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    Black Velvet
    Black Velvet
    Black Velvet
    Ebook87 pages52 minutes

    Black Velvet

    By Gail McFarland

    5/5

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    About this ebook

    Sisters fight. Pretty much a fact of life, but twins Lisa and Lana have battled for their entire lifetime. Five years ago, Lisa got over the arguments long enough to save her sister's life by donating a kidney that was a complete match for her rare blood type.Once recovered, she took off for France, made millions of dollars, and never looked back.

    Now, she's back home and it seems that the trip has cost her her life -- maybe because of the black market value of her rare kidney.

    As the possesor of the original kidney, Lana's life could be forfiet -- if the price is right. And, if she married the wrong kind of man.

    Two sisters, one rare blood type, and a greedy game designing husband are keeping secrets. The secret becomes a game of life and death with a black market kidney sale hanging in the balance. Things get real for Lana Harrington,and the stakes increase when she loses her sister. This is a game she has to win because it could save her life... If she's lucky.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherGail McFarland
    Release dateAug 27, 2013
    ISBN9781301424771
    Black Velvet
    Author

    Gail McFarland

    Gail McFarland was once the girl known for never failing to get an 'A' in Honors English. Today, as proof that the smart can also be sassy, she is the published author of more than 100 short romantic confessions and short stories, numerous ebooks, and ten popular contemporary novels including: SUMMERWIND (BET/Arabesque) THE BEST FOR LAST(BET/Arabesque) WHEN LOVE CALLS (BET/Arabesque) BOUQUET with Roberta Gayle and Anna Laurence (BET/Arabesque) DREAM RUNNER (Genesis Press) DREAM KEEPER (Genesis Press) WAYWARD DREAMS Genesis Press) LADY KILLER (LULU Books) ALL FOR LOVE (CreateSpace Books) DOING BIG THINGS (CreateSpace Books). Best known for her contemporary romantic novels, Ms. McFarland is a contributing member of The GA Peach Authors. Ms. McFarland is also a dedicated wellness/fitness advocate. She is currently an active fitness instructor, health coach, wellness consultant, and community health volunteer. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Ms. McFarland now makes her home and place of literary creation in Atlanta, Georgia.

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      Book preview

      Black Velvet - Gail McFarland

      Black Velvet

      Gail McFarland

      Copyright 2013 by Gail McFarland

      Smashwords Edition

      Other Titles by Gail McFarland:

      Genesis Press/Indigo:

      Dream Runner

      Dream Keeper

      Wayward Dreams

      Lady Leo Press:

      If Ever

      Can A Sistah Get Some Love? (Anthology)

      BET/Arabesque:

      Summer Wind

      The Best For Last

      When Love Calls

      Bouquet (Mother’s Day Anthology)

      Smashwords Ebooks:

      All For Love

      Lady Killer

      Doing BIG Things (Loi Cramer #1)

      Lie Down With Dogs (Loi Cramer #2)

      Once (or Twice) In A Lifetime

      The Twentieth Century Fox

      This Side of Forever

      Heart of Justice

      If Ever

      Eye of The Beholder

      This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

      This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission. For information, address: P.O. Box 56782, Atlanta, Georgia 30343.

      Author websites:

      www.http://fitwryter.tripod.com

      www.http://fitwryter.com/books

      Black Velvet

      Gail McFarland

      * * *

      "…we’re meant to lose the people we love.

      How else would we know how important they are to us?"

      ~Mrs. Maple, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON (2008)

      * * *

      Black Velvet

      Chapter One

      The bedside monitor went flat as the breath crossed her lips like a whisper, and leaning closer from her chair beside the bed, Lana gave her sister’s hand a squeeze, waited for her to say more, and then called her name. She got nothing in return.

      It’s over? Done? Just like that?

      Staring at her sister, she tried to take it all in. The body was still, the familiar face so lacking the spirit of the life it had so recently defined was so final and decisive that it made her think of a poem from their school days; something from TS Elliott. "…This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang but a whimper."

      And Lisa didn’t even whimper.

      Now where in the world did that come from? The question, like a forbidden scream, locked itself somewhere deep in the back of Lana’s throat and nearly choked her. If anybody was supposed to remember obscure quotes from long-long-ago, it wasn’t her. Lisa was always the star student, the one with the no-fail memory and the gift of quick response. Lisa was the one with all the smarts and the huge financial empire.

      I was… I am the studious little high school science teacher who always had to try harder, and now I’m the surviving twin. We were supposed to be sisters together forever, but now she’s gone, and even though I’m married to Jeff, I’m alone…

      Holding tight to her hand, Lana could feel life heat leeching from her sister’s soft fingers as they grew cool in her own. Her eyes searched the heart-shaped face that mirrored her own. The dark brown long-lashed eyes were closed and Lisa’s pampered skin was smooth and free of worry in death, but the rounded cheeks and full mouth the sisters shared were still evident. Now, the biggest difference between the two of them was that the flush of Lisa’s buttery complexion was beginning to fade and dull. That, and that her heart no longer beat, but they were still sisters. Now and forever, from womb to women, Lana thought, remembering a lifetime of sharing and comparisons. Now it was like a curtain, black, velvety, and impermeable had dropped between them. We were supposed to grow old together…

      Get her out of here…

      Lana heard the gruff voice, the order apparent, but it didn’t fully register. Around her, everything seemed to move in slow motion and the blurred urgency made her stomach surge. The surreal quality of all that came next made her think of one of the games her husband designed, and that made her skin tight and cold with apprehension. The suddenness was almost exactly like the sights and sounds in one of Jeff’s nightmare computer dreamscapes.

      We’re going to need to get in here… The man’s voice was hard and efficient, and his words were like icy water dashed against hot skin. Shocking, deliberate, and completely unwanted, the man pushed past her, plugging his stethoscope into his ears and shutting her out.

      But… Lana had no other words, none that would let these people know how wrong this tableau was. Hands were on her elbow, then her shoulders and her back, evicting her from her chair, steering her toward the door, expelling her from the room and Lisa’s demise. Doctors and nurses surged into the private room, taking charge and separating the sisters physically, but Lana’s heart held on as she was pushed aside.

      Nobody seemed to notice the surviving twin as Lana backed slowly out of the hospital room, tears of sadness smearing her face. Lisa was gone, and not coming back, not in this life. She was older, three whole minutes older than me, and now she’s gone. So many fights between us, but one of us should have been better… It should have been me; I should have been a bigger person and… And now, there’s no time left… Grief raked through her and suddenly her legs were weak and her feet wobbled inside her sensible shoes with every step she took along the hospital corridor.

      Knowing that she couldn’t just collapse into a dismal heap on the floor, Lana forced herself to keep moving. Struggling to breathe and stay on her feet, she was grateful to see a pair of small dark leatherette sofas pushed against the wall across from her. Glad to see them, she aimed her body at the closest one and dropped onto it. Trying to ignore the rush of hospital personnel going about their lifesaving business and the newborn headache pulsing behind her eyes, Lana pulled her purse into her lap and hugged it tight. Dealing with the insulting stealth of death the only way she could, she smiled at the passing nurse in the blue scrubs when she caught her eye. But the woman had barely passed, when the façade broke, leaving Lana sitting with her head in her hands, cursing herself.

      We shouldn’t have argued. One of the last things they’d done was to argue – like always. All we ever did was argue, first as children and then as adults. Always the

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