Title: Duality

Author: K.J. McGillick

Genre: Mystery Thriller

Release Date: July 27, 2019

Just when you think you’ve figured it all out, you’ll learn how wrong you’ve been.

What started out as a normal art restoration project for Melinda Martin soon took on a life of its own. Could this unusual painting actually be a Botticelli masterpiece thought to have perished as part of Savonarola’s Bonfire of the Vanities? Had Melinda’s friend, Lara, a well-known art picker inadvertently acquired stolen art; art that might have ties to the occult and worth millions? Did a bad business decision endanger everyone who touched this potential treasure?

When the painting disappears and both women are found dead, the police think it’s an open and shut case. The husband - it’s always the husband. He had means, motive, and opportunity, and acted strangely cold after the fact. 

Is it a case of mistaken identity? Does a secret relationship put Mr. Martin in the crosshairs of an assassin sent to retrieve the painting? Or is he really a sociopath forger with mysterious ties to the Vatican?

Two sides of the same coin. Completely alike. Completely different.

“I follow Dalia’s line of thinking. It might appear that since I had access to her home, I may be the thief and murderer.” He suddenly stopped speaking, leaving us to hang on to his next words.

“Mr. Martin, are you still there?” Dalia called out to him.

“A moment, I see something under her head, a paper,” Mr. Martin replied.

“I thought I told you to leave the room,” Dalia said, her tone terse. “Please don’t touch it. Can you describe it?” 

There was a moment of silence as we waited for him to inspect the paper.

“Odd. It appears to be a portion of a painting by Botticelli. More specifically, Botticelli’s Map of Hell; it is the one which represents Dante’s Divine Comedy. You know, the public always gets it wrong by labeling it ‘Dante’s Inferno’—” he started to say before I cut him off.

“Don’t need a literature lesson at one A.M., we just need your impressions,” I said.

“This portion of the piece represents a Malebolge. Dante divided the Eighth Circle of Hell into ten ditches of the damned; this one represents the seventh ditch where thieves were damned. These wretched souls’ hands were bound behind their backs by snakes,” he said and took an audible loud breath. “It almost looks like the way Melanie’s hands are bound.”

Oh my God, what kind of sick mind had we stumbled upon?

“You can stop there; I’ve heard enough. Mr. Martin, go back upstairs. Mary, get dressed. I will be there in ten minutes to pick you up. Mr. Martin, text me Melanie’s address, we are on our way. Call the police right now and report the crime. Do not say anything until I get there!” Dalia instructed.

I wrestled with addressing a problem I felt needed a resolution.

“And, Mr. Martin, we have to cut to the chase here, time is of the essence. Your communication can come across as abrasive and insensitive to people who do not know you. So, try to have as little verbal interaction as possible with the police. We don’t want your demeanor to take you from a witness to a person of interest, understand?” I added.

“Um, I see,” was his flat reply.

“Christ, Mary, this is not the time. Now, hang up. I am on my way,” Dalia said.

People just did not seem to appreciate my keen power of observation sometimes.

Kathleen McGillick is an author of fast paced mystery, suspense and thriller novels. Her fascination with the genre reaches back to her childhood when she read every Nancy Drew book she could find. This, one could say, laid the foundation for her future love of all things mystery and who dun it's. 

Although she has lived in Georgia for over thirty-five years and is practicing attorney in the Metro Atlanta, she will always call New York her home. 

When writing her novels she draws from her extensive experience in the medical and legal field to weave her twisted plot lines. Kathleen counts herself an ardent student of art history which allows her to add a dash of art to her novels adding to the mystery of the story.

As a young person her dream was to become an English literature teacher. Although life took her on a different path, one might say she found her way back to her early love of books by spending her time now writing them.

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