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Inspiration for THE PROTECTOR:Two springs ago, while vacationing in the Blue Ridge Mountains at Massanutten Resort, a timeshare salesman named Stephen Winegard ignored the necessity of selling me a timeshare and, instead, showed me all around his hometown of Elkton, Virginia, where THE PROTECTOR takes place. Here are photos of places that inspired my story. Thank you, Stephen! |
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 Here’s what the beautiful Blue Ridge looks like in springtime when the leaves are just beginning to unfurl. |
 This is the Dollar General store where Eryn is forced to buy clothing for herself—clearly an unaccustomed task for her. |
 Here’s the Food Lion where Eryn and Ike buy groceries. Ike suffers the certainty that they are being watched. The FBI’s mobile command center is hiding behind a line of Bradford pears at the bank across the parking lot. |
 Here’s a look at a real FBI Mobile Command Center. The one in my book is unmarked. |
 The trail Eryn is forced to run on at the crack of dawn. It’s a miracle she didn’t twist an ankle! |
 This is town Hall in Elkton. The police station really is in the basement! |
 There really is an Overlook Mountain |
 The driveway to Ike’s cabin is like this, only steeper. |
 Ike’s cabin is like this one, only more run-down. |
 Imagine going across this on a zipline? |
 View from the boulder on Overlook Mountain. That’s not Ike, but he’ll do. (Husband, Alan, posing). |
 Dwayne’s trailer is just on the other side of Naked Creek. |
 This is Cross Keys Vineyards, inspiration for Naked Creek Vineyards |
 This is where my FBI agents hang out while trying to frame Ike. |
 This did not inspire anything in me but disgust. Look closer. These are cats chained up to little shelters. Yes, I said chained. What the heck? My guess is they are used for cat fights? There’s a cock farm right up the road… |
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