Time and Trouble — Gillian Roberts

In one picture-perfect corner of Marin County, dark secrets flourish under the California sun

Seasoned investigator Emma Howe has been in the business so long nothing can surprise her. But her new assistant, an overeducated single mother named Billie August, nearly manages to amaze her. Billie is quick, ambitious, smart. And a lot tougher than she appears. That's a good thing, because Emma has just taken a case that will rock both of their worlds.

Sophie Redmond has come to Emma in a desperate search for her teenage daughter, whom she fears has joined a bizarre cult. In an odd twist of fate, Emma and Billie recognize wheelchair-bound Mrs. Redmond as an insurance scammer they've been tailing for another client. The woman's fake injuries are only one symptom of a family plunged into darkness--a legacy one troubled girl wants desperately to escape.