High Stakes (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781968792459)

When an old friend's desperate plea leads Sheriff Shea Callahan into the deadly world of underground gambling, the stakes have never been higher.

Sheriff Shea Callahan thought the worst was behind her after stopping a Christmas arsonist from destroying Misty Hollow. But when her college friend Becky Miller arrives begging for help, Shea is thrust into a case that will test everything she believes about justice, loyalty, and sacrifice.

A father and son have vanished. Bill Miller-Becky's gambling-addicted ex-husband-and their ten-year-old son Ryan disappeared without a trace. No ransom demand. No bodies. Just whispers of massive debts to dangerous people.

The trail leads to a deadly syndicate. With Deputy Trevor Bolton at her side, Shea goes undercover on a luxury casino riverboat, infiltrating a criminal empire that spans twelve states. What starts as a missing persons case explodes into something far more sinister-a multi-million dollar operation built on exploitation, murder, and the broken lives of desperate gamblers.

A child's life hangs in the balance. Ryan is being held as collateral, insurance to force his father into committing the crime of a lifetime. As Shea digs deeper, she discovers three other children held captive, their parents coerced into serving a ruthless crime lord known only as "The Banker."

Sometimes you have to break the rules to do what's right. Operating outside her jurisdiction and risking her badge, Shea must forge an uneasy alliance with an undercover DEA agent haunted by revenge. Together, they'll gamble everything to bring down a criminal syndicate and save innocent lives.

But in a game where the house always wins, the cost of justice might be higher than Shea ever imagined. And when the smoke clears, someone she trusts will betray her.

From the author who brought you the heart-pounding Christmas arson thriller comes a high-stakes mystery where one woman must risk it all to save the innocent-and the clock is ticking.

Perfect for fans of: small-town mysteries - strong female protagonists - romantic suspense - police procedurals - undercover operations - crime thrillers