Relative Interest

Kira Forester has already lost her parents and only sister, her twin, Mira, to untimely deaths. But there is one very important member of her family left--her six-year-old niece, Vicky. And the motherless little girl may need her even more than Kira knows. After a four-month assignment in Africa, Kira returns to her childhood home in North Carolina--hoping, to reunite with her niece, whose deadbeat dad skipped town after she was born. But the unexpected death of Vicky's foster mom changed the child's living arrangements, and Kira doesn't know where to find her. Panicked, Kira considers hiring a private attorney, but soon discovers it won't be necessary. Circumstances beyond Kira's wildest imagination have placed little Vicky at the center of a battle in which the lines between the personal and the political have become wrenchingly blurred. A powerful white mayoral candidate and his family have announced plans to adopt the girl. And there's nothing Kira can do about it, unless she can get the state on her side--meaning level-headed Evan Conley, director of the agency in charge of the case. As Kira fights for her right to be part of Vicky's life, she finds support from a most unlikely source--and discovers that beyond the issues of race and biology lies a heartbreaking, long-hidden secret...