Flight for Freedom

About the Book

Walter Shannon is an intelligent young man who has recently been promoted to Chief of Detectives on the Canton, North Carolina police force.  He is highly respected by Chief O’Connell, the Cheif of Police and by Bruce Shortston, a detective working under him.  Walter was raised by his aunt and uncle, Jim and Ruth Patterson when his parents were killed in an automobile accident.  Walter is married to Sue and they are expecting their first child at any time.

Walter and Bruce are working on a series of perplexing robberies when Sue is murdered and an expensive emerald is taken for the home.  Since she was killed with Walter’s gun, he is charged and convicted of the murder.

It was during his transfer to the state prison that Walter got his first break.  There was an accident and he escaped into the wilderness of a National Forest.  However, his escape was hindered by the fact that he was handcuffed to Pam, who was also being transferred to prison.

After managing to elude a manhunt by Chief O’Connell, they suddenly found themselves being shot at by an unknown assailant.  After wounding Walter, he gives up for the moment and leaves.  Walter, realizing that he must find shelter and safety not only for himself but also for Pam, begins to wander through the forest.

In the semi-darkness, they manage to locate the remains of an old poacher’s cabin.  Walter is attempting to rid them of the handcuffs that bind them together when he suddenly finds himself in the custody of a wildlife officer that has slipped up behind him.  Circumstances allow him to remain free and later in the night, they are forced to leave the cabin during a downpour of rain because of two men invading the cabin in search of them.  After the men leave, they return to the cabin for the remainder of the night, but Walter realizes it would be unsafe for them to remain there.

The next morning, they leave the cabin in search of another place to stay.  Unable to locate any structures, Walter builds a makeshift shelter of limbs and brush to provide protection from the weather and provide a hiding place.  Knowing that they cannont continue to live in this wilderness, Walter decides to go back to town and begin the task of clearing his name.  He goes back to his home for clothes and supplies.  He is forced to flee when someone from outside the house shoots at him.  He escapes unharmed, but encounters more difficulty before he is able to return to the shelter, unaware of the figure that emerged from a closet in the house after he left.

Unknown to Walter, his case has been turned over to the FBI because during his escape, he crossed a state line.  They immediately begin to work on the case.

Pam and Walter decide to explore the woods surrounding them.  It doesn’t take long for them to stumble upon a still and find themselves surrounded by a family of hostile hillbillies.  All but one of them become less hostile when Walter saves the life of the youngest boy.

On a return trip to the house in search of clues, he finds a billfold that was overlooked by the police.  He also finds a paper written by Sue that he cannot understand.  While he is there, someone tries to kill him by throwing a fire bomb through a window.  He escapes, but the billfold leads to vital information in helping him clear his name and also causes the death of another girl.

When he returns to the shelter from one of his trips to town, he learns that Pam was threatened by one of the hillbillies and was shot by his father.  During the confrontation, the shelter was set on fire and burned to the ground.  The remaining hillbillies take them to a cave where they can live.

After spending so much time together, Walter and Pam eventually fall in love and go theough a lot of trouble to get married.  Wh

About the Author

Reeves Franklin Glance was born in Canton, North Carolina in 1933. He attended Canton High, then joined the US Army in 1953. While in Germany, he developed a love for writing while writing letters back to his wife, the former Doris Summey of Clyde, North Carolina. Upon his return from Germany, he attended the University of New York and the University of Alabama. His interest in writing was rekindled when he began helping his children wilth school writing assignments. He is currently working on two other novels and now resides in Fair Play, South Carolina.