Secrets are not good things. Like bacteria in Petri dishes, they breed in the darkness of confinement. The women of one prominent San Antonio family have hidden their secrets for over 200 years behind softly honeyed tones and a veneer of polite society. Social standing is of prime importance; morality and honesty have never mattered.When the elderly occupant of the family mansion dies alone and without a will, lawyers for the State locate a last surviving relative who has moved away but who still carries the painful burden of lies, secrets, and betrayals that are the Morton family legacy. She returns reluctantly, for five days spent with the court-appointed estate appraiser.Together they uncover history and treasure, revealing the perjured past of generations of Mortons and the deceptions inflicted upon their children and the city where they reigned as social aristocrats.In the hot and muggy world of south Texas, a storm is brewing outside and inside the derelict mansion, culminating in one final horrifying discovery and betrayal. Michaele Lockhart brings a diverse background to her writing: a passion for history, a fascination with human drama, and a love of literature. Her education combines early and secondary schools in Europe, in addition to college degrees from the University of Arizona and the University of Maryland.Embracing a variety of genres, her versatility extends from her favorite periods of history to contemporary social issues. She's a retired teacher and a talented nature and landscape photographer, often inserting elements of visual lyricism into her writing. Her short stories and novels have encompassed historical fiction adventure to compelling romantic magic realism to suspense.Michaele Lockhart lives in Tucson, Arizona, where current projects include a mystery-suspense series set in the scenic beauties of the Southwest. Book One is "Focused on Murder."

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