Frayed Edges — Terri Reid

Ruth McCredie was about in the middle of the field, she decided. Thiswould be a good place to get a few more samples. She looked back at therow she was standing in and saw four ears laying in the dirt.“Perfect,” she said, reaching back for another plastic bag. “These will begreat.”Hurrying down the row towards the ears, she was surprised to hear a crackin the distance. Before she could react, she felt the blow of the bullet enteringher body. She stared, wide-eyed, at the blood blossoming across hersweatshirt.“I've been…” she began, more bewildered than afraid, but then her kneesgave out and she fell to the ground. The soft earth absorbed the impact fromthe fall, but a sharp stalk scraped her face. She gasped in pain, but the gaspgave way to choking as her life ebbed away, the rich, brown soil absorbingher blood.A bullet shot rings out on the night of the Super Moon and a promising collegestudent is killed. Was it an accident, or did her research into falseclaims by a bio-tech, agricultural company garner her too much attention?The wrong kind of attention. Mary and Bradley have to find out or Ruth McCredie will never rest.