Jake, the Orphan

"Orphan" is a term not used much anymore in conversation, though in typical American style we've made it into a verb. Children are "orphaned" by a storm or a car accident.
Losing our parents cuts us loose from our first and strongest anchor in the world. That can be threatening, and it's what has happened to Jake at the beginning of my new book A Lethal Time and Place.
Here's Jake's story.
My mother wasn't the best of providers, and my dad abandoned us before I was born. When Mom got sick I took care of her, but when she died, I refused to become a ward of the state. Taking the money from the last welfare check and a few items of clothing, I headed to the streets of Chicago. Winter was coming, but I had a scheme. My mom had a life insurance policy with me as beneficiary. If it appeared I had a stable home with a responsible guardian, I could collect it. I figured I'd find someone on the street to pose as a relative, help me collect the money, and accept a few bucks as payment. I just needed to find the right person.
I'm only fourteen, but I knew I had to choose carefully. The first time I saw Memnet, I realized she was perfect. We looked enough alike to be sisters.
The downside was that Memnet wanted nothing to do with strangers. She rejected every attempt I made to explain my scheme, and she even started running away every time she saw me.
But Fate had something in store for the two of us. When we witnessed a murder (together with Memnet's companions Leo, Libby, and Roy) our lives got tangled. Now I'm a member of their mysterious little group. The more I learn about them, the more intriguing they are.