Bitter Truth Read online

  “You were right,” she whispered to Nick. He smiled back with only his eyes; his Buddha smile, she liked to call it. She squeezed his hand and never felt so lucky.

  What to read next?

  Lucy will be back soon in LESSER EVIL!

  In the meantime, enjoy Morgan’s new adventure in TRIP WIRE!

  Available for pre-order now!

  Want more of CJ’s books? Like saving money?

  Buy direct from CJ’s new online store and SAVE 20% NOW!

  Go HERE: https://CJLyons.flexpub.com

  and enter Coupon Code: ILOVETHRILLERS

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  Want to be the first to have a chance to read the new books? Sign up for my Thrillers with Heart newsletter HERE—and you’ll also get a free copy of the first Lucy adventure, SNAKE SKIN!

  (Already read SNAKE SKIN? Feel free to share this offer with your thriller-loving friends!)

  Be sure to open the Thrillers with Heart emails; they’ll arrive every few weeks with info on contests, new books, and exclusive offers for my readers!

  Lucy Guardino FBI Thrillers

  Everything a great thriller should be—action packed, authentic, and intense.” ~Lee Child

  SNAKE SKIN, a USA Today Bestseller

  BLOOD STAINED, a USA Today Bestseller

  KILL ZONE, a Suspense Magazine Book of the Year

  AFTER SHOCK, a novella

  HARD FALL, Winner of the 2015 Thriller Award

  BAD BREAK, a novella

  Beacon Falls Mysteries, Featuring Lucy Guardino

  If you enjoy captivating suspense and intelligent storytelling, with strong and vulnerable characters and a freight-train pace, then you'll love the rush of this heart-pounding thriller.” ~Fantastic Fiction

  LAST LIGHT

  DEVIL SMOKE

  OPEN GRAVE

  GONE DARK

  BITTER TRUTH

  Renegade Justice Thrillers, featuring Morgan Ames: Meet Everyone’s Favorite Teenage Psychopath…

  FIGHT DIRTY, Renegade Justice #1

  RAW EDGES, Renegade Justice #2

  ANGELS WEEP, Renegade Justice #3

  LOOK AWAY, Renegade Justice #4

  TRIP WIRE, Renegade Justice #5

  Compelling…I love how the characters come alive on every page.” ~Jeffery Deaver

  Fatal Insomnia Medical Thrillers: What Keeps You Awake at Night?

  FAREWELL TO DREAMS, Fatal Insomnia Book #1

  A RAGING DAWN, Fatal Insomnia Book #2

  THE SLEEPLESS STARS, Fatal Insomnia Book #3

  CJ Lyons scores a major triumph. Totally absorbing and impossible to put down.” ~Douglas Preston

  HART and DRAKE Medical Suspense

  A pulse pounding adrenaline rush.” ~Lisa Gardner

  NERVES OF STEEL, Hart & Drake Book #1

  SLEIGHT OF HAND, Hart & Drake Book #2

  FACE TO FACE, Hart and Drake Book #3

  EYE OF THE STORM, Hart and Drake Book #4

  Shadow Ops, Romantic Thrillers

  CHASING SHADOWS, Shadow Ops Book #1

  LOST IN SHADOWS, Shadow Ops Book #2

  EDGE OF SHADOWS, Shadow Ops Book #3

  A high-stakes adventure with dire consequences.” ~Steve Berry

  About CJ:

  New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty novels, former pediatric ER doctor CJ Lyons has lived the life she writes about in her cutting edge Thrillers with Heart.

  CJ has been called a “master within the genre" (Pittsburgh Magazine) and her work has been praised as “breathtakingly fast-paced” and “riveting” (Publishers Weekly) with “characters with beating hearts and three dimensions” (Newsday).

  Her novels have twice won the International Thriller Writers’ prestigious Thriller Award, the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award, the Readers’ Choice Award, the RT Seal of Excellence, and the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery and Suspense.

  Learn more about CJ’s Thrillers with Heart at www.CJLyons.net

  Want more of CJ Lyons’ Thrillers with Heart? Download the complete booklist at CJLyons.net

  LUCY GUARDINO THRILLERS:

  SNAKE SKIN

  BLOOD STAINED

  KILL ZONE

  AFTER SHOCK

  HARD FALL

  BAD BREAK

  LAST LIGHT

  DEVIL SMOKE

  OPEN GRAVE

  GONE DARK

  BITTER TRUTH

  RENEGADE JUSTICE THRILLERS, featuring Morgan Ames:

  FIGHT DIRTY

  RAW EDGES

  ANGELS WEEP

  LOOK AWAY

  TRIP WIRE

  FATAL INSOMNIA MEDICAL THRILLERS:

  FAREWELL TO DREAMS

  A RAGING DAWN

  THE SLEEPLESS STARS

  HART AND DRAKE MEDICAL SUSPENSE:

  NERVES OF STEEL

  SLEIGHT OF HAND

  FACE TO FACE

  EYE OF THE STORM

  SHADOW OPS, ROMANTIC THRILLERS:

  CHASING SHADOWS

  LOST IN SHADOWS

  EDGE OF SHADOWS

  CAITLYN TIERNEY FBI THRILLERS:

  BLIND FAITH

  BLACK SHEEP

  HOLLOW BONES

  ANGELS OF MERCY MEDICAL SUSPENSE:

  LIFELINES

  WARNING SIGNS

  URGENT CARE

  CRITICAL CONDITION

  YOUNG ADULT THRILLERS:

  BROKEN

  WATCHED

  CO-WRITTEN WITH ERIN BROCKOVICH:

  ROCK BOTTOM

  HOT WATER

  SINGLE TITLE STANDALONES:

  LUCIDITY, a Ghost of a Love Story

  BORROWED TIME

  Copyright CJ Lyons, LLC, “CJ Lyons” and “Thrillers with Heart” Trademarked by CJ Lyons, LLC

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems-except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews-without permission in writing from its publisher.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Keywords: fatal insomnia, serial killer, fatal disease insomnia restless medical mortality incurable mutation genetic paranormal psychic telepathy, police detective female protagonist woman sleuth, dark disturbing edgy moody noir hard-boiled mystery thriller suspense, Lee Child, Jeffery Deaver, Lisa Gardner, Sandra Brown, Allison Brennan, Susan Wiggs, Tami Hoag, James Patterson, Heather Graham, David Morrell, Tess Gerritsen, Alex Kava, Catherine Coulter, romance, romantic suspense, romantic thriller, thriller, thriller with heart, FBI, FBI thriller, Pittsburgh, police procedural, mystery, suspense, hard boiled, women sleuths, serial killer, kidnapping, special ops, special forces, terrorists, espionage, action adventure, Lucy Guardino, Cassandra Hart, Drake, Shadow Ops, Hart and Drake, action-adventure, CJ Lyons, bestseller,
female FBI agent, medical thriller, medical suspense, medical romance, vigilante, sociopath, psychopath, homicide detective, detective, murder, ER, emergency room, emergency, emergency doctor, emergency physician, genetic lethal serial killer paranormal psychic telepathy police detective female protagonist woman sleuth dark disturbing edgy moody noir hard-boiled mystery thriller suspense medical sociopath psychopath lethal dying death romance romantic love story disease supernatural homicide murder ER emergency room doctor physician conspiracy bestseller thrillers with heart, female Pittsburgh FBI government agent police procedural thriller, cold case serial killer, dark disturbing edgy moody noir, homicide cold case detective mystery suspense psychological thriller, hard boiled women sleuths, kidnapping terrorists espionage amnesia action adventure, Lucy Guardino action-adventure CJ Lyons bestseller, vigilante sociopath psychopath homicide detective murder

  About the Author

  Pediatric ER doctor turned New York Times bestselling thriller writer CJ Lyons has been a storyteller all her life—something that landed her in many time-outs as a kid. She writes her Thrillers with Heart for the same reason that she became a doctor: because she believes we all have the power to change our world.

  * * *

  In the ER she witnessed many acts of courage by her patients and their families, learning that heroes truly are born every day. When not writing, she can be found walking the beaches near her Lowcountry home, listening to the voices in her head and plotting new and devious ways to create mayhem for her characters.

  * * *

  To learn more about her Thrillers with Heart go to www.CJLyons.net

  For More Information:

  www.CJLyons.net

  [email protected]

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and not intended by the author.

  * * *

  Copyright © 2018 by CJ Lyons

  Edgy Reads

  cover design by: Toni McGee Causey

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  CJ Lyons and Thrillers with Heart registered Trademarks of

  CJ Lyons, LLC

  * * *

  Library of Congress Case # 1-6493536231

  Contents

  Praise For CJ Lyons’ Thrillers with Heart:

  CJ Lyons’ Thrillers with Heart:

  Preface

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  About the Author