Amanda had been wonderful through all of it, helping them personally through the hard times, but a psychia- trist could only do so much. And Helen suspected that she had her own scars to deal with, and that they kept her up at night. Something had happened those last few seconds before Jonathan had been killed, something that Amanda wouldn’t discuss with anyone. She had mentioned one thing that Helen thought rather strange, and only after she had been pushed and prodded by one of the doctors. “Do you believe in ghosts?” she said. And then, looking slightly dazed, “The mind plays the strangest tricks…”

The baby seemed to be enjoying the peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He had quieted down and seemed to be waiting for something else to happen, perhaps a new kind of delicacy to be delivered to him through her womb. Helen patted her stomach gently. Jessie would be getting home soon, and they would go pick up David at the airport. He was due in at three thirty. That would mark the end of their involvement in the whole thing. Finally, it would be time to put the winter and Hydro Development behind them. Helen stood up slowly, wanting to find the car keys before Jessie got home.

The mind plays the strangest tricks…

Why had she thought of that again? Of course the mind plays tricks, she thought. All kinds. Sometimes it made them up on its own, and sometimes it got a little help along the way.

Helen went upstairs. Each step was a small triumph. As she was searching for her car keys among the junk on the top of the dresser, she was reminded of that one other thing Amanda had said. And as she thought about it, she could swear she heard a voice, faint and distant; it sounded like her father.

Do you believe in ghosts?

Acknowledgments

There are always plenty of people who help pull a book together, and this one has a long history. I’d like to thank my family for their love and support, my friends from back in my State of Maine days, and my agent, Brendan Deneen, for all he does behind the scenes for me.

Last, but certainly not least, I’d like to thank the crew at Dorchester, including editor Don D’Auria, for continuing to have faith in me and for supporting my career.

As usual, I’ve taken plenty of liberties with geography, and more than a few with the inner workings of various government agencies as well. I’d like to think this makes for a better story. I hope you feel the same.

High Praise for Nate Kenyon’s

THE REACH!

“Kenyon shifts smoothly between ‘80s-style supernatural horror and modern-day science thriller in this superb sophomore effort…readers, left breathless, will hope he makes good on hints of a sequel.”

—Publishers Weekly (starred review)