Judgment Call

Judgment Call
J. A. Jance

From New York Times bestselling author J. A. Jance, a suspenseful mystery from the creator of Arizona sheriff Joanna Brady and Seattle homicide detective J. P. Beaumont.When Joanna Brady's daughter stumbles across the body of her high school principal, the Cochise County sheriff's personal and professional worlds collide, forcing her to tread the difficult middle ground between being an officer of the law and a mother.But Joanna isn't prepared for the knowledge she's about to uncover. Though she's tried to protect her children from the dangers of the world, the search for justice leads straight to her own door and forces her to face the possibility that her beloved daughter may be less perfect than she seems—especially when a photo from the crime scene ends up on Facebook. A photo only one person close to the crime scene could have taken…

To Loretta, in memory of Randy.

Semper Fi.

Table of Contents

Cover (#u6a34ebcd-5751-53bf-b013-7d79448f4792)

Title Page (#ue3a9088d-ff63-5e26-831e-dfdcfbadb50a)

Dedication (#uf4e59a96-eba3-5e54-a67a-de1ea564e3c5)

Prologue (#uc978bb6c-a8f7-5b5e-9f4d-7f9f2b059be2)

Chapter One (#u912b3bbc-cfb0-528f-9fcc-1411effd0a9f)

Chapter Two (#u1332e5ad-e74f-53c6-9ee0-c11f89ae1273)

Chapter Three (#u80fd3544-33f8-5902-addb-33660ee29c7c)

Chapter Four (#u6dc624ac-b276-5834-86fa-dc0e27caa7b6)

Chapter Five (#ube07fc11-0905-5a5c-9a63-4ca3934b3c1e)

Chapter Six (#u4a678485-c634-5f1f-a557-5b9534636aa2)

Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Sixteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seventeen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eighteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nineteen (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-One (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Two (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Three (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Four (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Five (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Six (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Seven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Eight (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twenty-Nine (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirty (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirty-One (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Thirty-Two (#litres_trial_promo)

Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Author (#litres_trial_promo)

By J. A. Jance (#litres_trial_promo)

Read on for an extract from Second Watch (#litres_trial_promo)

Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)

PROLOGUE (#ulink_c0ec1c02-fafd-513c-87a9-4c526c06e3c5)

THE CAR stopped in the middle of a stretch of rough dirt road. In the silvery moonlight, the road was a light-colored ribbon cutting straight north through a forest of newly leafed mesquite trees. He had hoped to drive much farther before he stopped the car, but his study of Google Maps had let him down. This was a far more primitive road than he had been led to believe it would be. He had managed to pick his way around the boulder-littered crossings at the first two washes, but this one was impossible. The unfamiliar low-slung Passat wasn’t going to make it.

There was a noisy thumping from inside the trunk. That meant she was awake, and that was fine with him. He wanted her to be awake and aware. He wanted her to know what was happening and why. That was the whole point. Otherwise, it would be a lot like being struck by lightning. God reached out and got you and you had no idea what was coming. That wasn’t what this trip was about; wasn’t what he was about. For him this was far more personal.