Eldridge C Hanes - The Bus to Beulah

Bus to Beulah, "On her way to a new job in America, Maria Puente accidentally discovers a human trafficking ring. Fearing exposure, the American company that manages the operation with the help of their Mexican partners kidnaps Maria. Maria’s disappearance triggers a desperate search, by her family and local law enforcement, to find her before the kidnappers can permanently dispose of her. As the investigation unfolds, long-time Hogg County high sheriff Will Moser confronts Albert Waters, a powerful businessman who Will suspects knows about Maria’s disappearance, but Albert and his Mexican cartel partners prove to be brick walls. At the urging of his wife, Lana, Will calls on Elijah Kahn, a man he got to know while serving in Vietnam who now runs one of the largest international security firms in the world. The idea of working with men who are rightly known as mercenaries' troubles Will, but he knows he’ll never find Maria without Elijah’s help and when Lana reminds Will of the debt they owe to Tomas Delgado, Maria’s uncle, his hesitation evaporates."

On Hanes' book - Howell Raines, former executive editor of The New York Times “The Bus to Beulah takes us on a fast and furious ride through some of America’s toughest territory—straight into border problems, trafficking, and drug cartels—featuring a Dickensian cast of characters swirling around the kidnapped Maria through eleven tense days. Topical, timely, terrifying. I read it in one sitting.”

About the author: ELDRIDGE C. HANES (Redge to his friends) graduated from Duke University in 1967 with a BA in Economics. He also graduated from the Army Combat Engineering Officer Candidate School at Fort Belvoir in June of 1968 and served 3 years of active duty, the last of which was in the Republic of Vietnam and earned him the Bronze Star. After the army, Redge worked 7 years for Hanes Corporation and then left to start Xpres Corporation, which eventually became The Russ Companies, for whom Redge served as chairman for 3 years before retiring in 2011. In addition to his business interests, he has served on a number of boards in the education, environmental and arts fields. At one point, Redge was a candidate and nominee for the State Senate in N.C. Redge has published 2 novels, Billy Bowater and Justice by Another Name, in addition to contributing essays and articles to various publications. His essay “Helen of Marion” appeared in the recent UNC Press anthology, Mothers and Strangers: Essays on Motherhood from the New South