The Child Garden (27 page)

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank: Terri Bischoff, Nicole Nugent, Beth Hanson, Kevin Brown, Bill Krause, Mallory Hayes, and all at Midnight Ink; my agent, Lisa Moylett, once again; my family and friends, more than ever; Richard and Cathy Agnew for the ten years I spent living in Gloria's house; my late beloved step-grandmother-in-law, Laura McRoberts, who inspired Miss Drumm; Stuart Campbell, English teacher and RLS scholar; the real Mandeep Bhullar, vet extraordinaire; and Margaret Kenny, for help with the details about Scottish registrars.

Facts and Fictions

The towns, villages, and hamlets mentioned in this book are all real places. Close study of a map of the area between Dumfries and Castle Douglas will reveal Milharay Hill and Rough Hill, but the estate itself is fictional, as are the stone, the hallowed place, the devil's bridge, and all the characters depicted here.