The Slip

In 1920 the "Byzantium" sinks off the coast of St. Thomas, losing its cargo of precious emeralds. Underwriters at Lloyd's of London take ownership of the sunken hull and whatever emeralds might someday be salvaged. Nearly a century later, treasure recovery becomes big business. Salvage companies and bounty hunters comb the ocean floor for lost gems. As widow Brandy Blake will soon find out, treasure recovery isn't just lucrative, it's also dangerous.

When Brandy returns to her native New Orleans to rebuild her life after her husband dies searching for the "Byzantium's" lost emeralds, she realizes that he recovered more jewels than he ever let on. But Brandy isn't the only one who knows about her late husband's stash. Recov, an unscrupulous salvage company, wants the emeralds-and the award money that comes with them.

Brandy's daughter Rene becomes blackmail collateral, but Rene has an ally in Raleigh, an unusual squirrel. The unlikely twosome flee alligators, poisonous snakes, and a sociopath in the Louisiana swamps while Brandy battles for her daughter's safety and her husband's hard-won legacy.

Katie Smith Matison's legal thriller "The Slip" takes readers on a wild ride into the intriguing realm of modern-day treasure hunting.