Bewildered

		In the beginning Charlie McVee wanted nothing more from life than to raise a family in his suburban Cincinnati home, write his novels, and find time to go hiking with his wife, Annie. Fifteen years into his marriage he had traded off the dream of raising a family for more time writing and hiking-but not by choice. In their final attempt at having a child and after three miscarriages, Annie had nearly died in childbirth and the child to be had been stillborn. That had been it for Charlie. He would never put Annie in jeopardy again. He'd rather never have a son than live without Annie. Charlie's writing and their hiking trips consumed their lives from that day forward.
	So, Charlie reasoned, how better to celebrate their fifteenth wedding anniversary than making the hike of a lifetime? Two hundred miles of the Appalachian Trail awaited them down in Tennessee, beckoning them come and see it firsthand. What they found in a remote area of the mountains, off the beaten track, was a small town virtually unknown to the outside world. There was no road into or out of Jessup save a rutted wagon trace used solely by the Jessupites to bring their hinnies and mules to trade in Chester, the nearest civilization some twenty miles away. As Charlie would find out, Puralists inhabited Jessup, a religious group living out their beliefs in their utopian world on their remote, oak forested mountain. But years before Charlie and Annie had arrived there the outside world had already come, bringing its greed and tainted values to the Jessupites. Thanks to one man's arrival in Jessup five years prior, Charlie and Annie would not find the comfort of a friendly little religious community, but rather, the beginning of a hideous nightmare.

C.H. Foertmeyer was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1949, the eldest of four children. After graduating from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico, he returned to Cincinnati to pursue a career in his hometown. Today, Mr. Foertmeyer divides his time between web authoring and fiction writing.

AUTHOR

John sat in the shelter of the small cave he had found when trying to elude that damn persistent Octavius McClellan. It was no more than a hole in the talus slope of Butcher’s Cliff, but it had served his purpose well. Octavius had passed him by, without so much as a clue as to where he had hidden himself. But he knew he couldn’t stay here forever. He would need food soon, and there was no way he could build a fire here, for fear of the sight, or smell, of his smoke. John knew that what he had done would soon bring Kate looking for him, and he knew what would be the result, if found.
Hunkered down in this cocoon of a cave, barely large enough to turn around in, his thoughts drifted to Charlie and Rick, the intruders, and his mind fumed with anger. Those two! his mind screamed. Those two interlopers, who had sabotaged his plans, spoiled his dreams, and had, effectively, banished him from Jessup. He smiled at the thought of having blown Rick away, but his anger focused now on Charlie. You’ll pay for this, you bastard.
He slowly cooled down to where he was able to think more rationally about what now needed to be done. His first objective would be to obtain food, and for that need, he already had a plan in mind. It wouldn’t be long before Kate would gather a few of the men in Jessup, and come looking for him. If I time it right, they’ll be out here, while I’m at my house emptying my pantry. Still, he knew it would be wise not to be seen, but that he had worked out too. He would approach town from the east woods, and slip into his storm cellar under cover of darkness. From there, through the tunnel to the root cellar, and up to his kitchen. He’d leave by the same route, with a tote full of food for a few nights out at the digs. He was going nowhere without his gold. He’d find shelter out near the digs, and at night, when Jessup was sleeping, he’d be digging. When his food ran low, he’d get again what he could from his house, and when that ran out, he’d get on the Appalachian Trail, and follow it to Winslow Junction. From there, he would head into Winslow for more provisions. Winslow was farther away than Chester, but he couldn’t risk going to Chester, as Kate would probably be looking for him along that route. And what if Kate staked out the digs? No problem. He still had Rick and Charlie’s pistols, and he knew how to use them. That gave him the advantage, as no one in Jessup owned a firearm of any kind, including Kate.
John knew his plan bordered on insanity, but the gold was his for the taking, and no two nosey intruders from the north were going to keep him from it. He knew, also, that he was literally risking his neck for the effort, but he and the good people of Jessup had already worked ninety percent of the probable area that needed to be worked at the digs. There was only ten percent left to search. He had to give it a go. If he ended up stretching a rope, then so be it. What else was he going to do?
John had waited patiently, in his little hole, for Octavius to pass by a second time, this time on his way back to Jessup. Dark was now approaching, and it was time to make his move to his house, to gather food for his first night at the digs. He smiled at his luck, as he noticed the giant orange orb of the full moon, rising above the treetops to the east. It would make getting into and out of Jessup a little trickier, but he’d have ample light with which to work the digs.

Bewildered
by C.H. Foertmeyer
ISBN 0-595-34382-1
205 pages trade paperback at 15.95
www.iuniverse.com
C.H. Foertmeyer is the award nominated author of seven previous books in the fantasy genre. Fans will find no time travel, shape shifting Native Americans, or other fantasy storylines in Bewildered. What readers will experience is a nifty suspense thriller, a reality based adventure with cunning twists and turns of plot that will keep you guessing until the end.
Annie and Charlie McVee plan to hike two hundred miles of the Appalachian Trail as a tenth anniversary gift to themselves. Never one to stick with the ordinary, Charlie plots a hike off-trail, in uncharted territory. Annie is uneasy when they discover impassable cliffs, then a small 18th century town with no inhabitants in sight. They decide to return to the trail, which takes them on a grueling experience that turns deadly when their GPS is damaged in a fall. Charlie wakes up in the Harlon County Tennessee hospital with two broken legs and a fractured hip. The hospital is staffed by one doctor and one nurse, and the facts don't match up with what Charlie remembers. He's told Annie died in a fall. After six weeks of recuperation, he returns to their home in Cincinnati to resume life without Annie. He's transported home by Michael McClellan, a resident of the tiny town they ran across while hiking. The town is Jessup, a Puralist community of people who do not believe in modern technology or violence.
After several weeks at home to think about his experience, Charlie discovers chilling truths. His family doctor says x-rays show no sign of badly fractured legs or hip. No medical bills have been sent or insurance claims filed for his six weeks in the hospital. And the hospital, town, and county where he recuperated do not exist on any map or record. He enlists a long time friend to accompany him back to Tennessee in search of answers.
Dr. John Roberts joined the Jessup community five years prior to Charlie's accident. He masquerades as a Puralist, who practice pure motives, when in truth he is after gold rumored to be buried nearby Jessup. He's developed an elaborate series of lies to throw Charlie off the truth and convinced the Puralists to go along. Roberts' sanity hangs by a thread as he bides his time anticipating a life of wealth with contraband gold. He definitely does not live by the Puralist philosophy of non violence and is prepared to kill everyone who interferes with his plans. People die. Horrible lies are concocted. And in the end, no one will be the same -- not Charlie, and certainly not the shy Puralists whose way of life is changed forever.
Bewildered features appealing characters and wild Appalachian terrain in an exciting storyline. Foertmeyer's first venture into the suspense thriller genre is a heart pounding experience.
Laurel Johnson
Midwest Book Review

A Great Suspenseful Read!, April 8, 2005
Reviewer: J Mand
Intrigue and adventure in a fascinating, original setting - this book had me hooked from the beginning. Like in Mr. Foertmeyer's previous works, the scene set for this story was described so well that it made me feel like I was right there with the characters. I could see the dense forests and treacherous cliffs of Appalachia, and I could see myself walking down the streets of a town from another era. More importantly, he made me want to be there. I cared about the characters, and I was anxious to know how their wild tale unfolded. This story had all the elements I look for in a good read - love, mystery, suspense, justice. Way to go, Mr. Foertmeyer!

Wow Is All I Can Say!, February 10, 2006
Reviewer: Linda Sheriff
I finished Bewildered this morning and I absolutely loved it, even MORE than Hell's Interstate! I am absolutely impressed with your creativity and have thoroughly enjoyed the books. Now I can lend both books to Mary and since she loves to read as much as I do, I know she'll burn right through them also! Wow is all I can say! Bewildered, especially, would make one hell of a good movie. Have you ever thought about that?

Bewildered
By C.H. Foertmeyer
It begins as nothing more than an escapade to escape from the world ends up very different from what Charlie and Annie McVee expected. Ever adventurous Charlie insists on taking the road less traveled and ends up in a sticky situation at the bottom of a cliff with a broken GPS and in very much pain. He wakes up in a hospital room of the Harlon County Hospital, and much to his dismay, Annie has never returned. Six weeks pass as Charlie heals and finally, the sheriff informs him of the discovery of the body of his wife, who died in a terrible fall. Brokenhearted, Charlie is taken home to Cincinnati by Michael McClellan, a resident of the tiny Puralist town, Jessup, a community where technology and violence are shunned.
But something is wrong. The x-rays taken by his family doctor reveal no damage to his legs or hips. He's received no bills or claims at all from his six week stay. He cannot find the town on any map and then discovers…it doesn't exist at all.
What is going on in the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee? Little does Charlie know, what he will discover in the tiny town of Jessup, Tennessee will change his life forever…and the lives of all the Jessupites…for better or for worse.
Bewildered is a step away from Foertmeyer's usual fantasy genre into the world of suspense. His characters and exciting plot keep his readers' hearts hammering until the very last page. Bewildered is a truly mind boggling experience.
Natalie Foertmeyer

A new book is out by "Chuck", C.H. Foertmeyer! It is fantastic! As all of his books are. :)) If you would like to read some of it go to:
http://www.foertmeyer.com/bewildered.html.
I never thought he could get better than he was in his CARVER, High Mountain Tragedy, but he has continued to do so each and every time he writes a new one. And BEWILDERED has done it again!
You can go to http://www.foertmeyer.com/books.html and see the fantastic awards this wonderful writer has recieved for all of his books. He is a winner.
Hope you read BEWILDERED and get a chance to see just how great he is.
Sue Hartigan, allaboutmurder.com

WHERE TO BUY
ADOBE EBOOK 0-595-79149-2 From the Publisher Diesel eBooks	HARDCOVER 0-595-67112-8 From the Publisher BarnesandNoble.com	TRADE PAPERBACK 0-595-34382-1 From the Publisher BarnesandNoble.com
BRICK & MORTAR BULK ORDERS

CONTACT: Bewildered
Writers Club Press
iUniverse, Inc.
ISBN: 0-595-34382-1
HC ISBN: 0-595-67112-8
PDF EISBN: 0-595-79149-2
Toll Free US: 877.823.9235
International callers: 402.323.7800

Email: Author Email
custservice@iUniverse.com
2005 © C.H. Foertmeyer