The Yards by A.F. Carter

 

Baxter is a dead end town, it's factories closed and jobs difficult to come by.  Two women face off when a crime is committed even though under different circumstances, they could be friends.  Git O'Rourke grew up in Baxter and would like nothing better than to get out of it.  She lives for her daughter, Charlie and works two jobs as a LPN to support them and her mother who lives with the two as child care.  Delia Mariola is a police officer, full of vim and vigor and headed on the way up.  She has a son and wants to improve Baxter for him and the other kids.

The confrontation occurs when Git has an evening out.  She doesn't have time for a relationship but that doesn't mean she doesn't occasionally want male companionship and yes, sex.  She goes to a local bar and picks up the best looking man there.  But when they get to his motel, the sex is over quickly and the man passes out after shooting up heroin.  Git looks around and finds a bag with money and drugs and decides this is her chance to get out of town and back to school to improve her life.  She grabs the bag and takes off.

But something goes wrong.  The next morning Delia is called out to the motel and finds the man still on the bed but not passed out.  Now he has a bullet hole in his head.  Delia knows the man is a low level criminal and suspects he is connected to the criminal family she has been chasing and particularly Connor, the son who will be taking over the organization when his father ages out.  She knows if she can arrest Connor she will take down the biggest source of drugs and crime in Baxter.  But the scene and the witnesses all point to the women who was there in the room.  Delia knows that even if the women didn't do the crime she is now a target of Connor's organization.  She has to find her quickly but can she do it in time?

A.F. Carter has delivered a compelling novel that explores crime and drugs in a small rust belt town through the stories of two women, both trying to create better lives for their children.  The women see the side of town most folks don't want to admit exists and both find different ways to deal with the crime and general lack of opportunity in Baxter.  The story of how they do so will keep the reader interested to the end.  This book is recommended for thriller readers.