John Farris - Baby Moll

Acclaim For the Work

of JOHN FARRIS!

Few writers have Mr. Farriss talent for masterfully devious plotting, the shattering, effective use of violence, and in-depth characterization.

The New York Times

A whirlpool of suspense, dread, and thrills, but also fiction of meaning and substance phenomenal, first-rate.

Dean Koontz

Inventive, sexy, and intricately plotted... superbly engrossing.

Publishers Weekly

John Farris is the godfather of thriller writers.

F. Paul Wilson

Farris is a real master.

Peter Straub

His paragraphs are smashingly crafted and images glitter like solitaires.

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Farris has the remarkable ability to jab his literary ice pick to the bone marrow.

Brian Garfield

Farris puts [readers] on the edge of their seats via compelling characterization and ratcheting up the tension at every turn of a well-crafted plot.

Booklist

Strong, lip-smacking suspense.

Kirkus Reviews

Well-drawn characters... graceful and gripping story-telling... another winner from a legendary writer.

Fangoria

Farris has marvelous skill.

The Associated Press

Its amazing... The characters are as vivid as any Ive ever read, and Mr. Farris constantly surprised me with the twists and turns of the plot. Mr. Farris is a master storyteller.

Larry Bond

John Farris is more than a giant, hes... the Tyrannosaurus Rex of thriller writers.

Douglas Preston

I heard it again the sound of someone walking stealthily toward me in the sand. I rolled on my belly, gathered my legs beneath me and dived at an indistinct figure five feet away. We went down. There was a muffled sound of surprise. My hand slid along a smooth curved thigh, touched rounded breasts and full nipples. I was holding a woman as naked as I was, and holding her damned tight, the weight of my body pinning her to the sand. I backed away from her fast and she sat up. She cried out again, reached toward her breasts with protective hands.

Im sorry, I said. You shouldnt have come up behind me like that.

Its... all right, she said in a strained voice. Im sorry I... startled you. Her hands came away from her breasts slowly and dropped to her knees. She sat very still, apparently looking toward me. I hadnt held her long, but long enough for her to be perfectly aware I wasnt dressed either. Not that it made any difference, in the dark.

Who are you? I said.

Im Diane. You... must be Pete Mallory.

Thats right. How did you know?

Macys talked about you. He brought you here to find the person whos going to kill him.

Yes.

She was silent for a moment. Then she stretched, rising to her toes, and relaxed. Her voice was calm again.

Macy will tell you about me, she said. Im supposed to be a little bit crazy.

Are you?

She laughed girlishly. I suppose so. I suppose I am...

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YOU WILL ENJOY:

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LUCKY AT CARDS by Lawrence Block

ROBBIES WIFE by Russell Hill

THE VENGEFUL VIRGIN by Gil Brewer

THE WOUNDED AND THE SLAIN by David Goodis

BLACKMAILER by George Axelrod

SONGS OF INNOCENCE by Richard Aleas

FRIGHT by Cornell Woolrich

KILL NOW, PAY LATER by Robert Terrall

SLIDE by Ken Bruen and Jason Starr

DEAD STREET by Mickey Spillane

DEADLY BELOVED by Max Allan Collins

A DIET OF TREACLE by Lawrence Block

MONEY SHOT by Christa Faust

ZERO COOL by John Lange

SHOOTING STAR/SPIDERWEB by Robert Bloch

THE MURDERER VINE by Shepard Rifkin

SOMEBODY OWES ME MONEY by Donald E. Westlake

NO HOUSE LIMIT by Steve Fisher

byJohn Farris

WRITING AS STEVE BRACKEEN

A HARD CASE CRIME BOOK

(HCC-046)

First Hard Case Crime edition: August 2008

Published by

Titan Books

A division of Titan Publishing Group Ltd

144 Southwark Street

London

SE1 0UP

in collaboration with Winterfall LLC

Copyright 1958 by Fawcett Publications, Inc.,

Copyright 2008 by Penny Dreadful, Ltd.

Cover painting copyright 2008 by Robert McGinnis

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher, except where permitted by law.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the authors imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Print edition ISBN 978-0-85768-306-9

E-book ISBN 978-0-85768-766-1

Cover design by Cooley Design Lab

Design direction by Max Phillips

Typeset by Swordsmith Productions

The name Hard Case Crime and the Hard Case Crime logo are trademarks of Winterfall LLC. Hard Case Crime books are selected and edited by Charles Ardai.

Visit us on the web at www.HardCaseCrime.com

We had fun that day, the day Rudy Mask turned up in Orange Bay to reweave the net that held me to the past. In the morning Elaine and I took the boat through the calm waters of the pass and hunted south along the coast for snook, and, later, when the chest was full, for a beach and growth of trees where we could rest and swim.

I decided on a curved narrow piece of island three or four hundred yards from the shoreline, and edged the boat into the beach. Elaine slipped over the side into shallow water to guide the keel against the sand.

Catch me, I said, then jumped over the side, splashing water on her swimsuit.

Pete! she wailed.

So what? I chided. Thats what its for, isnt it? To get wet?