He can be there in twenty minutes. His name is Charlie Harris.”

“He lives here?”

“Yeah. He rescues birds and relocates them.”

“Tell him to hurry. I’ve got a crowd gathering here, and I may need some help.”

“Will do.”

As she shut out the call, Miles returned.

“Shove everything toward me. You’re large, and she might mistake you for a predator. Can you call Gabby to you?”

Miles rolled the bottle of water toward her first, then the wire cutters and pliers. The med kit came last. She removed some hand sanitizer from the medical kit, cleaned her hands and the pliers, then put gloves on. She soothed the bird with soft strokes, then eased back the feathers and studied the hook embedded in the wing and decided there was no easy way to remove it other than backing it out. It was embedded in the edge of the wing just below where it was attached to the bird’s body. She gripped the curve of the hook with the pliers and turned her wrist as she pulled with steady pressure. The barb of the hook hung on for a moment, then finally came loose. The swan made a loud, snorting sound and stretched her neck.

Harper froze, hoping the swan wasn’t going to attack. Her dark orange beak was only inches from Harper’s face but instead of attacking, the bird rested her head on Harper’s shoulder, as though relieved.

Drawing a long, relieved breath herself, Harper allowed the wound to bleed a moment before putting a piece of gauze over the injury and applying pressure while she studied the hook. It looked new, but if it had been baited and cast in the water, it could have bacteria on it.

She wasn’t a bird expert, but she hoped the poor thing wouldn’t develop an infection. To that end, she applied a liberal amount of antibiotic ointment to the injury and sent some healing heat toward the puncture wound.

Taking her time, her movements slow and easy, she started unwinding the fishing line from around the bird’s body a strand at a time. When it was too tangled to pull on, she cut the ends with scissors from the med kit, wound each around her hand until she reached the end, then found another. If she didn’t get it all, the bird might ingest some of it, creating an even more life-threatening scenario.

She was almost finished when the swan suddenly stretched, spreading both wings and flapping them, and in the process shed several pieces of the line herself.

Harper gave her one more thorough check, then smiled, relieved. “You’re going to be just fine.”

A tall, thin man wearing a baseball hat approached, but stayed ten or so feet away. “Hey, I’m Charlie.”

His demeanor was so calm, his stance so loose-jointed and nonthreatening, he almost seemed a shadow. “Hi, Charlie.”

“I have a cage ready, but I don’t think we’ll need it. I think you’ve done just about everything anyone can.”

“I’m concerned about infection.”

“How big is the injury?”

“Just a small puncture wound from a fishing hook.”

“There are antibiotics you can give, but the trauma of confining her until she takes a two-week supply will be worse. Cold weather is coming, she needs to migrate, and most of the flock is gone already. Being trapped here during the winter will be worse for her. She looks healthy. My call is it’s better to take the risk than keep her. If she stays and can’t migrate, she may imprint on us and that may put her in danger.” His gaze shifted to the crowd of people surrounding them.

The swan made up their minds for them by rising. She gave a honking call, then took a running start down the bank, flapped her wings, and flew. The crowd behind them clapped.

Harper stood to watch her. The bird circled twice, then landed on the water, immediately took several drinks, and then preened.

The crowd began to disperse, and she heard several complimentary comments from people as they passed. She spotted Miles standing with Gabby and sent him a relieved smile. He approached her with the dog.

Harper introduced Miles to Charlie, then said, “I appreciate you coming as backup, Charlie.”

“That’s what I do. Not that you needed me.”

“You never told me you were a swan whisperer,” Miles commented.

“I didn’t realize I was. I think she was just so exhausted from fighting the fishing line that she knew she needed help.”

“When she laid her head on your shoulder, I couldn’t believe it. I got some pictures.” He pulled it up on his phone and handed it to her. “I’ll send it to you so you can have a copy and maybe print it.”

Harper studied the picture. He’d zoomed in on her face with the swan’s head on her shoulder. It was a beautiful picture of mutual trust.

“Can I see it?” Charlie asked. He took the phone and looked at the pictures. “That’s truly the damnedest thing I’ve ever seen. That and the fact you didn’t have to secure her in something or strap her.” He handed Miles the phone. “You must have a special gift with animals.”

His comment was light but his eyes focused on her with more interest. Knowing Ben, Charlie was likely one of his special people, and he was wondering if she was too. “Sometimes I’m able to earn their trust. But the fishing line held her in place for me,” Harper said.

“She’ll remember you when you come back to the park. Swans have good memories.”

“That would be nice, but I hope she stays healthy, and after a couple of day’s recovery flies south with the rest of the flock.”

“They’re called a bank when they’re on the ground and a wedge when they’re in flight. I live close by. I’ll swing by tomorrow and check on her for you, if you like,” Charlie said. “I’ll call if she has an issue.”

“Thank you. I appreciate it. I’ll be at work at the Superstition Vet Clinic.”
Teresa J. Reasor. Deep Within The Mind (Kindle Locations 766-818). Teresa J. Reasor. Kindle Edition.

I was pretty impressed with Harper’s skills, swans aren’t known as very friendly birds, but then her gift is helpful there. She’s really hoping her involvement with Miles’ investigation is done, she doesn’t want to tell the detectives about her visions. Unfortunately, that’s not to be and Miles’ reaction is just what she’d expected.

From the start there has been chemistry between Miles and Harper and as the story continues this goes from a simmer to sizzle. The investigation also book just ramps up and there are several twists to keep you guessing right to the end.

I can’t wait to read the next book in this series.

5 Contented Purrs for Teresa!

Teresa J. Reasor

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Teresa Reasor was born in Southeastern Kentucky, but grew up a Marine Corps brat. The love of reading instilled in her in Kindergarten at Parris Island, South Carolina made books her friends during the many transfers her father’s military career entailed. The transition from reader to writer came easily and she was a closet novelist for many years until 2007 when her first book was published.

After twenty-one years as an Art Teacher and ten years as a part time College Instructor, she’s now retired and living her dream as a full time Writer.

Her body of work includes both full-length novels and shorter pieces in many different genres, Military Romantic Suspense, Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, Historical Romance, Contemporary Romance, and Children’s Books.