Extreme Circumstances

By Brenda Smith

In the first book in the Circumstances series, Insane Circumstances, Brandi L. Brown hears the fate of a college student who experiences hazing and is leaving the college because it is more than she can bear. Images of the distraught young lady evoke memories of her own college days, ones that had lain dormant for a couple of decades. She leaves work with the intent of writing a letter of consolation to the university student who is returning home. Under the watchful eye of her husband, she begins to tell her own story.
The protagonists own story takes place during early integration, and she is among the first colored students to get a scholarship to Claxville University. Her parents do not want her to attend, but she does. While at the university she does experience some hazing and other acts that support her parents arguments about her being unable to succeed at the college.
The psychologically traumatized Brandi also has a chance meeting with a taxi driver who proves to be more than thatThaddeus Jerome Pennington becomes her friend, that listening ear that she needs, and soon is the love interest and support she needs to continue at the school.
When the story begins, it is Brandi Leigh Browns story. As events happen, the male character (Taxi) frequently appears. A trip to her hometown in Wester with her ends when a storm comes and the duo returns to Claxville prematurely. The man drops her at the dorm and disappears.
The saga of the Browns and the Penningtons continues in the second novel in the series, Unforeseen Circumstances, a contemporary fiction that begins, And when they were older. The focus shifts to Thaddeus Jerome Pennington, the male character in the trilogy. Readers learn more about Brandis all-consuming love for the extraordinary man. It begins, And when they were older. Brandi reflects on a time when she thought she had lost the man, but he returns to her. The couple marries and become successful business owners who support the community through their philanthropic efforts. Together, they also face challenges including an unexpected illness and its vestiges.
The final book in the trilogy is Extreme Circumstances, a tale about Penningtons interventions on behalf of Brandis sister, Caroline. The registered nurse who had lived with TJ and Brandi after she graduated from high school finds herself tangled in a web of lies, deception, and abuse. She turns to her Claxville relatives for temporary respite, but extreme circumstances leaves her questioning her ability to maintain her sanity, and to survive, and to move forward.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Sep 19, 2013
• ISBN: 9781483695525

Brenda Smith

I, Brenda L. Smith, PhD, a retired educator, have been a teacher, principal, an assistant superintendent of schools, and a college professor. With my dissertation, Utilizing Expectancy Theory in an Investigation of Characteristics and Career Aspirations of Women Administrators in Georgia Public Schools completed in 1994, my attention turned to the contemporary fiction stories I longed to share. Extreme Circumstances is the third book in the Circumstances series and tells more about the Browns, the Penningtons and their relatives. Other than writing, my hobbies are traveling, playing the piano, and helping others. Married to Jerry, and the mother of two sons, Brian and Justin, I reside in Georgia.

Book preview

Copyright © 2013 by Brenda Smith.

Library of Congress Control Number:       2013916137

ISBN:         Hardcover                               978-1-4836-9551-8

                   Softcover                                 978-1-4836-9550-1

                   Ebook                                      978-1-4836-9552-5

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Rev. date: 09/17/2013

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris LLC

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

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Contents

Prologue

Chapter One       A Tug of the Hand

Chapter Two       A Chance Encounter

Chapter Three       A New Opportunity

Chapter Four       Trouble on the Home Front

Chapter Five       A New Season

Chapter Six       Making a New Life

Chapter Seven       Moving Up!

Chapter Eight       Achieving at All Costs

Chapter Nine       Business Transacted

Chapter Ten       Help Arrives

Chapter Eleven       Dennis Creates a Scene

Chapter Twelve       The Long Road Home

Chapter Thirteen       The Return to Claxville

Chapter Fourteen       Nightmares’ Onset

Chapter Fifteen       Telephoned Summons

Chapter Sixteen       Smoke, Ashes, and Fire

Chapter Seventeen       The Road Less Traveled

Chapter Eighteen       A Brief Reprieve

Chapter Nineteen       A Mother’s Plea

Chapter Twenty       At Lakeview Nursing Home

Chapter Twenty-one       All Roads Lead Home

Chapter Twenty-two       Welcomed News

Chapter Twenty-three       Healing Time

Chapter Twenty-four       Abundant Blessings

Chapter Twenty-five       An Heir Is Born

Epilogue

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my parents, the late Samuel E. and Ona Belle Lane. A special thanks is given to my husband, Jerry V. Smith, my number one fan, the one who has kept my feet to the fire and who insisted that I complete my scholarly work before I delved into fiction. And to my sons, Brian and Justin, thank you for continuously encouraging me!

I also appreciate my honeydo, Jerry, and my friend Jacquie Harper who provided editorial assistance. And a special thank you is given to my nephew, Rodney Elliott, for designing my book cover. I also thank my dear friend, Martha Vaughn for telling, selling, and promoting my stories; Pinochle players everywhere are Circumstances Series readers.

I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge my Lane siblings, other relatives, sorors, and church members who continuously encourage me to keep writing. You know who you are, and here it is! Brandi and TJ’s story ends here with Extreme Circumstances. Thank you so much for support.

Prologue

WAIT! THERE ARE still more circumstances and these are indeed the most acute ones… . TJ Pennington has been diagnosed with a killer disease, Alzheimer’s, that is proving to be a vociferous foe. It is robbing him of his personality, appetite, and will to live. The man who had been vivacious, witty, and so full of life is spending most of his waking hours on the front porch in a rocker; he is becoming the person his mother had become as the end of her life approached.

While the man has a sense that he is somebody important, he no longer knows why. People are always around; he requires twenty-four hour care because he has the propensity to wander and might get lost in the wooded areas that flank the Penningtons’ property or cross the fence and be on the university’s property.

Sometimes he knows who Brandi, his wife of twenty plus years is; sometimes he does not. His response to her depends upon his recollection of her visage, her touch, and her warmth.

The woman longs for her sister Caroline, who is a registered nurse, to come to Claxville and help her take care of her husband. TJ loves his sister-in-law and has been enamored with her since the first time he met her when Brandi took him to Wester. The girl had teased him playfully from where she sat at the Browns’ dinner table. The man thought that someday he and Brandi would have a daughter, and his offspring would be as lively and precocious as the younger of these two sisters.

Since they did not have any children of their own, the Penningtons readily took Brandi’s younger sister in when she finished high school. When she was at Claxville University, TJ spoiled her and supported her through her folly while her sister proved to be sterner than he.

Both of the girls had been raised in the same home with the same parents, but they were like night and day, total opposites. As time passed the question became, How could two siblings be raised in the same household with the same parents but be so different! TJ didn’t care; he just loved Caroline as she was.

Their little sister did not stay out in the country with them long. She moved into the dormitory, Davis Hall—the same facility her older sister was assigned to when she was a freshman at the university—as soon as the summer was over and fall quarter was approaching.

She made friends easily at work and on campus and enjoyed dormitory life much more than Brandi had. Students were more tolerant than when the oldest of the Browns had matriculated at Claxville University. While there Caroline met Dennis Jackson, from the city, who became her only boyfriend and later, her spouse. The Jacksons moved to the South when Brandi’s sister graduated.

When Caroline needed Brandi, her older sister had been there. Now, Brandi’s need for her sibling was equally as deep-seated. At the present moment she pined for the girl as she and Thaddeus sat on the front porch.

The two women became estranged from each other while Caroline was in school, so telephoning was not an option; Dennis Jackson would not allow that. Despite knowledge of their brother-in-law’s disapproval, Brandi wished, above all, in the face of the tremendous challenges she and TJ faced, to have her younger sister by her side.

Suddenly the Pennington woman felt a breeze and looked upward seeing a variegated oak leaf—its greens, browns, and reds glaring so clearly and distinctly—with stem attached. The bit of plant life was stirring and floating along, dancing, darting and dipping merrily around her. It caught the woman’s eye, and she watched its graceful movement. The twirling bit of foliage truly captivated her.

Brandi wondered about the distance the piece of foliage would travel before it fell off the breeze and tumbled to the earth, got raked up with a pile of dead and drying leaves, and burned to a crisp when the pile was set afire. The woman daydreamed, considering whether she could send a message to her sister on the leaf. If people had put messages in bottles and they were retrieved, why not in a breeze, on a leaf? Could she send a message to her sister? Would the woman receive the message?

Caroline Jackson, please call me, she implored in earnest. Girl, I need your help. TJ needs you, too, the woman who was seated on the porch with her mate whispered prayerfully, attempting to send a message to the sister with whom she had lost contact once she had moved from Claxville. Brandi spoke pleadingly with intense longing in the breeze with hopes that the wind would cart the message on a leaf, and convey it to her sister’s heart.

She paused, then confessed, I do, too, Caroline. I need you, too!

At the mention of Caroline, TJ raised his head, looked toward the lane, and started watching for the girl he and Brandi loved so dearly. The man smiled.

Chapter One

A Tug of the Hand

WHEN CAROLINE HAD come to Claxville to get a nursing degree at the university, her sister and brother-in-law told her what she could expect to happen academically and socially. A poignant conversation about finding a boyfriend and dating led Caroline to declare celibacy. Not me, I ain’t worried about finding no boyfriend and having no sex or anything. I came up here to get my degree and then I am going to get me a job and buy me a car, a house, and some nice clothes and shoes, in that order! she spoke forcefully.

Her experienced relatives laughed at the line of thinking most young people her age had and cajoled her to date only someone she could marry. In private, Brandi inquired about birth control measures, advising her sister to use services available at the University’s infirmary.

Caroline dismissed their admonitions. She told Brandi they were old as dirt and so old-fashioned—just like their parents, Carruthers and Sara Brown.

Brandi hunched her shoulders and threw up her hands surrendering, Alright! I am on your side. I just don’t want you to slip up and have to go back home with your belly full.

See, you can’t even say ‘pregnant!’ You speak mama-speak, talking about a ‘belly full!’ You and TJ are just like them, Caroline wouldn’t let it go. She argued more profusely.

No, it’s not like that, Brandi pleaded, attempting to ensure her sister she was not like Sara, their mother. I know Mama. She didn’t tell you anything; everything you know about men and sex you learned from your friends or a book. I know because that’s the way it was with me. If I hadn’t had Kris for a roommate, my ignorance might have gotten me in a jam.

Caroline continued to quarrel, insisting that she knew much more than Brandi had known when she left Wester and came up to Claxville.

And, she gave her family members a deaf ear.

Just as TJ and Brandi told her, she found who she thought was the love of her life the sophomore year, Dennis Jackson. Caroline informally met him off the yard. He was always hanging around with the guys who belonged to the fraternities and athletes on campus. And, he was always the life of the party.

The woman was unaware that the man eyed her at several house parties off campus. Caroline formally met him at a house party off-campus thrown by one of her classmates. When she and her friends were ushered into the living room by some loud music, the first thing they saw was a clump of guys hovering near a card table where all the alcohol was set up, tipping more booze into their cups after every few sips, all aware of how little of the spirits there was to go around.

A guy who seemed to be guarding what little brew was left, was yelling over the music, Hey y’all, wait up! We are going to make some punch, and stretch this out! The girls who had picked up plastic cups and placed a few ice cubes in them were booted out of the way by someone carrying a bucketful of red punch. Hold up! the host was still yelling as he took the bucket from the porter and placed it on the table in the midst of the bottles.

With assistance, the host took caps off the bottles of bourbons, scotches, brandies, corn liquor, whatever anyone had brought to the BYOB (bring your own bottle) affair, as is commonly referred by college students and their counterparts. Little concern was given about the correct chaser for a brand of liquor; it all served the sole purpose and it went the same direction. The party hounds could get a buzz and would piss it out before dawn; a headache might remain, but a Goody Powder would correct that. As for taste, the red fruity punch masked the mess of flavors, making them indistinguishable.

Caroline stood mesmerized, watching the brew being created. The coed was unaware that she would stir it and mix the potion until it was ready. Momentarily someone in the tightening crowd grabbed her arm and was using it to stir that punch. The coed gasped, as there was immediate wetness, and in a moment, she felt a dry paper towel cleansing the limb she voluntarily jerked from the mixture. Shocked into reality by some guy’s impulsive act, she tried to remove herself from the midst of the mass of drinking and inebriated bodies. She decided to go over to another card table, get some snacks first, and come back to get a drink of punch, if any was left.

Like the drinks, almost everything was gone. Caroline wished she had eaten before she left the dorm. Her parents had always insisted they eat before they left home… she wished she had adhered to their sage advice. The girl had a hearty appetite and enjoyed any feast, but was becoming more and more disappointed as time passed.

Snacks consisted of some shards of plain potato chips in a plastic Tupperware bowl—some were dry, others a bit moist; a supermarket deli tray full of hoary carrots, gnarled celery, some wet cheese; and in another glass dish, tiny clumps of tuna or chicken salad reclined on wilting, soggy, ragged lettuce leaves. A watery dip sitting untouched was in yet another container. Cigarette butts littered the hodgepodge of snacks.

Caroline loved dips, especially onion dip, so she thought she would try this one. As soon as she took a shard of chip that was dry and attempted to use it for dipping, a voice spoke, softly but firmly, Don’t eat that mess! Somebody could have pissed in it for all you know. Let me take you out of here! We can go somewhere and get a bite.

The woman turned her head and looked at the stranger beside her. He was good-looking; his dress, an anomaly. While everyone else was in jeans, hot pants and t-shirts… whatever, he was dressed to the nines. He took her breath away, and her voice went with it. Caroline felt her own head nod.

Momentarily, the good-looking man was guiding her through the mass of bodies seated on the sparse furniture, on the floor, in corners, or standing and swaying to music piped from yet another room in the house. Dennis, Dennis Jackson, the man who was now leading her to the exit shouted over the din in the room. He paused a moment and asked one of his friends for his car keys. The guy reached in his pocket and gave them to him. No words were exchanged. A gentle tug on her arm, and they were in motion again, headed to the parking lot.

The man was distractingly gorgeous and before she knew it, he was taking over her life and propelling her in the direction he wanted her to go. Caroline actually hated guys like this. They were so full of themselves, were insensitive, and were generally the ones who bullied people who did not fit in their circle—like some of the high school athletes back home in Wester. She generally stayed away from this type of individual.

But, he wasn’t acting ‘that way.’ At least he didn’t appear to be that way when he had the woman in the car headed to get something to eat. She loved that. It made him seem nice, and regular, which he was at the moment. I didn’t catch your name, he told her as he was pulling out of the parking lot and making his way into Claxville’s traffic.

Caroline watched with him, gave him space so they would not be involved in an accident trying to make their way to High Street. When an approaching vehicle stopped and let them out of the parking lot, Dennis tooted a thank you before reiterating, What did you say they call you?

The woman admitted she had not told him before saying, Caroline, Caroline Brown.

What do you want to eat, Caroline Brown?

It doesn’t matter. I just like to eat!

Shorty’s Steakhouse was up on the right and did not appear to be crowded, so the man whipped the car into an empty parking space. He got out and went to the passenger side to let the woman out of the vehicle. When she was out, Dennis took Caroline by the hand and led her into the restaurant. She felt quite peculiar. The man was claiming her, placing a flag in her: I found her first, she’s mine, all mine. And, it actually felt nice. The man placed his warm hand on the small of her back. With the same gentleness exhibited back at the house party, he steered her to the table a waiter led them.

When they were seated she got a full view of his visage. The man across the table from her was so handsome. He had a great smile—one that filled up the space in the corner of the room where they sat—and nice, even teeth. His eyes were mischievous; his lashes were long. She could see that he looked like a boy, not yet full-grown. Nevertheless, she sensed he was all man. His virility made itself felt. Caroline used her hands to fan herself… she felt flushed and wondered if heat showed on her face.

The man ordered for her. She failed to protest. It seemed like she had known him for more than the thirty minutes or forty minutes they had been together. He did allow her to tell what dressing she wanted on her salad. The medium rib-eye steak he ordered was perfect, as was the remainder of the meal.

Her acquaintance asked about her life, and there was little to tell. She told him she was a college student majoring in nursing. She came to Claxville University because she had relatives in the area. Her older sister, Brandi, had graduated from there, gotten married and lived outside the city limits, in the country. Her parents had a small farm in a town called Wester, and she had lived there all of her life. There wasn’t much to do there, so I was anxious to get out of there when I graduated from Wester High over a year ago.

So, you are a sophomore? I bet you make all A’s. You look so smart! he wisecracked.

Accustomed to being mocked for her academic prowess, she humbly submitted, I just do my best.

Do you have a job? was the man’s next question.

Yes, my brother-in-law, Thaddeus Pennington, got me a job at Church’s when I came up here last year.

Do you like working there?

I sure do, she responded with glee. I make minimum wage, but I get a meal daily, and I have flexible scheduling. And my boss is the best! On holidays and weekends, he lets me work extra hours so I can get overtime, boosting my pay.

Ain’t nothing coming out of his pocket, the man demonstrated reservations about someone he did not know. I imagine you earn every dime. You are probably what they call ‘an overachiever.’ Instinctively Carolyn felt something venomous in his speech. The man’s spew left her wanting to bolster her boss’s credibility, but she didn’t.

Caroline changed the timbre of the moment by turning the tables on the man. She felt like she had been sufficiently interviewed. It was his turn to answer her questions. She was curious and wanted to know more about Dennis. Tell me about yourself, she began her inquiry.

Sincerity showing on his countenance, Dennis told her, I don’t talk about myself. Ain’t much to tell. I have been around the world and back. When I finished high school a few years ago, I went into the Navy. But I didn’t like that, so I got out.

What are you doing now? she asked.

I am looking for a good business opportunity. I want to be my own boss, so I am in the process of trying to find a business that will help me achieve my personal goals.

Neat! she exclaimed, offering, My brother-in-law said the same thing when he got out of the service. He didn’t want to jump when ‘the man’ say jump, so he decided to go into business for himself. And, now he has two or three businesses. Maybe he can help you out!

Dennis countered, What’s the brother’s name? I might know him already.

TJ, TJ Pennington. He owns a club, The Basement, and a taxi service. He married my oldest sister, Brandi, the impressionable young lady volunteered.

Oh, I think I know who you are talking about, Dennis told her.

With dinner and desserts consumed, each paid his share of the tab. She insisted on being Dutch as this was not a bona fide date. Dennis didn’t object. When the couple left, they took the ride to Davis Hall. The streetlights were making dizzy shadows, and the car speeding as if they were being chased, the woman found herself pushing her right foot in the floorboard, her body instinctively trying to hit the brakes as the man moved in and out of the weekend traffic. She wondered why the rush because the man blew the horn incessantly at cars driving too slow for him.

Caroline was unaware that Dennis needed to return the vehicle to the owner who was still at the party where he picked her up. It was almost midnight when they got there. The dormitory’s curfew was rapidly approaching. At the housing facility, the man walked her to her dormitory. His hand on the small of her back, they strolled up the sidewalk. When they were at the door, he pulled her close and smiled that mischievous smile he had given her at the restaurant. Her body instantly responded to his touch. She drew closer to him.

The man took a lock of her hair in his right hand and fingered it. Then he ran his hand through her hair, tugging her medium length tresses twice, as if he was wringing a church bell, causing pain. The woman flashed an expression of shock at him. Her mouth flew open, and a quick breath escaped from her parted lips. He didn’t seem to notice. What the heck? she thought. His hand still in her hair, he leaned in and brushed his lips teasingly across hers. He took what was left of her breath away. The man loosed her.

Dennis Jackson asked for her number, and she gave it to him. When Caroline was upstairs and inside her room’s doorway, she ran her phalanges through her hair. She brought a couple of uprooted strands when she removed her hand from her head. She looked at the strands of hair, shook her head with disbelief, and proceeded to her side of the room.

The man telephoned her the very next day. It was not long before he was sleeping in the bed with the young woman when her roommate was out. If the roommate came home, he would call one of his friends to come pick him up. And they enjoyed an active sex life.

Caroline was not the virgin her sister had been when she came to Claxville. Carruthers and Sara had allowed her to date, go to both proms, movies, and other social activities like the other young people her age. Consequently, she like most of her peers had experienced a few sexual trysts early on.

As it turned out, Dennis was not a student at Claxville University. He was just hanging around the campus, people watching, picking up girls. The woman who became his girlfriend initially was unaware, but soon found out that the man sold or obtained small amounts of marijuana and whatever other drugs the college kids wanted for their parties.

The man did not have a permanent place to call home. He slept on couches in guys’ apartments until they moved out and just left him. Dennis Jackson was a leech; he used his charms. The arrogant, self-centered man would bleed a person dry if he or she was not careful.

His homeless state rested elusive because he was always well-groomed, well-manicured and quite fashionably dressed. Only the people that he lived off of knew he didn’t have what the old people called a pot to piss in. The drawers he wore belonged to whomever he was leeching on at the moment.

Everything TJ was, this man was not! Dennis Jackson was a small time hustler, gambler… ‘wanna be card shark,’ a pistol toting, drug-selling nobody. If challenged he would have tell a person that he was just down on his luck for a moment.

Chapter Two

A Chance Encounter

DENNIS, UPON MEETING the novice, and finding out that she was Thaddeus Pennington’s kin set his sights even higher than he initially planned. " Perhaps ," he thought, "If I play my cards right, I can get a real job down at the club, one with benefits: I can bartend—I know how to mix drinks, ain’t nothing to it—just a dash of liquor (the customer’s choice) and a splash or two of the desired chaser; some soda, juice, or one of those manufactured mixes   .   .   . pina colada, margarita, daiquiri, and some garnish, cherry, lemon or lime wedge, an orange slice, a sprig of mint—and maybe I can work my way into something a little better than that."

At a minimum the man thought he could enlarge his territory. During this period of time, more and more people were going to the club. The younger crowd was there on weekends especially if there was a football game or a special weekend event at the university, or if Rico Ball and her girls were singing. The older folks still came on Tuesdays through Thursdays.

Dennis thought he could extend his drug trade. A two-bit hustler, he never had enough cash to buy himself a larger consumer base. A black man with no current employment couldn’t just walk up into Claxville First National Bank and get a small business loan, he constantly reminded himself. If he could infiltrate the Basement, he might be able to expand his clientele. Many people who drank alcoholic beverages also enjoyed a little high every now and then.

Soon he was literally and figuratively blowing smoke in Caroline’s nose. She was enjoying the contact highs she got while hanging around with him and his friends. The couple spent every waking moment they could together. They spent many a chilly night at football games together—at in and out of town matches—and attended their share of parties: he rested indifferent that she was a student, one who needed to study sometimes.

And, almost immediately she started sharing her money with him. After all, he convinced her that he would share with her when he got a job. On pay days, he would take her shopping. They would buy outfits that were similar, the same color. When they went out on dates they dressed alike.

She even maintained a few items of his clothing in her tiny closet on her side of the dormitory room. An extra toothbrush, shaving cream and the razor as well as aftershave and cologne she purchased for him were also kept on her desktop. If the man stayed the night, he showered and shaved like other guys did in the shower down the hall from her dormitory room. Davis Hall was a coed dorm, so no one accosted the man.

One day when she was at work, her boyfriend came to Church’s looking for her. He told Caroline he needed a few dollars. So, the woman went to her locker and got some of the money she had in her purse and gave it to him. That’s not enough, the vagabond said when she returned with the currency and gave it to him. I need more! Dennis hissed at her, adding, Go get the rest!

Another server, a Claxville University student, eyed the man and woman suspiciously. He observed the exchange of money and heard the demand from Dennis for more, the rest! The young man knew, or at least he had heard a little about the man, that Dennis was a drug dealer. So he followed his coworker to the back of the restaurant, to their lockers. When she was in her purse for the second time in a few minutes, he asked, Caroline, what the heck are you doing?

Her response, Nothing, received a reply she had not suspected.

Girl, you don’t know that man! You better leave him alone.

She rolled her eyes at him, brushed past the speaker, and took the remainder of the money to Dennis. Her boyfriend took her money with one hand. He grabbed her wrist with his free hand and twisted it sharply with the other hand. He told her, "You don’t do that to me, don’t hold out on the Dennis!"

The man who had objectified himself left. The young woman’s wrist was hurting, and she grew perplexed. She gazed after the man. Caroline couldn’t figure out what had just happened. Her naiveté showed itself. She rubbed the member for a moment before returning to the work station she shared with the coworker who had admonished her about the man. The man shook his head.

Caroline smirked at him.

When she saw her boyfriend that night and they were in the privacy of her dorm room, she told him what her co-worker said. Dennis saw red! The incensed man struck her in the face with an open palm! She wanted to cry, but tears refused their flow. The shocked coed just stood there—Caroline Brown froze. She was stunned beyond measure. Dennis barked at her, told her, Don’t you ever do that again!

She was confused, but asked cautiously, voice quivering and her hand on her stinging jaw, Don’t do what? The man was still in her face; the woman’s private space was invaded. She looked him in the eye, and they held each other’s gaze. Caroline searched his eyes for understanding. The man sought

Reviews for Extreme Circumstances

[arlenadean · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Book Description....“Extreme Circumstances,” the third book in the Circumstances series traces the life of Caroline Jackson, Brandi and TJ Pennington’s relative. The registered nurse finds herself tangled in a web of lies, deceptions, and abuse. The woman’s ability to maintain her sanity, survive, and move forward becomes questionable. She flees from her dangerous and twisted spouse, Dennis, and turns to her Claxville relatives for temporary respite. Extreme circumstances occur while she is with the aged and infirmed couple, ones leaving her homeless, penniless, and troubled. The couple who rested childless acquired an heir to the Pennington’s properties."Title : Extreme CircumstancesAuthor: Brenda SmithPublisher: XLIBRISBook # 3Reviewed By: Arlena DeanRating: fiveReview:"Extreme Circumstances" by Brenda SmithWhat I liked about this novel....Hopefully you have already read this author first two books: 'Insane Circumstances and Unforeseen Circumstances' and now we have her last novel ..... "Extreme Circumstances." I loved how this author was able to tie up any loose ends with this last novel...with the storyline being concentrated mainly on Caroline Jackson along with Brandi and TJ. All I can say is this was quite some story about Caroline, Brandi's younger sister who really went through a lots of trauma while also taking her family along with her. Then their was Brandi and T.J's situation with all of his health problems. I will say when it was all said and done I learned some very interesting facts about 'spousal abuse, schizophrenic, bi-polar, dementia and Alzheimer disease.' This author really gives the reader a captivating read of the 'Brown and Pennington' family. I would definitely suggest for the reader to read these author's novels in order so that you will be a able it get it all in this well told and well written story.