by DiAnn Mills
The inspiration behind Lethal Standoff developed from a renewed interest in negotiation skills. As a child, I observed my dad interact with his three children during times of disagreement. The healthiest and most productive outcome occurred when he recognized the needs of those involved and used empathy to identify with their anger. My takeaway from how my dad dealt with strife showed me patience, respect for others, genuine caring, and gentle persuasion. Those methods achieved success more than punishment. When one of us shared our feelings and discussed the how, why, and a possible solution, the temperature of the conflict decreased rapidly. Dad’s process took time, but it effectively unearthed the root of the problem.
I treasured my dad’s ability to see the value of every person’s viewpoint and not discard anyone’s emotions. Learning by paying attention taught me much about the skills needed to survive tension and conflict in my own life.
Although the lessons grasped at an early age proved excellent training ground in writing credible characters and shaping plot twists, my interest in negotiation grew. I interviewed a professional FBI negotiator and acquired information about human behavior. During a discussion with a psychologist, I discovered how a child’s experiences and role models shape behavior, communication skills, and the ability or inability to compromise. After viewing a series of eighteen video lessons through MasterClass taught by Chris Voss on the topic of The Art of Negotiation, the plot line for Lethal Standoff formed.
I typed notes on Voss’s topic of tactical empathy, mirroring, labeling, and more—much like processing my dad’s example, except on steroids. The power of negotiation and persuasion techniques helped me improve areas in my life.
The negotiating techniques also stoked my creative juices. The shaping of a story occupied my waking and sleeping hours.
I write best by asking myself: what if?
What if I looked at a fictional scenario set in my state? I live in Texas where the increasing number of undocumented immigrants has sparked intense debate. Some come to the US with criminal intent, while others make the journey out of desperation for a better life.
What if two brothers captured and held hostage fifteen undocumented immigrants in a rural area and refused to release them until demands were met about their father’s recent murder?
What if a private negotiator, Carrington Reed, is called to the crime scene to talk down the brothers? Yet even her reputation as one of the finest negotiators in the country fails to alleviate the escalating tension in the hostage situation. The brothers are hiding secrets, deadly ones, and the problem exists with the death of their father.
What if a journalist, Levi Ehrlich, known for reporting only the truth shows up at the crime scene? He knows Carrington and admires her skills. He’d like to know her better, but she’s aloof.
What if Levi’s boss fires him for his refusal to slant the hostage story for political favors?
What if Carrington and Levi risk their lives to save the hostages but uncover a web of family secrets and violent crimes?
What if the two are each forced to face their own family’s secrets before they can unravel the truth about the crime?
What if Carrington blames God and herself for something so terrible that she shoves it out of her heart and mind?
What if Levi’s conservative Jewish family has shunned him because he has embraced a Messianic faith? His family views him as dead with no hope of reconciliation.
What if my story offered hope to those suffering from their own family secrets, the kind that can wound the heart, damage relationships, and shatter confidence?
Lethal Standoff is more than seeking answers to a series of crimes or two people finding the gift of love. The story shows the remarkable healing power of God in our lives to repair broken relationships no matter the circumstances. The story takes the impossible and weaves faith and truth into a miracle.
About the Author
DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who creates suspense-filled novels to thrill readers. Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists, won two Christy Awards, Golden Scroll Awards, and finalist in the RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol awards. Visit her at diannmills.com
About the Book
Hostage negotiator Carrington Reed is called to the scene when reports come in that fifteen hostages are being held by the Kendrix brothers in an abandoned house in south Texas. Working closely with Levi Ehrlich, a handsome investigative reporter, she finds herself being undeniably drawn to him. As Carrington investigates the brothers’ claims, it soon becomes clear that they are trying to hide something.
Did You Know?
During the rise of the coal mining industry during the 1800s, many coal companies managed and ran a company store meant to provide for all the needs of their mining families, but it went awry when money became the driving force. Miners could purchase their needs from the company store but often had to borrow against their next week’s salary, making the company store a source of tyranny instead of support.
The coal companies paid their employees with scrip. Coins or bills minted with the company name replaced U.S. money and could only be redeemed at stores owned by the coal company whose name was on the scrip.
Miners worked for pennies on the dollar and often made far less than the cost of items in the store—hence, the fodder for a 1955 Tennessee Ernie Ford song entitled "Sixteen Tons."
Working in the coal mines was dirty and hazardous. Working conditions, referred to as “afterdamp or blackdamp,” were the cause of the loss of many miners’ lives—hazards such as cave-ins, toxic fumes, and what is now called Black Lung. Some 1,500 men died yearly in the mines in the 1800s and early 1900s.
The coal mines were a necessary evil early on as they provided the fuel that warmed homes and powered trains and industry into the early 1970s, when consumption fell drastically. The demise of coal led to it being replaced by oil, natural gas, and nuclear power.
-Cindy K. Sproles, Coal Black Lies
Why I LOVE My Local Christian Bookstore
“I walk into a bookstore like a kid entering a toy store. I love exploring my favorite genres in search of a new friend or my next adventure.”
-Debbie W. Wilson, Little Strength, Big God
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