In 2000, Special Forces soldier Laredo Wynn was dragged from the clutches of death, surviving both with the scars it wrought and the promise that someday he would make good on what happened. Now sixteen years later, a call arrives in the middle of the night to call in that debt. The man on the other end has now ascended to a lofty position, with his sights set on the second highest seat in the land, and has a few things he needs wiped quickly and quietly from his resume. Fighting every inner desire to turn and walk away, Laredo remembers that day from so long ago and the red it still signifies in his ledger, reluctantly agreeing to help with the assurance that once the task is done, the marker that has hung over his head for so long will finally be wiped away for good. Packing a few items and leaving behind his quiet life on a ranch in West Texas, he drives to Chicago and attempts to do as asked, only for things to begin spiraling beyond his control the moment he arrives. Within days the lines between friend and enemy become blurred, forcing Laredo to do things he thought he’d left behind, and forcing him to ask just how far he is willing to go in the name of squaring what he owes…
Author
I originally hail from the midwest, growing up in the heart of farm country, and still consider it, along with West Tennessee, my co-home. Between the two, I have a firm belief that football is the greatest of all past-times, sweet tea is really the only acceptable beverage for any occasion, there is not an event on earth that either gym shorts or boots can't be worn to, and that Dairy Queen is the best restaurant on the planet. Further, southern accents are a highly likeable feature on most everybody, English bulldogs sit atop the critter hierarchy, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with a Saturday night spent catfishing at the lake. Since leaving the midwest I've been to college in New England, grad school in the Rockies, and lived in over a dozen different cities ranging from DC to Honolulu along the way. Each and every one of these experiences has shaped who I am at this point, a fact I hope is expressed in my writing. I have developed enormous affinity for locales and people of every size and shape, and even if I never figure out a way to properly convey them on paper, I am very much grateful for their presence in my life. To sum it up, I asked a very good friend recently how they would describe me for something like this. Their response: "Plagued by realism and trained by experiences/education to be a pessimist, you somehow remain above all else an active dreamer." While I can't say those are the exact words I would choose, I can't say they're wrong. I travel, live in different places, try new foods, meet all kinds of different people, and above all else stay curious to a fault. Here's hoping it continues to provide us all with some pretty good stories...
