The Runner: A Thriller

by Keith Hayes

Imagine you’re a high school track coach… Your name is Kyle Reiner. Twelve years ago, your bullied brother committed suicide. You feel responsible…you failed to respond to his cries for help…you were too busy being a jock. Now, as an act of penance, you have become a defender of the defenseless. You use sports to build self-confidence in the most vulnerable kids, making them less appealing to the bullies. One day you witness a student running from three tormentors—and he leaves them in the dust. You need a sprinter, so you approach the runner. His name is Joshua, but before you can recruit him, he is beaten by the three bullies and sent to the hospital. While in the hospital, his single mother dies of an apparent heart attack, leaving Joshua parentless. Here comes the creepy Joshua disappears from the hospital. The next evening, he shows up at your front door with no physical signs of the assault. Joshua has no explanation for it. He says he’s different, not like everyone else, but he doesn’t know why. Joshua believes the answer lies with his unknown, undocumented father, and he wants your help finding him. You soon realize that you’re over your head. Joshua searches the internet and finds a local company called Finders, owned and operated by a private investigator that specializes in finding the lost. To your surprise and shock, the owner turns out to be one of your old high school girlfriends—Leslie Hodage—the one you dumped for a cheerleader…awkward…tense…she remembers you. Leslie reluctantly agrees to take the case, launching a search for Joshua’s elusive father, and, along the way, you and Leslie rekindle the feelings you once had for one another. Deception, hidden secrets, and unexplainable deaths follow, culminating in an explosive and shocking ending. You discover the truth about Joshua…or, do you?

272 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 19, 2019

Reviews

[Richard Gladd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my usual read. It held my interest cover to cover

.As I said in my heading, this is not my typical read. I enjoy mysteries. Biographies. Nothing supernatural.
I did however enjoy this book. I doubt I'd recommend it to any of my friends.

[Sharon Carlsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I began reading this book I could not put it away. I would recommend this book to anyone. Who likes a well written thriller.

It is a great book , I hope to read more from this author. It is a five star book.