The Button Collector
M.M. Cochran
Publication date: September 17th 2024
Genres: Adult, Psychological Thriller
When Chicago journalist Jessica Knight is linked to a string of odd murders happening across the country, her life takes a turn for the worse.
She is left wondering why her relatives are the ones dropping like flies under the signature mark of a serial killer . . . why she can’t stop thinking about Michael Bradley, the appealing detective assigned to protect her . . . and most of all, why, despite being the Button Collector’s prime target, she’s still alive at all. One thing she knows for certain: the killer is always watching. As the line between truth and deception begins to blur, Jessica crumbles under the dense web of lies she’s trying to keep straight–especially once the police start questioning more than just her sanity. With pressure mounting, Jessica must navigate being under the watchful eye of the police–and the killer–while risking it all in a dangerous game to make up for the mistakes of her past.
Her days are numbered…one way or the other.
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EXCERPT:
Chapter 1
The first thing I feel when I step outside my apartment building is his eyes on me.
They burn. They haunt. They’re always there, somehow finding me almost every day since the first murder.
Long shadows stretch over the brown patch of grass before my building. They’re soft on my boots and heavy on the winter flowers that need sun. Rain pelts down the petals, but I’m too cold to get my fingers wet and shake the water off the weak flowers.
The thick weather clouds the feeling of his surveillance, but I still close my eyes to escape it.
Count backwards from ten.
Nine.
Eight.
Seven.
Okay, it’s gone.
Now open your eyes, I instruct myself.
It’s time to catch a cab. “Time to catch a cab,” I say.
Leave me alone. “Leave me alone,” I say.
The office buzzes with fluorescent lights over rickety desks made for half-hearted journalists. I slide between their narrow spaces and make my way to the associate editor’s desk. The editor in chief smokes in his office, and Della can tell me everything he knows, so I avoid him and his stench. It’s not something I can handle this morning, though on a good morning, I’d crave the smell of his cigarettes.
“Della, John wanted to see me? Why?” The tip of my umbrella taps the ground, sprinkling cold drops of leftover rain onto my pant leg.
She doesn’t even look at me, doesn’t even jump at the opportunity to comment on my red lipstick that’s too dark or my unshapely long coat. “He’s in his office.”
“But—”
“Jessica.”
The smoke in John’s office rolls onto me in waves of foggy white. My automatic response is to cough, clear my throat, but it would be nothing more than for show. He knows I’m used to it.
“Knight. Come here, I’ve got somethin’ for you.” He fingers me in and motions for me to take a seat. The dark leather on the chair does everything but absorb the moisture from my wet thighs.
He nudges a stack of papers in my direction. “Here’re some stories for the week that I came across over the weekend. Fire and Crime section looks like it’ll be good and full next issue, but I’d like you to start on this Button story. A profile about him to follow-up his murder we reported on last week. It’ll take some research, so I want your time and attention on this one. All week.” He taps the folder with his index and middle finger, keeping his cigarette in place between them. “Make it good. If you need me to get some intern on the other stuff, you just let me know, Knight. Let’s focus on this Button profile, and make sure to really center it around the freakshow killer more than the victims.”
John takes a long, focused drag off the cigarette. Blows it in a thin streak over his shoulder. Eyes me with a glare that’s crimped with sixty-year-old crow’s feet.
“You alright, Knight?”
“Fine. But why do you want me for this? I’m not investigative, just—”
“A hard crime reporter. I know. But you really proved yourself with investigative journalism skills after you covered that murder trial last month. I want to spread your wings a little more. Cover this Button story, Knight. It’s going to sell a lot of papers. Keep it up, and we’ll change your title to Investigative instead of just Crime Journalist.”
“Thanks, John, but I’m comfortable with my position.”
“I’ll give you a little raise, dear.” He wraps his lips around his cigarette and blows the smoke over his shoulder again. “And I’ll hire one of those interns to take over hard crime. Okay?”
“Alright. Thank you.”
“Well, we’ll see how this Button story goes.”
I nod.
“You sure you’re okay, Knight?”
“Yeah, fine.”
“Then shake that look off your face and get to work. I’d like to have that story by Thursday; I want the designers to arrange A1 layout around it. This’ll generate a lot of attention, you know. People are all over this Button Collector thing.”
“The word count?” I ask. I usually don’t have to talk word counts with him, but with big stories like this—like that trial—he always has some requirements to meet.
“Give me nine-hundred, no less.”
A knock on the door diverts his attention to behind me. “John,” the receptionist says, “a young lady would like to speak with you about advertisement.”
John pushes back his chair and stands, surrendering his cigarette to the dusty ash tray. “Stay here, Knight. I’ll be right back.”
My next breath is stifled by the smoke that folds into my face when he walks by. He leaves the door cracked behind him.
Author Bio:
As both a self-published and traditionally published author of YA fiction and a thriller, I know how vulnerable and scary handing your manuscript to an editor can be. . . But it is my job to take care of my clients and their stories, cherishing them as my own.
My novel, Between the Ocean the Stars, was ranked #2 at the worldwide distributors center upon publication and later named a finalist in the National Indie Excellence Awards. My next novel, The Button Collector, releases in 2024.
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House of Sticks
Publication Date: February 2022
Genre: Psychological Thriller
They are united now, two sisters who were kept apart by the cruel twists in their lives. And, despite the fact these siblings grew up at the opposite end of the social ladder, they have discovered that they share an unbreakable bond. It is like a modern-day fairy tale coming to life.
However, the pathway to their shared happiness is littered with misgivings and depraved memories from which they can never escape. Brianna is still haunted by the tragic death of her twin brother while Poppy finds it hard to let go of the ghosts of her abusive childhood.
It seems that the forces around them will never leave them alone. Neddy, a ruthless drug dealer is hell-bent on revenge. A worried mother who is desperate to unlock the darkest of secrets. A stranger with tattooed fingers who must face retribution for his evil sins. These women must be strong to survive.
But remember, not all girls are made of sugar and spice.
Be prepared! This is not a fairy tale…
House of Straw
Publication Date: November 2018
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Traumatised by the tragic death of her twin brother, Brianna falls into a state of deep depression, isolating herself from the world and all those that care about her. When a twist of fate reveals that she has a half-sister she finds a new purpose in her life and sets out to find her sibling, desperately hoping she can fill the void left in her world.
Poppy has not enjoyed the same privileged lifestyle as her sister while growing up. Abandoned into the care system at the age of eight, she has encountered both physical and sexual abuse for most of her life. Passing through the hands of more care homes and foster families than she can remember, the damaged product of a broken upbringing, Poppy has never found a place to feel truly safe. Kicking back at society, she turns to drug abuse and acts of extreme violence to escape from reality.
When the two siblings are finally united, they discover that they have much more in common than their DNA. Their paths are shrouded with sinister secrets of betrayal and regret and both girls share a deep-rooted hatred for one of their parents. As the dark truths of their lives are unveiled they realise that nothing can ever be the same again…
CW: Dark chapters involving child abuse and brutality, adult themes
Marc Scott was born and raised in the heart of the East End of London. He spent more than 25 years working in the video and film industry, including a 12-month spell on a project in Los Angeles. More recently he has been involved with assisting at the rehabilitation section of the UK court service, working predominantly with young offenders. It was here where he met the people that would inspire him to write his first novel House of Straw.
He is unapologetic for the dark backdrop and raw brutality in his books. ‘You can’t sugar-coat some of these damaged individuals that live in a broken society and make excuses for them.’ he says. ‘Not everyone wants the chance to redeem themselves.’
His gritty writing style has earned him much praise from reviewers and bloggers. The second book in his trilogy, House of Sticks, will be available later this year. A story that Marc describes as, ‘An even darker and more twisted journey into the depths of depravity.’
Marc lives in Halstead in England. He has a son and two daughters, who, he says, have given him the proudest moments in his life. He lists his favourite author as Kazuo Ishiguro, and his favourite book as ‘Birdy’ by William Wharton. He sums up his reading choices with a method which he applies to his own works. ‘When I read a book, I want to feel like a bystander, watching on, as an ‘extra’ as everything unfolds. If any of the characters in the book are bland and don’t affect you in some way, the author has wasted an opportunity.’
