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Chapters (62)
  1. Cover
  2. Love best-selling fiction?
  3. Also by McGarvey Black
  4. Dedication
  5. Epigraph
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. 13
  19. 14
  20. 15
  21. 16
  22. 17
  23. 18
  24. 19
  25. 20
  26. 21
  27. 22
  28. 23
  29. 24
  30. 25
  31. 26
  32. 27
  33. 28
  34. 29
  35. 30
  36. 31
  37. 32
  38. 33
  39. 34
  40. 35
  41. 36
  42. 37
  43. 38
  44. 39
  45. 40
  46. 41
  47. 42
  48. 43
  49. 44
  50. 45
  51. 46
  52. 47
  53. 48
  54. 49
  55. 50
  56. 51
  57. 52
  58. 53
  59. Acknowledgements
  60. A note from the publisher
  61. Love best-selling fiction?
  62. You will also enjoy:

“Hello?” said Conner, holding up his weekend bag. “I’m leaving today for five days for in-service training at Quantico, remember? I won’t be home until Saturday early evening. I’ve told you five times.”

“Right, I forgot.”

“We can go bird-watching on Sunday morning,” said Conner with a gotcha smile. “I can’t wait to hear all your new bird knowledge.”

“It’s a date. You’ll be really impressed with how much Audubon stuff I know.”

“What’s going on, Zoe?” said Conner, squinting and tilting his head.

“Nothing,” said Zoe, widening her eyes. “You insisted I stop all my, as you call it, ‘conspiracy theory stuff,’ so I took up bird-watching. I thought you’d be happy about that.”

“Why is my bullshit meter going off?” said Conner. “Remember our deal, no more crazy, deep-state plot stuff. You get way too obsessed and then that little narrative in your head takes over your world, and ultimately takes over mine. Even your therapist said, and I quote, your ‘morbid curiosity and convoluted conclusions affect our marriage in an unhealthy way.’”

“I told you, I’m bird-watching. Robins, blue jays, cardinals, bald eagles.”

“There are no bald eagles in Central Park.”

“There have been sightings.”

“Zoe, if you’re starting in again with the whacky stuff, I’m telling you right now, I’ve got a huge problem with it,” said Conner, tucking a few more items into his travel bag. “Sometimes, I think you married me only because I was in the FBI. You’re always pumping me for information which, by the way, I will never reveal. I don’t want to go down that crazy path with you again. When you get like that you become obsessive and impossible to live with. Let’s not forget how you’ve put my career in jeopardy.”

Zoe flew across the room to her husband and put her arms around him. “Now you’re the one with the conspiracy theory. Nothing’s going on. I’m just watching little woodpeckers peck.”

Conner gave her a look, kissed his wife on the forehead and let out a sigh. “Make sure if you go over to the park you wear your mask and gloves,” he said before he went into their bedroom to finish packing. “And, could you pick up all your crap that’s strewn from one end of this place to the other. Don’t you ever put anything away?”

Zoe let out a sigh of relief when her husband left the room. That was close. How could I have been so careless to leave those binoculars out? Bald eagles? Even I think that sounds stupid.

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