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Every reporter dreams of the story that will take his or her career out of the local news media and into the national media. However, most do not anticipate actually being an integral part of that story. In STANDOFF, Sandra Brown's latest novel, Tiel McCoy does just that.
Tiel is an ambitious television news reporter for a local southwest station. She is taking some much needed, but forced, vacation, driving through New Mexico to a mountain resort. As usual, she has the radio tuned to an all news station when she hears that the teenage daughter of a Texas millionaire has been kidnapped by her boyfriend. Tiel is in line for a major promotion as anchor of a new news show, and doesn't want to miss her chance to show the network what she can do, much less allow a rival reporter to get the edge on the promotion. She stops at a convenience store to call her editor, requesting that she be allowed to postpone her vacation and investigate the story. Just after receiving the assignment to interview the kidnapper's father who lives en route to her vacation, the kidnapper and his victim enter the store intending to rob it.
Ronnie Davison has not kidnapped Sabra Denby. In reality, the teenage couple is in love, and Sabra is pregnant with their baby. They are fleeing from her controlling father, who, when informed of the pregnancy, threatened to destroy Ronnie and put the baby up for adoption. The teenagers are on their way to Mexico, bypassing Ronnie's father who has offered to help them. Short on cash, they decide to rob the convenience store. However, in the middle of the robbery, Sabra's water breaks and she goes into labor, forcing them to remain there and take all witnesses hostage.
Among the hostages is a local rancher known as Doc, a well-known oncologist who left his practice after his wife died. Although he won't admit to his medical training, his experience shows when he takes over the care of Sabra during her labor. By the time the FBI and local authorities are on the scene, he has correctly assessed that Sabra was suffering complications from her labor. Instead of sending in the requested obstetrician, the FBI sends in an undercover agent who knows nothing about childbirth and who only creates more chaos when he attempts to rescue Sabra. Tiel knocks him out by hitting him over the head with a can of chili. No one is seriously injured by the resulting gunfire, but a bullet grazes Doc's shoulder.
Eventually, Sabra gives birth to a daughter, with Tiel and Doc's help. However she bleeds heavily, further complicating matters. Neither she nor Ronnie are willing to surrender as long as her father, outside with the FBI, insists she and Ronnie separate and relinquish the baby. In addition, the other hostages are becoming more and more edgy, especially two Mexicans, one of whom turns out to be on the FBI's and Immigration and Naturalization's most wanted lists for importing and selling illegal laborers to farmers. Throughout, Tiel, with Doc's help, must maintain calm while negotiating for everyone's safe release.
Sandra Brown has once again written a suspense novel with a strong protagonist. Tiel, throughout the novel, has to balance her desire for "getting the story" with staying undercover and hoping she and the other hostages are released safely. She must also come to terms with the fact that, as in the case of Doc, not all aspects of a story need to be told
--- Reviewed by Debbie Ann Weiner
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