The Phoenix and The Shield: Case One

Gvgeyui, Ganiyegi, Uganawu, Aligaliyvhi, Uduladi, Iyudalisdanedi.Love, danger, heat, courage, desire, fate.Dr. Jette Morningstar, professor of psychology, is a tranquil, spiritual woman of the earth. Detective Marcus Lexington, a New York City cop, is an intense, angry man of brash action. Half Cherokee, Jette has a rich and complex ancestral history. Marc, abandoned to the streets of New York as a boy, has no ties, no roots. They are nothing alike…they were made for each other.Detective Marc Lexington, a homicide cop for the NYPD, travels to Arizona to find the murderer of Sr. Fiona LaBeau, his friend and mentor. Before she was killed, she wrote a list with the name Morningstar on the first line. Why? What was the connection?Marc is determined to find out and it brings him to the University of Arizona where Dr. Jette Morningstar is a member of the faculty. She is also a seasoned forensic profiler and immediately becomes involved in the investigation. What is the motive for Sr. Fiona's murder? Is it connected to the disappearance of several young women? Is it connected to the priest killings throughout the southwest? And why is the killer so desperate to prevent Jette from working with Marc. So desperate, in fact, that he tries to kill her? We soon find out that the brutal slaying of Sr. Fiona is connected to the murder nine years before of Jette's mother. Once Jette makes the painful discovery, their investigation takes on a whole new direction.As they work the clues and find the motives, Marc's attraction to Jette is complicated by his troubled past and deep seeded anger. Jette, who is a trained therapist as well as a professional profiler, is fascinated by his history and is determined to be by his side as his guide through the turbulent journey still ahead. The woman, the doctor and the passionate spirit of her ancient roots work to break through the barriers Marc has constructed around his heart and releases his soul from the self imposed cage he has kept it in.Clues, evidence and the killer's actions weave their way through the story as Jette and Marc work together to uncover the identity of the murderer. It is someone Jette knows, someone who has been close to her, someone she trusts. A sociopath who, because he has no conscience, can be a part of her life and not even her incredible empathy can detect his dark intent and corrupted soul. When his mask slips and he is revealed, her world shifts and nearly collapses, but she fights for her life and the life of her lover with the fierce purpose of the ancient Cherokee warrior.The Phoenix is the symbol of the Cherokee nation; the Shield is the symbol of Marc's passion for the law. Together they make an incredible partnership and in the end, they decide to continue their life journey together.This book is a romantic suspense thriller filled with beautiful, complicated people, intelligent dialogue and an intriguing plot. It is the inaugural novel of a new series by E.K. Barber. Marc and Jette will continue their professional collaboration on several more cases. Readers will be waiting with their own kind of suspense for the next book in the series.