Acknowledgments
Special thanks go to two people at Deseret Book: Jana Erickson gave me a premise to pursue and gave me sound feedback as the plot developed, and Richard Peterson was particularly supportive as we worked through the editing process under a tight time constraint. Thanks, Richard. You’re a joy to work with, and I always learn so much from the process.
My thanks as well to Gene Davis and Neil Nottingham for answering questions and advising me in their areas of expertise. When they retired, Gene was Deputy Chief Patrol Agent of the Blaine Sector of the U.S. Border Patrol and Neil was a captain in the Los Angeles Fire Department.
I leaned on members of the local American Night Writer’s Association (ANWA) to read my manuscript for continuity. Thank you, ladies: Lucinda Rudolph, Amber Rudolph, Ann Acton, Terry Deighton, Edna Harper, and Chris Talley. My old friend Addy Gifford and my daughter Ruth Lavine helped out there too.
Eileen and Leroy Schenk and Joyce and Dan Packard accompanied my husband, Derrill, and me as we poked around the ruins at Casa Grande and Tonto National Monument. I’m appreciative of friends making time to accommodate my research needs while renewing old ties. Speaking of old friends: Holy Crow, Bob James, I appropriated your favorite expression!
Thanks also to my daughter Terry Gifford, who taught seminary for me during crunch time, and to her son, three-year-old Jens, who gave me the marvelous Primary passage.
As ever, thanks to Derrill for his faith in me and for his unfailing support.