Betrayed
Authors: Suzetta Perkins
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Dear Reader:
How many secrets do you hope and pray will follow you to your grave? How many secrets do you wish would hurry up and come out so that you do not have to run from them any longer? There is always a thin line when it comes to secrets; some would be better off buried and others need to be set free. Mimi has a nineteen-year-old secret that threatens to destroy everyone around her, including herself. After making sacrifice after sacrifice to protect the feelings of others, there comes a point when Mimi has run out of options and everything comes to light.
Betrayed
by Suzetta Perkins is a novel about broken promises, dysfunctional families, and strained friendships. It is amazing how fleeing mistakes can alter a lifetime. We all have those rare memories where we wish that we could turn back the clock and do things over again. Perkins does a remarkable job of making one think:
What if?
As always, Perkins storytelling is captivating, brilliant, and engrossing. She never disappoints when it comes to spinning realistic tales of life's greatest and most painful moments.
As always, thanks for the support shown to the Strebor Books International family. We appreciate the love. For more information on our titles, please visit
www.zanestore.com
and you can find me on my personal website:
www.eroticanoir.com
. You can also join my online social network at
www.planetzane.org
.
Blessings,
Zane
Publisher
Strebor Books International
www.simonandschuster.com/streborbooks
A
LSO BY
S
UZETTA
P
ERKINS
Nothing Stays the Same
Déjà Vu
Ex-Terminator
A Love So Deep
Behind the Veil
Strebor Books
P.O. Box 6505
Largo, MD 20792
http://www.streborbooks.com
www.SimonandSchuster.com
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
© 2011 by Suzetta Perkins
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means whatsoever. For information address Strebor Books, P.O. Box 6505, Largo, MD 20792.
ISBN 978-1-59309-362-4
ISBN 978-1-4516-1837-2 (e-book)
LCCN 2011928044
First Strebor Books trade paperback edition September 2011
Cover design:
www.mariondesigns.com
Cover photograph: © Keith Saunders/Marion Designs
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Manufactured in the United States of America
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.
T
O ALL
F
AYETTEVILLE
S
TATE
U
NIVERSITY
A
LUMS
For memories made
Some to forget and others to hold in our hearts for a lifetime.
Bronco Pride
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Given the present climate in our countryâthe recession with its high unemployment rate, the overwhelming number of fore-closures, business failures, and a president who is fighting to preserve the American dream for all humanity, I count it a privilege to be able to realize the birth of my sixth novel,
Betrayed.
Zane, thank you for giving me another opportunity to showcase my work, and to the Almighty I bow down because you said it was my season.
In spite of the economic downturn, my family, the readers, and book clubs have continued to support me in ways unimaginable. You could've spent your money on something else after the rent, groceries and light bill were paid, however, you put some change aside and picked up one of my novels from the bookstore, online, or at a book event.
I'd like to give special thanks to several book clubs who've made my year exceptional. To Edna Moore, Patricia McNeil and the Creative Crafts Book Club in Delaware, you made my nine-hour trip by car so rewarding. From each of the ladies wearing scarves to represent my character, Angelica, to the wonderful discussion, lunch, and book signing, it was a perfect day. To my sistahs in Danville, Virginia, the Round Table Literary ClubâLaSheera, Tora, Vanessa, Twozynn, Roxanne, Tonya, Katina, Hannah, Taffene, and JaShaun: what a time, what a time, what a
time. I had a knockdown, drag-out wonderful good time, so much so I didn't want to go back to North Carolina. Each one of you are worth a book unto yourself. And to my sistahs in Jackson, Mississippi, All That Jazz and Circle of Color Book Clubs, you made me feel like a
Queen
. You embraced me, fed me, showered me with gifts, and chauffeured me all over the city and showed me what real love felt like. I'd like to give an extra shout-out to Barbara Williams, Margaret Bullocks-Matory, and Vanessa Wilson; you went over, above, and beyond anything I expected. A big hug to Emma, Yvonne, and Felisha. And to my sistergirl, Angela Moore, thank you for showing me Jackson by way of the side trip to the hood to get some finger-licking E & L barbeque ribs. Last, but not least, I thank Pat Mendinghall and the Sisters Unlimited Book Club in Fayetteville, North Carolina for loving me and saving a spot on their book club read list for me again. Your beautifully laid table, the unlimited glasses of wine, the great book discussion, and the good conversation was more than enough. However, surprising me with the presence of my dear friend, Sherry, who flew all the way from Detroit to be with us, was priceless.