Out of the Blue
Chapter One
Seven years later
It was the holiday season in New Orleans. The
green St. Charles streetcar was packed with
last-minute shoppers as it clattered past
historic homes garlanded in white Christmas
lights; the mood was festive, bustling, and
decidedly contagious.
As she left the car and drifted into the French
Quarter, Lark Stewart couldn't remember feeling
so happy. So free.
Cheerful carols of wise men and herald angels
blended with the cacophony of jazz and blues
pouring from the open doorways on Bourbon
Street. Lark exchanged Christmas greetings with
a group of tourists laden down with packages.
Caught up in her enjoyment of the season, she
didn't notice when several of the shoppers
excitedly turned to watch as she continued
strolling beneath the famed cast-iron balconies
from which more lights sparkled. Nor was she
aware of camera shutters clicking madly away
when she paused to study a display of T-shirts
and Mardi Gras masks in a storefront window.
A pair of earrings caught her attention, drawing
her into the store where she handed a ten-dollar
bill to a bored teenager who possessed even le ... read full excerpt from: Out of the Blue ebook
