Copyright © 2008, Laura Billingsley
Published by Whiskey Creek Press LLC

Reviews For THE MCGILLIS FAMILY CHRONICLES Book 1: DARK AWAKENINGS by Laura Billingsley

A long book. My first thought was, how will the author carry the story through so many pages? Well carry it she does, and carry it off very well she does, too! You don't see the pages as they rush past, engrossed in the story. Ms. Billingsley keeps her reader on edge. And then the drama and tension takes over, and it's adrenalin bursting off every other page.

Don't digest violence too well? Then, stay away. You need a strong stomach and guts to get through the stark and gritty realism Ms. Billingsley paints her work with. Images reminiscent of 'Silence of the Lambs' is what'll come to mind.

However, past this aspect, the book is truly delightful. From the title, it seems to imply Ms. Billingsley has more stories planned. This reader simply cannot wait to read what she will come up with!

Zee, Enchanting Reviews, 4.5 Enchantments!

For one taut story that has a nice romance with an underlying storyline about the importance of family, DARK AWAKENINGS will keep you on the edge of your seat till the very end.

Kate Garrabrant, RRTErotic

Sample Chapter For THE MCGILLIS FAMILY CHRONICLES Book 1: DARK AWAKENINGS by Laura Billingsley

Darby pulled into the parking lot of the art museum and shut the car off. Amy took classes there when they offered something she was interested in, and Darby had taken a few classes there in the past. Sometimes they would take a class together and other times they would go into separate sessions.

Usually a class would consist of a project done in whatever form of art the instructor happened to be into. When that project ended, another class would be offered, sometimes with another instructor, and a whole new project would begin. People would enroll in whatever interested them, and because the classes were only three or four days at a time, it was easy to fit one in every once in a while.

Darby had also made sure that Amy kept up with karate classes that were held every Tuesday evening. Sean had wanted their daughter to know how to defend herself and Darby thought it would be good for Amy to have friends away from school, and more physical activity, so she had agreed. Amy liked her classes and as long as she enjoyed going, Darby would continue taking her.

“Got everything?” Darby asked, helping Amy with her bag of art supplies.

“Yeah.” Amy slid out of the car and shut the door.

Darby saw a blue pickup parked about fifty yards away behind Amy. She frowned as she placed it in her memory. It was the same truck she’d had seen roughly a week earlier in the church parking lot.
“I’m going to walk in with you,” Darby said suddenly, getting out of the car.

“Okay.” Amy smiled and began talking about the class. It was oil paints and she was excited about the painting she was working on.

Darby smiled and nodded and made encouraging remarks, but her mind was now on the blue truck. She didn’t want to make it into something more than it was, but being the wife of a detective had made her a little more suspicious of things, and people.

She left Amy in class and went out, hoping to get some errands done before it was time to pick her up. Stepping out of the museum doors, she looked up to see the truck was gone. She decided that the driver must have someone in one of the other classes and was probably dropping them off, or maybe picking them up from an earlier class. She almost laughed at herself for being paranoid.

It was nearly an hour later when Darby pulled into the museum parking lot and glanced around. No blue pickup. She got out of the car and went into the building to get Amy.

They came out, Amy handling the large canvas she’d completed, and discussing where to hang the painting when they got home. As Darby raised her head to let the light breeze blow her hair away from her face, she saw the blue pickup across the lot, the man in the driver’s seat seemed to be staring right at her, but his sunglasses had very dark lenses, and she couldn’t be sure. She tried to act as if she hadn’t noticed him and continued to the car.

“What’s wrong?” Amy asked, wondering about her mother’s silence.

“That blue pickup over there,” Darby said, looking into her purse as if she couldn’t find her keys. “I’ve seen it around a lot lately.”

“I see that guy all the time,” Amy said, glancing around as Darby opened the door of the car and placed the painting in the back seat carefully. “He used to sit at the school about the time you’d come to pick me up.”
Darby nearly banged her head as she looked at Amy. “Don’t look at him,” she whispered harshly. They got in the car and Darby started it, Amy put her seat belt on. Darby was trembling and she gripped the steering wheel.

“I’ve seem him parked in front of the house a few times,” Amy said, her eyes narrowing as she looked at her mother closely.

“Why didn’t you tell me about it?” she asked, trying not to sound too alarmed, easing the car out into the road.

“I thought you knew him.” Amy shrugged. “He’s always hanging around somewhere. I figured he was one of those losers who can’t get up the nerve to ask you out.”

“I don’t know him, and at this point I certainly don’t want to.” She looked in the mirror to see if he was following them but couldn’t detect the blue pickup anywhere.

They stopped at the grocery store and picked up a few things, Darby’s mind spinning with questions and fear. She hid it well, but the distraction was definitely making it harder to focus on what she needed to be doing. She dropped change and bumped into a lady and a cart before they got out of there. Out in the parking lot, Darby tried to look around without being conspicuous. There was no sign of the man in the pickup and she relaxed a little.

She was much calmer until they reached the house and she saw the pickup about two blocks down, and on the other side of the street.

“Go on in the house,” Darby said as Amy opened the door. “I’ll get this.” She smiled and noticed that Amy didn’t believe her facade.

Amy went in and began putting her art supplies away as Darby gathered the small amount of groceries and hurried in after her. She put everything away, picked up the cordless phone, and went to her room. Amy knew that when her mother’s door was closed in the middle of the day, it was off limits, so Darby wasn’t worried about being interrupted.

After hitting the recorded number menu, Darby selected the second number on the list, Sheldon Williams, and hit the dial button.

The answering machine picked up and Darby was so disappointed that she almost gasped into the phone. “Six Pack, this is Darby.” She spoke slowly, trying not to sound so upset. “Call me as soon as you can, okay?” She hung up the phone and spent some time to pull herself together.

Sheldon Williams had gone by the name ‘Six Pack’ practically since birth, from what Darby understood. He and Sean had been amazingly close friends and Darby felt there was no one else in the world she could trust. When Sean had died, it was Six Pack who had driven nonstop from Texas to be there and help her with arrangements and to fight off family problems. Unfortunately there had been plenty of both to deal with.

Six Pack had made sure the life insurance and all of Sean’s investments were properly handled so Darby and Amy would have something. He’d made everything as smooth and safe for her as anyone could have, and when he was satisfied that she’d be okay, he went back to Texas and buried himself in his work.
Darby came out of her room, still upset, and saw Amy coming in the front door, her painting in her hands.
“What are you doing?” she asked, alarmed that Amy had gone out by herself. “There’s a lunatic out there following you all over—you don’t need to be outside alone.”

“Forgot to bring this in.” Amy set the painting down carefully. “The lunatic is gone, I looked before I went out.”

“Don’t go anywhere without telling me,” Darby said, wanting to choke her and hug her all at once.

“Mom,” Amy protested. “I’m not a baby.”

“You’re my baby,” Darby snapped. “Now go clean up your room.”

She watched Amy go down the hall and closed her eyes, feeling the sting of tears as she took a deep breath.
The next few hours were quiet and Darby busied herself with housework and laundry. Amy went back and forth several times to carry laundry or dishes out of her room, and grabbed the phone on one of these trips so she could call Jeff. Darby was so distracted that she didn’t notice.

When the phone rang a while later, Darby hurried in to answer it, stopping short when it stopped ringing. The phone wasn’t in the cradle where she’d left it.

“It’s Uncle Shel,” Amy called as she walked into the living room from her room. “And my room is clean.”
“Thanks.” Darby took the phone and walked to her room, shutting the door behind her. For a brief moment, she wondered why Amy had taken the cordless phone into her room, but forgot about it as she spoke with Sheldon.

“Sheldon?”

“You rang, darlin’?” Six Pack said ominously.

Darby started to cry, she hadn’t meant to, but she couldn’t help it. His deep voice sounded like the safest, most comfortable place in the world to her.

“Hey.” Sheldon was suddenly concerned. “Darby? Hello? What’s going on?”

“Some crazy guy in a blue truck is following my baby around and I didn’t even notice it until today.” Darby sobbed. “What if he’d taken her?” she asked through her tears. “What kind of mother am I that I don’t even notice a stalker following my little girl?” She wiped her eyes and swallowed hard. “I noticed him and said something and Amy said she’s seen him since before school was out.”

“Calm down.” Sheldon spoke firmly, knowing he wouldn’t be able to help until she had gotten control of herself.

“School was out weeks ago!” Darby cried. “He’s been stalking her for months! The whole year for all I know!”

“I seriously doubt it,” Sheldon said dryly. “If he has, he’s the slowest damn criminal I’ve ever heard of.”
“I don’t know what to do, Shel.”

“You’re going to do everything like you usually do, just keep your eyes open and be a little more observant. Don’t let her go anywhere by herself and stick to all the usual rules about keeping your kid safe.”
“I’m evidently not very good at that,” Darby scolded herself.

“I’d say if that were true, he’d have gotten her by now,” Sheldon said calmly. “You must be good at it because he obviously hasn’t had a chance yet or he would have taken it. If that’s what he’s after.”
His statement calmed her and she felt herself gaining more control.

“You’re right,” she said after a moment. “I must be more protective than I thought.”

“Lady, you are hyperprotective of that kid,” Sheldon said, his smile coming through in his voice. “I’m surprised Amy doesn’t try to shake you off.”

“She’d never manage it.” Darby laughed.

“I’ll come up for a visit soon and check everything out for you,” Sheldon promised. “Have you talked to the police?”

“No.” Darby frowned. “They can’t do anything until the guy in the truck does something. Sitting in your vehicle watching people walk by isn’t a crime.”

“Stalking is,” Sheldon said.

“I don’t have any proof.” Darby pulled another tissue from her nightstand. “There haven’t been any phone calls or letters, no threats. I know enough about the way this stuff works from listening to Sean.”

“Well, if he’s still around by the time I get there, we’ll find out what he’s doing and who he is.”

“Thank you, Shel.”

“See you soon, darlin’.” Sheldon hung up and Darby sighed, feeling much better.

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