Behind the Badge (27 page)

COMING SOON:

BEHIND THE MASK

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

For the longest time, I couldn’t decide whether to write this book. The story was there, and I felt like it needed to be told, but I knew even then it would ruffle some feathers. I make no bones about the fact that this story was inspired, in large part, by real-life events -- particularly the Freddie Gray case that erupted in Baltimore this past summer. I won’t say I felt a responsibility to tell this story, but to have a character like Jill and not tackle the issue of police brutality would’ve felt like a missed opportunity on my part.

Police brutality is not an easy thing to write about, even when the writing is fictional. Seemingly every other day, I turn on my TV or read the news and find out another unarmed black person has been killed at the hands of police. More often than not, nothing’s done about it. I knew immediately that Jill was the sort of character who would never let that slide, and thus the skeleton upon which this book was written was born.

This book will likely offend some, and I’m okay with that. I won’t sit here and say this book is supposed to make you think; this is a work of fiction, and it would be presumptuous of me to tell you how to take in my writing. But if something in this book makes you reflect and think on real-life events, then that’s a good thing.

As always, my first thanks goes to Anton Kromoff, whose advice and collaboration while we were in high school shaped many of the characters in this series and the world they inhabit. His input has survived two decades and several personal reboots, and
Bounty
might not exist today were it not for his help.

My sister Kat and my dear friend Kate continue to provide emotional and creative support in their own unique ways. I went in such great detail about them in the acknowledgements for both
Bounty
and
Blood Ties
, but I would be remiss if another book went to print without me once again thanking them for their love and support over the years. These two make me feel like a superhero, even when I’m not.

Once again, I oew my editor, Becca Bates, a huge debt. Her insight on this manuscript was once again beyond valuable, and it helped me untangle key plot points that wound up far more tightly wound than I expected; if I could, I’d have her read all of my stuff. Also, SelfPubBookCovers.com user woofie_2005 created a brilliant cover, one I knew would be perfect for this book as soon as I saw it.

To my fellow writers in the Hampton Roads, Virginia chapter of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month): the first draft of this book was my NaNo 2015 project, and interacting with all of you at various write-ins and other functions (when my day job allowed) helped make the words flow more freely.
Bounty
was my 2014 NaNo project, so between that book and this one, it’s safe to say this series might not exist without NaNo. Robin, Monica, Mary, Kara, Carson, Jordan (and others whose names escape me)… this book is for you as much as anyone else (also, thanks to you guys for giving
Bounty
its biggest sales boost to-date).

Oscar Grant… Freddie Gray… Michael Brown… Trayvon Martin… Eric Garner… Tamir Rice… John Crawford… Sandra Bland… and the countless others who have fallen at the hands of the police inspired much of this book. Their stories are horrible and tragic and the lack of justice for their families is unacceptable. If the real world cannot adequately fight on behalf of the fallen, then perhaps works of fiction like this are our best bet.

As always, I hope you enjoyed this story and I hope you’ll be back for the next installment,
Behind the Mask
. It will pick up right where
Behind the Badge
left off, but it promises to take Jill, and the entire series, in an exciting new direction. I can’t wait to see where things go from here.

I’ll also have a couple other projects on the horizon, and I hope you’ll join me for those as well. Happy reading.

-JD

2016

Also available from J.D. Cunegan

Bounty
(available in paperback and Kindle)

Boundless
(Kindle short)

Blood Ties
(available in paperback and Kindle)

Coming Soon from J.D. Cunegan

Behind the Mask
(Bounty novel #4, coming early 2017)

Notna
(coming early- to mid-2017)

The Pen is Mighty
(coming late 2017)

Follow J.D. Cunegan on Twitter @JD_Cunegan.

Also, find J.D. Cunegan on both Facebook and Goodreads.

https://jdcuneganbooks.wordpress.com/