Payne & Misery

All that sparks is not gold for Christine Sterling. The luster of her shiny "Golden Years" dream fades when Christine's newly retired husband, Jesse, succumbs to an exciting new hobby requiring long weekends away. Add to this dilemma Christine's dubious "gift" of observation, a super-sized helping of free time, and a double dose of imagination. Sprinkle with peculiar circumstances lurking in the neighborhood and what do you get? Not the glittering paradise of togetherness Jesse promised. You get trouble. Big trouble.

Christine has already developed a bad reputation for conjuring wild tales to explain ordinary occurrences. Who is likely to take her seriously when she discovers a bruised and neglected neighbor named Lila Payne? Try as she might, she cannot interest anyone in Lila's dire need for immediate rescue. Something about crying wolf once too often.

But when Lila and Christine's beloved Border collie Molly both disappear the same night, Christine dives headfirst into a dark pool swirling with muddy secrets and misery. Her best friend throws her a lifesaver of prayer and she begins to sense God at work in the situation. But even with God's help, can they save Lila and Molly before it's too late?