Damaged Read online

  And last, Charlie Wurth would have found the Coffee Cup closed on Sundays, but if you’re in Pensacola any other day of the week, be sure to stop and try their award-winning Nassau grits.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENT

  Thank you to the men and women of the United States armed forces, especially the Coast Guard for what you do every single day to keep us safe. And special thanks to those few women rescue swimmers for quietly and bravely shattering glass ceilings that most of us wouldn’t dare attempt.

  Thanks also to:

  The incredible team at Doubleday—Jackeline Montalvo, Judy Jacoby, Alison Rich, Suzanne Herz, Lauren Lavelle, and John Pitts—for your warm welcome, your enthusiasm, dedication, and expertise.

  Same goes to David Shelley and his crew at Little Brown UK.

  Amy Moore-Benson, my agent, for refusing to use the words “never” or “impossible.”

  Lee Child, Steve Berry, and Tess Gerritsen, three of the most generous authors in the business.

  Ray Kunze, for lending his name to Maggie’s boss. Just for the record, the real Ray Kunze is a gentleman and all-around nice guy who would never send Maggie into the eye of a hurricane.

  Lee Dixon, for giving me the idea of identifying a torso by its defibrillator implant.

  Darcy Lindner, funeral director, for sharing your expertise.

  My friends—Sharon Car, Marlene Haney, Sandy Rockwood, Leigh Ann Retelsdorf, Patti and Martin Bremmer, and Patricia Sierra—for keeping me sane and grounded.

  My family: Patricia Kava, Bob and Tracy Kava, Nancy and Jim Tworek, Kenny and Connie Kava, and Patti Carlin.

  My Florida neighbors: Lee and Betty Dixon, Terry and Bea Hummel, Sharon and Steve Kator, Elaine and Kelly McDaniels, Lee and Carol McKinstry, Mike and Jana Nicholson, Steve and Anna Ratliff, Bill and Barb Schroeder, and Larry and Diane Wilbanks.

  The booksellers, book buyers, and librarians across the country, for mentioning and recommending my novels.

  All you faithful readers—I know there’s plenty of competition for your time, your entertainment, and your dollars. I thank you for continuing to choose my novels.

  And, as always, a special thanks to Deb Carlin, for everything. You are my Rock of Gibraltar.

  Last, to Walter and Emilie Carlin. Walter passed away in September of 2008, and Emilie in November of 2005, but their enduring personalities, life stories, and spirit continue to inspire. Walter would have loved seeing his bright red, white, and blue Coney Island canteen come back to life, even if briefly and only in the pages of a novel.

  DOUBLEDAY

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2010 by S. M. Kava

  All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, and in Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto.

  www.doubleday.com

  DOUBLEDAY and the DD colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

  Maps designed by Jeffrey L. Ward

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Kava, Alex.

  Damaged : a Maggie O’Dell novel / by Alex Kava.—1st ed.

  p. cm.

  1. O’Dell, Maggie (Fictitious character)—Fiction.

  2. Criminal profilers—Fiction.

  3. Hurricanes—Florida—Fiction. 4. Florida—Fiction.

  I. Title.

  PS3561.A8682D36 2010

  813′.54—dc22 2009052285

  eISBN: 978-0-385-53200-6

  v3.0