The Crash
Eight months pregnant, Tegan flees her unraveling life and heads to her brother's place - only to crash during a blizzard in rural Maine. With a broken ankle and a dead car, she's sure she won't survive... until a seemingly kind couple rescues her and takes her into their cozy cabin. But safety is an illusion. As the storm rages outside, Tegan realizes she might have traded one kind of danger for something far darker.
- Tegan - Protagonist, pregnant
- Simon - Tegan's baby's father
- Jackson - Simon's assistant
- Polly - Hank's wife, nurse
- Hank - Polly's husband
- Dennis - Tegan's brother
- Mitch - Polly and Hank's neighbor
- Sadie -Mitch's young daughter
- Tegan gets pregnant by Simon after a one night stand.
- She goes to sign an NDA from Simon to secure hush money, but when she smells his cologne, a flashback confirms he drugged and raped her. She refuses his money and vows to go to the police.
- Upset about the newly discovered circumstances, Tegan sets out in a blizzard to stay with her brother Dennis.
- On a remote road, her car crashes into a tree and she breaks her ankle.
- Hank rescues her but brings her home instead of to a hospital. Polly insists she stay in their basement sickroom.
- Tegan is kept captive for days: drugged, gaslit, denied proper medical care, and nearly loses her leg to infection.
- Polly is keeping Tegan captive so she can steal her baby.
- Throughout the book, Polly keeps talking about Sadie.
- Sadie is neglected, dirty, and shows up to Polly's house hungry. Polly grows fond of her.
- Mitch is shown to be violent, drunk, and physically abusive to Sadie.
- Eventually, Hank helps Tegan escape and drops her at a hospital while Polly is away.
- At the hospital, Tegan learns that Dennis sabotaged her tires by removing the tread so she could not drive safely in the blizzard.
- Polly catches Dennis in the hospital tampering with Tegan's IV and saves her.
- It is revealed that Dennis and Simon are business partners developing ski resorts. Simon had made it clear to Dennis that if Tegan reported the rape to the police, their deals would fail so Dennis agrees to silence Tegan.
- Despite everything, Tegan doesn't report Polly and Hank, rationalizing that they saved her after the crash.
- One year later:
- Tegan is living in a townhouse with baby Tia and still sees Jackson, who helped secure her child support from Simon.
- There is no legal consequences for Simon or Dennis.
- Polly and Hank have adopted Sadie after her abusive father Mitch turns up dead.
- Final reveal: Hank killed Mitch to stop him from abusing Sadie anymore, and Sadie witnessed it, but Polly remains unaware.
- Tegan - Alive - Thriving with her baby, Tia and hoping to start a relationship with Jackson
- Simon - Alive - In prison for drugging and raping women
- Jackson - Alive - Still helping out and supporting Tegan
- Polly - Alive - Adopted Sadie, happy to finally be a mother
- Hank - Alive - Loving being a dad to Sadie
- Dennis - Alive - No further details
- Mitch - Dead - Killed by Hank
- Sadie - Alive - Happy with her new parents, Hank and Polly
- Infertility
- Kidnapping
- Rape
- Child abuse
- Car accident
- Death of parent
- Murder
Bittersweet
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
ISBN: 9781464232985
Publish Date: January 28, 2025
Note: Details are for the original edition. Other formats, editions, and audiobook versions may be available.