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Washed Ashore From the Titanic
Washed Ashore From the Titanic
Washed Ashore From the Titanic
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Washed Ashore From the Titanic

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Washed Ashore From the Titanic is a time travel romance novelette by bestselling novelist R. Barri Flowers.

In April 1912, schoolteacher Valerie McElroy and her eight-year-old sister, Ruby, booked passage on the RMS Titanic for a return trip to America after visiting an aunt in London, England. When the supposedly unsinkable passenger liner hits an iceberg, Valerie and Ruby find themselves apparently safe after being put on a lifeboat.

But things go further awry when Valerie finds herself knocked off the crowded lifeboat and into the cold sea. While attempting to swim back to safety and her sister, a mysterious fog suddenly appears out of nowhere and engulfs her, then everything goes black.

In April 2004, Jonathan Sandler, a recluse widower and author, is shocked to find a beautiful and strangely dressed young woman washed ashore and lifeless near his secluded waterfront home in Maine. Bringing her inside, he helps her regain consciousness only to discover that she has amnesia with no idea who she is or how she wound up on his shore. As much intrigued as perplexed by his unexpected guest, Jonathan finds himself falling for her, even as he tries to uncover the mystery. Never in his wildest dreams could he have imagined her story.

Valerie was equally beyond words once she regained her memory and realized that she had somehow been transported to the future--ninety-two years, to be exact. While trying to make sense of it, including falling in love with her handsome rescuer, she discovers that her sister, Ruby, is still alive.

It is after they reunite that Valerie makes a fateful decision that will impact both their lives and her future with Jonathan, assuming a future was theirs to have in the corridors of time.

Bonus material includes a complete riveting historical short story, “Murder Aboard the Titanic,” and excerpts of the author’s heartwarming contemporary romance novel, The Cabin on Belle Bay.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateDec 2, 2020
ISBN9780463541395
Washed Ashore From the Titanic
Author

R. Barri Flowers

R. Barri Flowers is an award winning and Publishers Weekly bestselling author of romantic suspense, mystery, thriller and crime novels, with twenty Harlequin titles published to date, such as Honolulu Cold Homicide and Special Agent Witness. Chemistry and conflict between the hero and heroine, attention to detail, and incorporating the very latest advances in criminal investigations, are the cornerstones of his crime thriller fiction.

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    Book preview

    Washed Ashore From the Titanic - R. Barri Flowers

    WASHED ASHORE FROM THE TITANIC

    Stairway in Time Romance Novelette

    By R. Barri Flowers

    WASHED ASHORE FROM THE TITANIC: Stairway in Time Romance Novelette is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, business establishments, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

    WASHED ASHORE FROM THE TITANIC

    Stairway in Time Romance Novelette

    Copyright 2020 by R. Barri Flowers

    All rights reserved.

    Cover Image Copyright HLF Photos, 2020

    Used with permission from HLF Photos

    To the wonderful love of my life, in which time is forever on our side—you have always encouraged me to put my best foot forward, and then some, as an author, dreamer, husband and very best friend.

    To fans of time travel romance and historical adventure fiction, I hope you enjoy this novelette exploring the timeless and unfathomable fabric of love.

    * * *

    OTHER FICTION BOOKS BY R. BARRI FLOWERS

    NOVELS

    A Reason to Live

    Alive in the Rose City

    Before He Kills Again

    Dark Streets of Whitechapel

    Dead in Kihei

    Dead in Pukalani

    Dead in the Rose City

    Deadly Defense

    Fractured Trust

    Justice Served

    Kaanapali Beach Paradise

    Kauai Killer

    Killer Connection

    Killer in The Woods

    Murder in Honolulu

    Murder in Maui

    Murder of the Hula Dancers

    Murder on Kaanapali Beach

    Murdered in the Gourmet Kitchen

    Murdered in the Man Cave

    Night Killers

    Persuasive Evidence

    Seduced to Kill in Kauai

    State’s Evidence

    The Cabin on Belle Bay

    NOVELETTES/SHORT STORIES

    Billy the Kid’s Wife

    Convinced

    Death by Trial and Error

    In Loving Memory

    The Jury Has Spoken

    Killer Connection

    Love Aboard the Titanic

    Murder Aboard the Titanic

    Ph.D in Murder

    The Phone Call

    Stairwell into Time

    Target of a Killer

    Vampire Classmates

    Vandals

    Vandals 2

    The Wrong End of a Gun

    TEEN NOVELS

    Christmas Wishes: Laura’s Story

    Count Dracula’s Teenage Daughter

    Danger in Time

    Daughter of Count Dracula

    Ghost Girl in Shadow Bay

    Out for Blood

    Summer at Paradise Ranch

    Teen Ghost at Dead Lake

    * * *

    PRAISE FOR R. BARRI FLOWERS

    MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH is among the best of his tales. This one deserves to be at the top of your must read list. — John Lutz, Edgar winning bestselling mystery author

    R. Barri Flowers gives readers a fine procedural along with appealing characters and great local color. — Bill Crider, Edgar winner and bestselling crime writer on MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH

    A top flight police procedural and a must read for all fans of suspense. The contrast of seamy crime to the beautiful paradise setting adds to the gripping tension. — Joe Moore, bestselling co-author on MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH

    R. Barri Flowers weaves a riveting crime tale set in Hawaii oozing with authenticity, grit, and drama. — Kim Cresswell, bestselling author on MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH

    A police procedural with a complex plot, told from multiple viewpoints. The reader gets the added benefit of a virtual vacation on Maui. — Laurie Hanan, mystery author on MURDER ON KAANAPALI BEACH

    Flowers delivers the goods. An exotic setting, winning characters, and realistic procedural details make MURDER IN MAUI a sure hit with crime-fiction readers. — Bill Crider, Edgar winner and author

    MURDER IN MAUI is a steamy, non-stop thrill-ride through the seamy underbelly of Hawaii. — Allison Leotta, Federal Sex Crimes Prosecutor and author

    Vivid details of police procedure one would expect from top criminologist. A gripping novel in what promises to be an outstanding series. — Douglas Preston, New York Times bestselling author on MURDER IN MAUI

    Gripping, tightly woven tale you won’t want to put down. Author neatly contrasts the natural beauty of tropical paradise with ugliness of murder and its aftermath. — John Lutz, Edgar winner and bestselling author on MURDER IN MAUI

    MURDER IN HONOLULU is an exquisitely rich and masterfully constructed mystery. Flowers now lays fitting claim to the beautiful island paradise as his territory.... A savvy, smooth, and sumptuous read that’s as hot as Waikiki beach sand. — Jon Land, mystery author

    Infidelity and murder in paradise lead to a one of a kind case for PI Skye McKenzie Delaney, and an enjoyable ride for the reader. Definitely put this one on your list. — John Lutz, Edgar winner and bestselling author on MURDER IN HONOLULU

    Flowers once again has written a page-turner legal thriller that begins with a bang and rapidly moves along to its final page. He has filled the novel with believable characters and situations. — Midwest Book Review on STATE’S EVIDENCE

    A clever mystery with many suspects.... Vividly written, this book holds the reader’s attention and speeds along. — Romantic Times on JUSTICE SERVED

    A model of crime fiction.... Flowers may be a new voice in modern mystery writing, but he is already one of its best voices. — Statesman Journal on JUSTICE SERVED

    An excellent look at the jurisprudence system...will appeal to fans of John Grisham and Linda Fairstein. — Harriet Klausner on PERSUASIVE EVIDENCE

    STATE’S EVIDENCE will make the top sellers list because it’s fast-paced, intriguing, satisfying, and I highly recommend it to you. — Romance Reader at Heart

    A rocket of a read. Not only a heart-thumping thriller, this is that rare novel that is downright scary. — John Lutz, Edgar winner and bestselling author on BEFORE HE KILLS AGAIN

    It gets no better than this! R. Barri Flowers has written another thriller guaranteed to hold onto its readers! — Huntress Reviews on DARK STREETS OF WHITECHAPEL

    Selected as one of Suspense Magazine’s Best Books. — John Raab, CEO/Publisher on THE SEX SLAVE MURDERS

    TABLE OF CONTENTS

    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

    Epilogue

    Murder Aboard the Titanic – bonus short story

    The Cabin on Belle Bay – bonus excerpts

    About the Author

    * * *

    CHAPTER ONE

    It was the chilly morning of Wednesday, April 10th, 1912, when American schoolteacher Valerie McElroy and her eight-year-old sister, Ruby, arrived at the Southampton Town & Docks railway station on a boat train by way of London, England. Soon they would be joining throngs of others on board the British passenger liner RMS Titanic, which would be making its maiden voyage across the Atlantic Ocean en route to New York. Valerie and Ruby had spent the past month or so living at the manor house of their Aunt Beatrice and her husband, Roger Vanderham, a merchant banker, whom she had wed a year earlier. Unable to have children of her own, Beatrice had been like a second mother to them after their birth mother and her sister, Estelle McElroy, died of diphtheria five years ago. Twenty-three at the time, Valerie had been utterly devastated. So too had her poor father, Patrick McElroy. Though doing the best he could in raising his daughters, while managing a shoe shop full-time in their town of Hanover, New Hampshire, much of the day-to-day burden in caring for her sister had rested on Valerie’s shoulders. Especially after Beatrice had fallen in love with her British suitor and agreed to marry him and move abroad to his homeland.

    While challenging at times, Valerie embraced the task of being there for Ruby, who was too young to remember their mother and all the love she gave to both of them. Duty bound to carry on for her, Valerie also saw it as practice of sorts for her own motherhood someday. She had no idea when such time might arise or if it was ever to be in the cards, having recently broken up with the man she had been dating, Desmond Silver. A successful businessman, he was sweet and attentive. But he was also fifteen years older and didn’t much care for her independent nature and forward thinking. Though he had initially been resistant to ending things, he ultimately agreed that it was in both their best interests.

    When Aunt Beatrice invited her and Ruby to visit her, Valerie jumped at the opportunity, feeling the need to get away for a while, as well as see a different part of the world. She wanted this for Ruby too, whom Valerie made sure received all her school lessons while away from home. The experience had been wonderful, as they had gotten to see the sights and sounds of London and the English countryside and spend time with their lovely aunt, who hated to see them leave, but understood their lives were in America. In spite of wishing they could stay a bit longer, Valerie had become homesick, as had Ruby, and missed their hardworking father. Though he had started seeing a kindhearted woman named Elisabeth Lockwood, also widowed and a seamstress, Valerie feared that he would never be the same after her mother’s death. It would be up to his daughters to do their best to make up for her loss and encourage him to find happiness with someone else, as Valerie was sure her mother would have wanted.

    Valerie wanted the same thing for herself. In spite of her past failures with love, she had to believe there was a decent man out there somewhere who would come to her rescue where it concerned matters of the heart. But at the moment, her attention was on returning home safe and sound, and back to her life as a teacher, which she loved. Departing the train with Ruby, Valerie held on to her little hand, so as not to lose her amongst the hundreds of passengers heading haphazardly toward the ship.

    Will it be more fun than the ship we arrived on? Ruby asked. Tall for her age and slender, she had long blonde hair like their mother, worn in a single plait with a red ribbon tied around at the nape. She wore a sailor suit and white stockings, along with button up brown boots.

    Yes, I think it will be, Valerie told her with a reassuring smile. Not to say that their experience on the RMS Lusitania ocean liner had been unpleasant en route to England. Quite the opposite, it had done a lot to alleviate her fears of a first transatlantic crossing. But the Titanic was not only larger and, by most accounts, even more luxurious, it was generally thought to be unsinkable, giving Valerie further solace in being part of its maiden voyage.

    She pressed down on her large, wide-brimmed hat, embellished with ostrich feathers, to keep it in place over long and thick raven hair worn in a low pompadour and trained her big, bold blue eyes on the enormous ship ahead. Tall like her father and shapely but thin like her Aunt Beatrice, Valerie had dressed the part for the sea adventure, wearing a long-sleeved grayish brown

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