10 Commandment Murders

I recently had an epiphany and jotted down several ideas for a new book series. Entitled the 10 Commandment Murders, there would be 10 books in the series. I'm sharing a snippet of the first chapter from Book #1 - Thou Shalt Have No Other Gods Before Me


The tiny charm bracelet lay like glittering diamonds in the afternoon sunlight. The cooling air of pending nightfall was starting to creep into the day, but the 12 identical charms sparkled like jewels from the heavens. Chloe bent down in the soft bluegrass and gingerly prodded the bracelet with a fallen stick. At first she was unsure of what she was seeing, but as her pale blue eyes adjusted to the contrasting silver laying in the green grass, her heart began to race with the anxiety of impending doom.

The entire community of Salvation, Kentucky had turned out to answer the call of a local “Amber Alert” – one of their own had turned up missing and as the hours turned into the first day, the hope of a successful recovery was starting to sink in. The local sheriff had said it was urgent to find five year old Kacey LeeAnn Coleman within the first twenty-four hours.

“Our chances of finding Kacey safe and sound will greatly diminish the longer she remains missing,” said Sheriff Kellerman.

Kacey was a kindergarten student at Salvation Elementary School and she rode the school bus home every afternoon, getting off at the corner of First and Sugar Street. Because her house was only one short block down Sugar Street, her mother Susie Coleman, or her babysitter, Mrs. Harmon, would meet the bus at the corner and walk Kacey home. Yesterday there had been a substitute bus driver and he did not know to wait for someone to pick Kacey up. The last time anyone had seen Kacey alive was at 3:35 pm when she excited Bus 062 and started down the gravel road to her home. She never made it home and no one would ever see her alive again.

The bracelet was silver and as Chloe picked it up and turned it over in her palm, she noticed the charms were of the Ten Commandments. This was the same bracelet Kacey’s mother said the child had on when she went to school yesterday morning. It was her favorite bracelet and she had been wearing it non-stop for the past six months.

It was not a good sign for this bracelet to be found here. Chloe was approximately 5 miles from where little Kacey had last been seen. This was not good at all.