Thank you, as always, to my husband, Fred, and my daughter, Morgan, for not letting me panic. Thank you to my first readers: Dana Mason, Katie Mettner, Nancy S. Thompson, and Torese Hummel. Thank you to Matty Dalrymple and Jane Kelly—my critical book-saving first responders who came to my rescue yet again! Thank you to my lovely friend and kick-ass assistant, Maureen Downey, for holding me up during the writing of this book. I’m not sure this book would exist without your unwavering support and your unflappable belief in me. Thank you to my grandmothers: Helen Conlen and Marilyn House; my parents: the late Billy Regan, Joyce Regan, Rusty House, and Julie House; my brothers and sisters-in-law: Sean and Cassie House, Kevin and Christine Brock and Andy Brock; as well as my lovely sisters: Ava McKittrick and Melissia McKittrick. Thank you as well to all of the usual suspects for your spreading the word—Debbie Tralies, Jean and Dennis Regan, Tracy Dauphin, Claire Pacell, Jeanne Cassidy, Susan Sole, the Regans, the Conlens, the Houses, the McDowells, the Kays, the Funks, the Bowmans, and the Bottingers! As always, thank you to all the amazing bloggers and reviewers who continue to stick with Josie or who met her somewhere in the middle of the series and have been so vociferous with their support! It means the world!
Thank you to Rusty House, Van Wagner, and Miranda Kessel for all your help with all things dam-related, including fish lifts and ladders! Thank you to Michelle Mordan and Ken Fritz for answering all my paramedic/EMS-related questions. Thank you to Karmen Harris, BSN, RN, SANE-A, D-ABDMI for all of your help nailing down the medical/autopsy aspects of this book. Thank you, as always, to Sgt. Jason Jay for answering all of my questions all the time, constantly, at all hours of the day and night. Thank you to Lee Lofland for always putting me in touch with the best resources!
Thank you to Jenny Geras, Kathryn Taussig, Noelle Holten, Kim Nash, and the entire team at Bookouture including my lovely copy editor, Jennie, who is a saint and a genius, as well as my proofreader, Jenny Page. Last but never least, my amazing editor, Jessie Botterill. You never lost faith in me, and that means the world. Thank you for talking me off the figurative ledge so many times. Thank you for being so patient and steadfast. Thank you for guiding me through this treacherous time with grace, warmth, kindness, and empathy. Every encouraging email was a life preserver I clung to in order to keep going. You are an exceptional human being. I’m so grateful for you.