Samantha’s Voice #846096

Lisa Hedge is an RN and retired military officer living in rural Indiana. After earning a BA in journalism at Ball State University, she worked as a public relations writer before following a calling to become an RN. After many years of working in health care, she returned to writing and became a member of Sin City Writers while living in Las Vegas, Nevada. She now enjoys spending time writing fiction and playing with her six grandchildren.

Samantha's Voice is the compelling tale of a young girl, twice orphaned and raised on a sail boat by her irascible rum loving great grandfather, who yearns for a family. Grandfather was military, she will be military, thus she goes to West Point where she finds love with fellow classmate Brad Kramer. But in the words of a coworker, "A dog will always be a dog." Too busy with her studies to pay attention to Brad, he gives her reason to harden her heart. After graduation, sparks fly again when they're both assigned to Bagram Air Base. But in this military setting, love is forbidden.

A critical mission starts when a patrol discovers a Katyusha loaded with rockets containing white powder that is later identified to be talcum. When a patrol leader is almost killed by white powder containing fentanyl, the race is on to discover how these two powders might be used. In a pivotal moment, Lt. Samantha Harmon faces off against Nadja, a prisoner who holds critical information about the powder that could prevent a catastrophic assault on U.S. forces, causing them to withdraw from Afghanistan in total defeat.

Complicating her mission, Samantha's family ties to organized crime are revealed. Pressured to resign her commission and join an illegal group rescuing Afghan allies, she must maintain secrecy. Back in the U.S., she works with the DEA, navigating a web of intrigue concerning her families hidden wealth, and an al Qaeda plot targeting a balloon festival. When Jenny, a foster cousin, is killed by fentanyl, the mission to prevent fentanyl deaths becomes personal . And with Brad now injured in an overseas attack, her heart cries for direction. How can she best help the fallen? It's a question she has to reach deep to find the inner strength to answer.