Vengeance: Mystery Writers of America Presents

Rick McMahan is a special agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The year 2012 marks his twentieth in law enforcement. Rick’s work takes him to counties across central and southeastern Kentucky, including Bell County, the area featured in “Moonshiner’s Lament.” His mystery stories have appeared in various publications, including the Mystery Writers of America anthology Death Do Us Part. He also has a story in the International Association of Crime Writers’ forthcoming collection of crime fiction from around the world.

Adam Meyer is the author of the suspense novel The Last Domino. His short fiction has appeared in The Year’s Best Horror Stories, 100 Wicked Little Witch Stories, and other anthologies. He also wrote and directed the independent feature film Two Fireflies and has written television series for Fox, the Discovery Channel, and the History Channel. A native New Yorker, he now lives in Washington, DC. Visit his website at www.adsasylum.com.

Dreda Say Mitchell is a novelist, broadcaster, journalist, and freelance education consultant who describes herself as a “complete busybody.” She is the author of five novels. Her debut novel, Running Hot, was awarded Britain’s 2005 CWA’s John Creasey Dagger for best first crime novel. She has appeared on BBC television’s Newsnight and The Review Show and has presented BBC Radio 4’s Open Book. She was the 2011 chair of the Harrogate Crime Writing Festival. Her commitment and passion for raising the life chances of working-class children through education has been called inspirational and life-changing. Visit her website at www.dredasaymitchell.com.

Michael Niemann has traveled widely through Europe and southern Africa. He has published the short story “Kosi Bay” in Mysterical-E and a number of nonfiction items on global and African affairs. A native German, he now lives in southern Oregon and is busy finishing up a novel featuring Valentin Vermeulen. Visit www.michael-niemann.com.

A Stanford graduate and former (vengeful) plaintiff’s trial lawyer, Twist Phelan writes the critically acclaimed legal-themed Pinnacle Peak mystery series published by Poisoned Pen Press. Her short stories appear in anthologies and mystery magazines and have won or been nominated for the Thriller, Ellis, and Derringer awards. Twist’s current project is a suspense novel set in Santa Fe featuring a corporate spy. Visit her website at www.twistphelan.com.

Zoe Sharp opted out of mainstream education at the age of twelve. She created her highly acclaimed ex–Special Forces–turned–bodyguard series heroine Charlie Fox after receiving death-threat letters in the course of her work as a freelance photojournalist. Sharp lives on the edge of the English Lake District, where she and her husband, a nonfiction writer, built their own house. She blogs regularly on her website, www.zoesharp.com, and on the award-nominated www.murderati.com.

Karin Slaughter has written eleven books that have sold twenty-five million copies in thirty languages. A New York Times bestselling author, Karin’s books have debuted at number one in the United Kingdom, Germany, and the Netherlands. She lives in Atlanta, where she is working on her next novel.

Orest Stelmach is the author of the thriller The Boy from Reactor 4, the first in the Tesla trilogy, and the historical mystery Lady in the Dunes, the first in a series set in 1950 Provincetown featuring Father Sean Kale. A Connecticut native, he went to kindergarten speaking only Ukrainian. He still tries to use as few words as possible. Orest and his wife divide their time between Connecticut and Cape Cod. Visit him at www.oreststelmach.com.

Anne Swardson is an editor-at-large with Bloomberg News in Paris and a former European economic correspondent for the Washington Post. “River Secret” is her first published work of fiction. She is also the author of a mystery novel. Like “River Secret,” it is set in Paris, where Anne has lived with her husband and two children for fifteen years.

ABOUT THE MYSTERY WRITERS OF AMERICA

The Mystery Writers of America, the premier organization for established and aspiring mystery writers, is dedicated to promoting higher regard for crime writing and recognition and respect for those who write within the genre.

COPYRIGHTS

“The Fourteenth Juror,” © 2012 by Alpha Blonde, LLC

“The Mother,” © 2012 by Alafair Burke

“The Hollywood I Remember,” © 2012 by Lee Child

“A Fine Mist of Blood,” © 2012 by Michael Connelly

“Leverage,” © 2012 by Mike Cooper

“The Final Ballot,” © 2012 by Brendan DuBois

“Blind Justice,” © 2012 by Jim Fusilli

“It Ain’t Right,” © 2012 by Michelle Gagnon

“Even a Blind Man,” © 2012 by Darrell James

“The General,” © 2012 by Janice Law

“Silent Justice” © 2012 by C. E. Lawrence

“The Consumers,” © 2012 by Dennis Lehane

“Hot Sugar Blues,” © 2012 by Steve Liskow

“Moonshiner’s Lament,” © 2012 by Rick McMahan

“Blood and Sunshine,” © 2012 by Adam Meyer

“The Hotline,” © 2012 by Dreda Say Mitchell

“Africa Always Needs Guns,” © 2012 by Michael Niemann

“Lost and Found,” © 2012 by Zoe Sharp

“The Unremarkable Heart,” © 2010 by Karin Slaughter

First published in Holland as an e-book original in 2010 as “Ongezien.”

Also published in the United Kingdom as an e-book in 2011.

Reprinted by permission of the author.

“In Persona Christi,” © 2012 by Orest Stelmach

“River Secret,” © 2012 by Anne Swardson

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First published in the United States by Mulholland Books, an imprint of

Little, Brown and Company, a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

Published in hardback in Great Britain in 2012 by Corvus, an imprint of

Atlantic Books Ltd.

Compilation Copyright © Mystery Writers of America, Inc., 2012

Introduction Copyright © Lee Child, 2012

Copyright notices for individual stories appear on page 387