Mitch Hammer is an FBI agent on an organized crime task force investigating the disappearances of numerous witnesses connected to the very successful New York criminal defense attorney Nikolai Lebedev. Desperate to break the case in this ten year growing mystery, Hammer kidnaps Isobel Lebedev his abused wife, and successful biochemist. Lebedev just happens to own numerous race horses, something Hammer sees as incidental. As the scope of his target's equine interests come to light, Hammer realizes that Hall of Fame trainer Daniel John Georgio's death was not an accident, and that there is far more at stake than meets the eye. Soon he and Isobel are on the run for their lives, barely one step ahead of a man who never lets anything stand in his way; certainly not in the way of his dream of winning the Run for the Roses.The story within the story in one that touches on cloning technology with the fictitious cloning of a few famous racehorses and the quest to win the Kentucky Derby. The racing theme is woven throughout.
About the Author: Heather Annis was born in New York but grew up in South Africa. She returned to the US after two attacks on her life, and the death of a friend in a senseless highway shooting, during the escalating violence of the end of the Apartheid era. Heather spent more than twenty years in the Thoroughbred racing industry as a Trainer in South Africa and as an Assistant Trainer, and Exercise Rider in the US. She has worked for the likes of Todd Pletcher, D. Wayne Lukas, George Weaver, Mike Maker, Nick Zito, and many others. Heather was privileged to ride great horses like Azeri, Left Bank, Speightstown, and so many more. Her favorites being Western Wind and Rip Curl in South Africa whom she considers two of the best horses she ever sat on, and Puget Sound and Swizzle Stick, two absolute characters of moderate talent in the US. After a family emergency placed her in Forks, WA, she spent four years as a Correctional Officer with the WA State Department of Corrections in the company of some famous felons in maximum security who have to remain nameless. While there, her son joined the Navy and it was during his first deployment to Iraq that she realized she wanted to serve. Heather joined the Navy and became a physician. Heather wrote this novel while recovering from surgery after a traumatic knee injury. Dr. Annis is an alumnus of the Medical College of Wisconsin and hopes to use the proceeds of her writing endeavors to pay off her med school debt. She is also a vegan, which means she chooses not to eat animals or use animal products because of the cruelty involved with production. She elected not to experiment on live animals during medical school choosing to use computer models instead. She is an animal lover and has been rescuing and rehoming cats for eighteen years. She also has a deaf dog, a blind dog, crippled pony, a blind mouse, and two very old frogs, among other rescues. Dr. Annis is very concerned about the world hunger situation and the unsustainable use of resources with the burgeoning world population. She is also extremely concerned with the rate of veteran suicide. Her interests include traumatic brain injury, disaster preparedness, and hyperbaric neuro oxygen toxicity. She has ongoing research in the latter two areas. She supports Swazi aids orphans. In her own community she is involved with feeding the homeless and animal rescue.