Escape from Ambergris Caye

ESCAPE FROM AMBERGRIS is about what happens when a television-news cameraman stumbles onto a human-trafficking operation and must decide whether to risk his life and the job he loves to save a co-worker from the clutches of slavers or simply look the other way and hope for the best. While covering Tampa, Florida’s Gasparilla Pirate Festival, TV news cameraman, Jackson Taylor pans his camera to a balcony and sees a girl being forced inside by an angry-looking man. She appeared frightened and it bothers him.He shares what he saw with his attractive on-air reporter, Izzie Campbell. She tells him to stop obsessing about it; that the kid was probably acting up and her dad was making her mind him. She says if more dads were like that children would learn to behave themselves.Unable to put it out of his mind, Jackson repeatedly reviews his videotape and recalls having heard about the unsavory business of human trafficking. He researches the topic and is horrified to learn it is happening everywhere—including in Tampa, possibly right in front of them. Although Izzie tells him she thinks he’s overreacting—as he's been known to do, she decides to checks it out on her own. An ambitious young woman, she thinks there might be a story in it that could give her career the national attention it needs.Returning to Ybor City and the house with the balcony, she is standing on the sidewalk when the man from the videotape comes out and, noticing her, invites her up for a drink. She declines, but decides to accept next time so she can check on the girl.When she subsequently fails to show up for work for several days, Jackson expresses concern to his hard-boiled boss who says to forget about her, that girls like Izzie walk out on jobs all the time. Defying his boss’ orders, Jackson pursues the matter and is warned to focus on his work—or else lose the dream job he worked so hard to get. Instead Jackson and his free-spirit, deadbeat brother, Zac, follow leads that quickly get them in over their heads. They end up in Ambergris Caye, an island off the coast of Belize, where they must fight, not only to save Izzie’s life—but their own. ESCAPE FROM AMBERGRIS will appeal to those who enjoy a good mystery along with a glimpse into the horrific crime of human trafficking.