Devil Eye: Penny Larkin Targets Gun Trafficking

by Rebecca Jean Downey

When the U.S. Marshal wants to stop a sale of firearms to Mexico, he asks Penny Larkin to use her remote viewing skills to track down Juan Rico, a New Mexico gun runner who has dropped out of sight. Penny is sworn to secrecy because the marshall believes a law enforcement officer is involved. She can't even tell her boyfriend, El Paso County Sheriff Leo Tellez. Penny heads off to Columbus, New Mexico alone, and winds up stranded on the Interstate during a dust storm. She is forced to use her own gun to hold off a gang of men trying to hi-jack her brand new, red Mustang. A man winds up dead and New Mexico State Trooper Johnny Trejo arrests Penny on suspicion of murder. When Leo comes to rescue Penny from the clutches of the law, he bring Adriana, the beautiful twin sister of Alejandra, Leo's dead wife. Penny is desperate to get out of jail to defend her relationship with Leo, but when she is finally free, she must keep her word to the marshall and find Juan Rico, first. On the trail of Rico, gun traffickers kidnap Penny and drag her across the Mexican border, along with their guns. This means certain death for Penny in a country where women often go missing. A rescue by the U.S. Marshal or even Sheriff Tellez is unlikely since know one knows where Penny is. Will Penny escape the grasp of ruthless gunrunners? Red the Devil Eye and find out!

330 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 19, 2020

About the author

Rebecca Jean Downey is an award-winning writer with a journalism degree from Indiana University. During Rebecca’s first job as a newspaper reporter in Indiana, she was assigned to cover law enforcement agencies and the courts. With tutoring from two county judges, Rebecca gained the respect of the law enforcement community, including the prosecutor’s office and local attorneys for her accuracy. Since then, Rebecca has free-lanced for local and national publications on issues of criminal justice and other subjects. In 2002, she was fortunate to interview Harley Lappin, the warden of the U.S. Federal Prison in Terre Haute, Indiana during Timothy McVeigh’s execution.

The inspiration for her first novel, The Middle Eye, came from getting to know the late El Paso County, Texas Sheriff Leo Samaniego, who allowed her to tour both county jails and interview him and his deputies. This experience opened her eyes to the unique law enforcement challenges along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Rebecca's latest novel, Devil Eye, focuses on gun trafficking along the border.

Rebecca and her husband, Mike, live in El Paso, Texas where she works as Assistant Director of Institutional Advancement at The University of Texas at El Paso.