Rumbling Heart Book 1 — Richard Allen

After escaping the clutches of his abusive ex-wife, John finds himself living a rather dreary and reclusive life in Eureka, California. By choice, he works at a menial job where he gets paid very little, and barely makes ends meet. One day he comes home after quitting his job during an altercation with his boss to find a strange note taped to his door, instructing him to check his email. Letting his curiosity get the best of him, he checks to find an email waiting for him from the international conglomerate known simply as The Company. The email offers him a chance to secure employment with one of the most employee friendly companies on earth so without delay, he replies to the email and provides The Company with all of his personal information. Within minutes, he is contacted by phone and an interview is setup. After securing employment, John coincidently runs into an emotionally odd, yet adorably quirky woman named Anna who is also employed by The Company and a friendship is quickly formed. As the days pass, John is forced to look inside himself and reexamine his life as he and Anna's relationship begins to morph into something much more than he expected. Weary of getting close to anyone, John struggles with his past. He ultimately decides to try to open himself up to new things, but little does he know his new companion is hiding something from him that will rock the foundation of their friendship and send him into an emotional tailspin. He also unexpectedly grows closer to the beautiful and intelligent Human Resources Manager Emily, his first contact within the company who appears to have only his best interests at heart. As he begins to trust this bold and confident woman with more, he finds that she too may not be exactly who she seems. Soon, John finds himself in a minefield of mystery and deceit and over time, he finds he must either deal with the gatekeepers of secrecy or devolve into lunacy as his past continues to haunt his thoughts and his life.