Bitter Tree

Book excerpt: Hidden beneath desert sands and cleverly written as an intriguing story in the pages of the Bible wasn't a miracle that would bring clean water to the world's thirsty poor, as Rene idealistically believed. Instead, Eleanor recognized that what was concealed was a weapon capable of humbling the world's industrial powers if discovered. Eleanor couldn't have guessed influence the handsome, idealistic archaeologist, Rene, would have on her. She gave him her heart...yet kept her secrets. Trapped between the longings of her heart and the danger she's unwittingly unleashed, Eleanor finds herself on the run and separated from the man she loves. In order to do the impossible, she must overcome her mentor and former CIA boss, Steve Clarkson, as well as corrupt men plotting to destroy the strategic oil reserve by poisoning the United States economy's lifeblood. Steve believes she's a traitor to the nation's enemies even as the terrorists see her as the one person capable of thwarting them--and the threat they have to remove at any cost.