COVER PAGE

PRAY FOR
SILENCE

ALSO BY LINDA CASTILLO

Sworn to Silence

PRAY FOR
SILENCE

LINDA CASTILLO

MINOTAUR BOOKS NEW YORK

DEDICATION

For my husband, Ernest.
Always.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The creative side of writing a novel is only part of what it takes to get a book published. I have many publishing professionals to thank for bringing this one to fruition. First and foremost, I wish to thank my agent, Nancy Yost, who has a brilliant creative mind and unparalleled business savvy, not to mention a wicked sense of humor. All are very much appreciated. Thank you to my New York editor, Charles Spicer, whose razor-sharp instincts and editorial genius always make the book better. To my UK editor, Julie Crisp, whose insights, sharp eye for all the details I miss, and undying passion for a good, scary, thriller shine through all the way across the pond. To Allison Caplin, for bringing your own editorial expertise to the book and helping to keep me on track (a full-time job in itself!). Thank you to Andy Martin, for the whirlwind trip to four Ohio cities during the pre-launch tour for Sworn to Silence. It was great fun, and the wine was fabulous. To Matthew Shear and Jennifer Enderlin, for taking time out of your busy schedules to have a drink with me in Washington D.C. and chat about the books—thank you.

I’d also like to extend a big thank-you to all the fine folks at Roasters Coffee and Tea Company in Amarillo; you guys have the best COD in the state of Texas and absolutely no idea how much I appreciate it.

To fellow authors and sisters-in-crime Catherine Spangler and Jennifer Miller; thank you for always being there when I need you most.

Last but not least, I’d like to thank my intrepid critique group: Jennifer Archer, April Redmon, Marcy McKay, and Anita Howard, for making Wednesday nights at Jenny’s both productive and fun as hell. You gals are the best!

Three may keep a secret,
if two of them are dead.

—Benjamin Franklin

PRAY FOR
SILENCE

CHAPTER 1

Officer Chuck “Skid” Skidmore wished he hadn’t indulged in that last cup of coffee. If it wasn’t for the new waitress at the diner, he would have stopped at just one. But damn she was cute. So he’d sat at the counter the entirety of his dinner break and sucked down caffeine like a ten-year-old gorging on Kool-Aid. Brandy obliged by keeping his mug full, and entertaining him with her twenty-something chitchat and a full two inches of jiggling cleavage.

He’d been eating at LaDonna’s Diner every night for two months now, since the chief assigned him the graveyard shift. He hated working nights. He respected the chief, but he was going to have to have a talk with her about getting back on days.