acknowledgments

It truly takes an amazing number of people to get a book into print, and I’m so very grateful to everyone who was involved with this one. The hardworking team at Midnight Ink includes Terri Bischoff, Courtney Colton, Bethany Onsgard, Connie Hill, and Lisa Novak. Without them this would just be a pile of paper on the corner of my desk. My writing buddies Mark Figlozzi and Bob Trott provided advice, detailed feedback, and unstinting support, especially for this book—thanks, guys! The ladies of the Old Town Writing Group—Janet Freeman, Dana Masden, Laura Pritchett, Laura Resau, and Carrie Visintainer—keep me on the straight and narrow, make me laugh, and ask the tough questions. Bizango.net is responsible for my awesome website. And thank heavens Kevin Brookfield is my forever cheerleader, inspiration, and moral support when I’m pretty sure I have no freaking idea how to write a book.

Additional thanks go to Debbie Main and Joe Werner for name suggestions. Maurice Robkin gave me loads of information about guns (pardon the pun), and Leslie Budewitz answered my legal questions early on. The folks at Washington Outdoor Women taught me to tie flies and cast, and Caitlin Hartford taught me how to ride western. Anything I got wrong is my own fault, not theirs.

Then there are the people who read the book—or parts thereof—that contained the seeds for this one. They include Tom Martin, Jeff Weaver, Ed Cattrell, Rod and Nita Lindsay, Margot Ayer, Kevin Fansler, Stacey Kollman, Jody Ivy, Mindy Ireland, Tamera Manzanares, Marjorie Reynolds, Stasa Fritz, and Aimee Jolie.

Finally, let’s not forget the real McCoys—my cousins Gary and Marsha, from whom I borrowed the name, and my great-grandmother, Essie McCoy.