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The Pursuit of the Media Mafia

By DB Dakota

Mystery, 455 pages

Cover art by Pat Evans

Vicar warns Congress they who spurn his laws will pay a price. The transmitter engineer finds it, the price, strung up on his station’s tower, a man with a rope around his chest so he can pendulum to and fro with a bare leg swiping across the lightning gap, being zapped with RF.

The detective embeds a spy-mole to root out the cause-hustlers making a buck off the plight of minorities of one kind and another.

Excerpt:

Kain shrugged and nodded. Juan retrieved the phone. “Okay, Mack, come on by.” He folded the phone and stuffed it into his pocket. “Better sit down, Kain. I’ve got a good news-bad news story and it’s not short.”

Kain eased onto the edge of the bed and glowered at his neighbor. “You are not an alien, are you, a dirt-poor peon?”

“Hardly. No, Kain, I am not an illegal.” Juan peeled off his fake mustache, slumped onto the floor, leaned back against their shattered party wall and stretched his legs out. “I don’t really live here, either; don’t sleep here. I come and go. I’ve been fooling you for a purpose I’ll explain. I work for Phil Kraft. It all goes back to your job application at KJT. Something happened at the station, which I guess you don’t know about. You know Joel Ricardo.”

Kain swallowed. “Why, uh, yeah, I know Ric. What happened?”

“He got tortured on one of our transmitter antennas. A couple of gangsters strung him up across the lightning gap and fried him.”

“He’s dead?”

“Let me finish,” Juan pleaded, crossing his legs. “Phil didn’t forget you or write you off, he liked your style. He figured you could help us sometime, or he could help you find work. Two JungleNet people have been fingered as the sparking thugs, which they aren’t. They’re being framed. Phil is convinced the actual mobsters are VoiceMinor people, your new employer.”

Kain gasped. “That straightens out Ric's rattletrap explanation.”

“So Phil hired detectives to track down the perpetrators and clear us, the station guys. Phil and the investigators want to install you as a mole inside VoiceMinor to flush out the culprits. In order to do that, I was assigned to befriend you and ride herd on your applying for a job with them and getting it.”

“Which accounts for the want ad,” noted Kain, reeling from the whirlwind events. He just stared at the wall.

“That is right. The investigators set up bugging equipment next door to their VoiceMinor office and recorded everything since the day you walked into that place and applied for the fusionist job.”

“What about the psychodrama?”

“The workshop, yep, they got it,” declared Juan, shifting into a more upright position. “They also got big nuncio Nova this morning instructing Silka to hire you.”

“So it’ll be a done deal when I call in and report for work, or go through the motions.”

“Right again. As to what you’re to do next, let’s wait for the investigator. Keep in mind, Kain, one thing. Ah, forget it.”

“What?”

“I was going to say, if you’d fallen into that job, not knowing what you know now, you’d be sucked into one of the damnedest conspiracies I ever heard of.”

Kain squirmed around on the edge of the bed, shaking his head. “So what about Ricardo?”

“The PI will show you the surveillance disks if you want to see yourself as proof. She’s got Phil’s cash, as I said, to give you if you sign on as mole. We’re going to move you out of here to a decent place to live.”

“I said, what about Joel!” On his feet, Kain was near shouting.

“One of the investigators has kept in touch with Ricardo’s wife. As of yesterday morning, Kain, we’ve got a murder on our hands.” Juan stood up and slapped Kain on the shoulder. “He didn’t pull through. Congressman Ricardo is dead. Murder

A Change of Heart

By Larry Hammersley
Contemporary Romance, 322 pages
Cover art by Artist: Richard Stroud
Blurb:
Leroy Doyle and Jody Stinson suffer unhappy relationships while in school and plan to avoid that when they get to college. Leroy scraps that resolve when he meets Jody, but she won't let him into her life. It takes her six years to wake up, but is it in time?
Excerpt:
Jody thought about Leroy during the New Year's holiday weekend. She tried calling his apartment but got no answer. She regretted not permitting him to speak his piece about leaving. Allowing the plant operations to interrupt them infuriated her. She wouldn't allow work to interfere again.

On the Monday after the holiday weekend, she danced up the steps to the main plant to look for Leroy in the lab. Jensen hadn't seen him. She checked the batch process lab downstairs. Finnegan hadn't seen him. She rushed back upstairs, expertly balancing on her high heels and took the hallway to Gretchen's office. Empty. Exasperated, she plopped down in the chair facing Gretchen's desk, figuring she had gone for her morning coffee.

"Jody?" Gretchen said, entering behind her.

"Oh, Gretchen, I can't find Leroy anywhere. I wanted to talk him out of leaving," she said, anxious to learn his whereabouts.

"You're too late. He's already gone."
"What? When? Why didn't you tell me at least this weekend?" She leaned forward in her chair.

"He tried to tell you December thirtieth was his last day. He wanted to be the one to tell you."

"He's gone back to Indiana?" Jody had a sinking feeling.

"Yes. He sold his car, his apartment rent is paid to the end of this month and he asked me to handle shipping of his furniture out in a couple of weeks. He said he had a couple of interviews back there."

"Didn't you try to talk him out of leaving?" she asked but not in anger.
"Several times. I think you already know his reason for leaving." Gretchen's wrinkled eye brows and frown stung Jody once again.

"Oh, Gretchen, what have I done?" Tears swelled in her eyes and she gritted her teeth.
"Or, what have you not done might also be appropriate." She accepted Gretchen's chastising tone. Besides that tone of voice, Gretchen should be horse-whipping her, too.

"I should have listened to you all along. Better than that, I should have listened to my heart." Jody despaired. Gretchen handed her some tissues which she accepted and dabbed her eyes. The tears continued.
"I do have his home phone number." Gretchen scribbled on a notepad and handed it to her. She looked at it through her blurred vision, then stuck it in her purse.

Antique Legacy

By Eileen Harris
Mystery, 254 pages
Cover art by: Richard Stroud
Blurb:
While the almost castle crumbles around them, Alicia desperately searches for the answers she wants and needs. Every creepy room demands a thorough search. Someone is trying to kill her, and she doesn't even know why, let alone, who. Each room she searches is a challenge and each is either fascinating or horrifying. The huge cat now follows her everywhere, even into closed rooms. If she can discover his secret before one of the murder attempts succeeds, maybe she can find the answers she needs.
Excerpt:
There was also a fourth floor. The stairs to this area were wooden like the ones to the third floor, but in much worse shape. We made our way carefully to the floor above. This level was one big attic area. There were some items stored here, but there was also a lot of open space. It was in disastrous condition. We disturbed several bats as we walked around. There were pigeon droppings everywhere, and in some places the roof had leaked and rotted everything underneath. The air seemed almost non-existent, and what was there smelled horrible. Neither of us had any desire to spend much time up there.

As we hurried back to the side of the room where the stairs were, Connie stepped on a portion of the floor that was rotten from years of leaking water. Her right leg went through almost to her hip. I was glad she was wearing slacks to help prevent scrapes. I walked up to the edge of the rotten area intending to reach out and pull her free when her other leg fell through. Now only her head and shoulders were above the floor level. Most of the floor around her looked bad, and she had to be terrified that she would fall completely through. Because of the tall ceilings in the rooms below, slipping through would definitely injure her or worse. I knew I couldn't pull her free, since I couldn't get close enough without risking more damage and causing her to fall. I turned and ran back across the room trying to watch for the dangerous areas. I was sure I'd seen a pile of junk containing some old rope. As I ran she screamed, "No, don't leave me. Please..."

I tuned her out and scrambled for the rope. I found it the first place I looked, grabbed it, and sprinted back toward Connie. Her eyes were huge as she watched me, but she didn't say anything. I dug a piece of the rope that I thought looked sound and long enough for what I needed out of the pile. I leaned out and tossed the middle section behind her back. She didn't dare move to help, so I carefully pulled each end tight to her sides under her arms. When I walked each end around to her back I had her contained. As long as I could hold the pressure on the rope, she couldn't fall. I braced myself and began pulling. She moved a few inches, so I increased the pressure and pulled steadily backward with all my strength. I thought we were almost home free, when another part of the rotted floor around her gave way. Now the only thing holding her was the rope. It was burning my hands, and I didn't know how much long I could hold her whole weight. Using all my strength, I inched backward. When I knew my strength was almost gone, I gave everything I had into one last pull. I backed up with the slack I'd created and bumped into one of the columns supporting the room. I hit it so hard it nearly knocked me unconscious. Sobbing with relief, I tied the ends of the rope securely around the pillar. Now she couldn't fall, and she could help lever herself out of the hole. It took three more tries, with more of the floor giving way each time, before together we had her on solid ground. We both lay on the filthy floor, panting and trying to catch our breath.

When I could almost breathe normally again, Connie rolled onto her side and said, "You saved my life. I didn't know if you'd even try since we've treated you so badly. I'm not sure why we have, since the one we should be blaming is our father. My brothers just don't seem to understand that. I don't have anything to offer you in gratitude except my friendship. I hope you'll accept it."

Connections

By Vera Berry Burrows
Mainstream, 301 pages
Cover art by Trisha FitzGerald
Blurb:
Jane O'Connell did not envisage that her early retirement would completely disrupt her life. With too much time on her hands, she finds it difficult to adjust to her new existence. In her obstinate selfishness, she alienates herself from her family and friends. Running away from all things familiar appears to be her only option, but is it? Will the connections she makes really solve the problems she encounters in her life after work?
Excerpt:
Jane didn't go to the Dog and Partridge for several days. Somehow she felt she wasn't quite ready to face Freddy after their little fling. She had no idea how he'd react when they came face to face again. She worked on Finding Ben and realised her reckless behaviour had fuelled her creative fire. I love this, she thought. It's the catharsis I knew I needed and Ben's character is surely developing through me. I'm beginning to love the little guy. When her phone rang, she was startled. "Hello. Jane Peterson."

It was Barbara. "Jane!" she called almost deafeningly. "Where are you? I have been ringing your bell for days. Has the intercom stopped working?"

"I've been busy, Barbara. I turned off the intercom and my mobile because I needed to work undisturbed. Sorry."

Barbara continued unabashed. "I missed you at the D and P. Freddy hasn't been in either. I have no idea what's happened to him. Have you heard from him? You and he were getting along well when we were last together."

Jane took a deep breath in order to compose herself. "I haven't seen him after that night. He walked me home and that was that," she fibbed. No need to let Barbara into our little secret. "He's not my type, Barbara, so I won't be sorry if I don't see him again. How are you anyway? Anything happening at the D and P?"

"I'm fine thanks, and I'm glad you're okay. You might like to go and see the group that's on in the pub at the weekend. The Country Boys. They are supposed to be very good and the lead singer is an Aussie from Broome. You might know him."

Jane laughed. "Barbara, Broome is just about as far away from where I live as you could get. It's at least a four hour flight. Just think about it. In four hours you could fly to Greece or the Canary Islands from here. Would you know anybody who lives in those places, or do you know anybody in John o' Groats, for instance? At least it's on the same land mass."

Barbara laughed with her. "But Australia looks quite small in the atlas!" she said.

"Australia is vast, believe me," Jane informed her. "I might try to see the group, though. A country boy from Broome, hey? Sounds interesting. Will you be there?"

"No, my better half is home now for a few weeks so I won't be around. We have a lot of catching up to do, if you understand my meaning."

Jane gasped audibly for effect. "Whoa there, girl! Too much information," she said light-heartedly. "Give me a call when you feel like a night out. See yer!"

Barbara's call had added to Jane's guilt as regards Freddy. Well, it seems I really scared off the poor guy if he's stopped going to the Dog and Partridge. I feel really bad now. All we did was to fulfil a need in each other, her conscience told her. He doesn't have to go to ground just because we... Try as she might, she could not dismiss the thought that she might have tarnished the memory of his dear wife and she genuinely felt very guilty about that.

The Onion Caper

By William O. Weldy
Young Adult 227 pages
Cover art by Pat Evans
Blurb:
Young Cole Mckenna finds himself with a criminal record for stealing onions. He struggles to overcome the stigmatism by helping Officer Bradley with investigations of a burglary and later drugs in his small town high school. Along the way he discovers the dangers of police work when he's almost killed.
Excerpt:
The man had his back to Cole, totally focused on kicking Jason. Cole sprinted on the balls of his feet. The guy looked up just as Cole drove a shoulder into his side, like blind-siding a quarterback. They both went down. Cole bounced up thinking the other guy would stay down. To his surprise the thug jumped up and squared off in a fighting stance.

They eyed each other a second, before the guy took a wild swing at Cole's head. Cole leaned back from the blow. He tried to see the face under the hoodie but the overhead light shone behind the stranger. Cole started to wade into the attacker when the guy reached in his pocket and pulled out a knife. The blade sprung from the handle. Cole stared at the weapon and stumbled back a few more paces. His own right hand dug into his pocket and closed on the lock-blade Buck. He pulled it out and fumbled to open the blade.

What am I doing? I can't get into a knife fight. I'll get killed. But he held it up for the other man to see. They circled each other. Cole's every nerve concentrated on his opponent. Fear gripped his stomach, as his brain screamed-Run! He skittered around defensively, trying to keep his distance from the attacker, and the silver blade he waved. Lurching to the side, Cole bumped into the dumpster and stumbled for balance.

An excruciating pain exploded in the back of his head. Next thing he knew he sprawled face down in the rubble. Multi-colored spots danced in his eyes. His brain refused to focus. Dizziness distorted everything. Shifting to his right side, he lifted a hand to the back of his head. It came away wet. Lying on the ground, Cole fought to remain conscious. He heard another voice behind him.

"Kill both the sons-a-bitches and let's get out of here."

A blurred pair of dirty sneakers approached Cole's head. He tried to push himself up but failed. The grubby sneakers straddled his head. Cole held his breath.

I'm going to die! His mind flashed: Mom-Mikey-.With his last ounce of strength, he lunged up and jammed his Buck knife to the hilt in the leg of the man standing over him. He heard his attacker scream. Cole tried to fight the dizziness. In the foggy distance, he heard, "Hey!" echo down the alley.

Then-a dark void.

The Ferrington Men: Josh

By Lynette Hall Hampton
Romantic Suspense 319 pages
Cover art by Pat Evans
Blurb:
While his father is on his honeymoon in the Greek Islands, Josh Ferrington, in charge of his father's vast holdings finds himself torn between the two beautiful daughters of his new step-mother. Laurie, who he has become good friends with and her younger sister, Olivia who makes his heart race every time he looks at her.

To add to this problems, Josh has to continually fight off the advances of his secretary who is determined to become the next Mrs. Josh Ferrington. He then learns his former in-laws are suing for custody of his there and one half year old son, Amos.
To find the happiness he craves, Josh knows he must over come all these situations and get his life on a path that will lead to happiness for not only him, but his son, Amos as well.

Excerpt:
"Good morning, Josh." Dottie Blackwood, his secretary, used her most sultry voice and leaned over the desk so he couldn't miss the view down her low cut blouse. "I heard Gabe's wedding was fabulous. Of course no one would expect less from the Ferringtons. I'm so happy for your father."

"Only family and a few close friends attended, but that's what Dad and Constance wanted. Something small and private."

"I hope they have a big party when they come back from the honeymoon. I want to meet the lucky woman who is now your new step-mom."

"I think that's what they plan." Josh looked through the messages Dottie handed him. "You'll like Constance. She's the perfect woman for Dad. I think he's finally going to have the happiness he deserves."

"That's good. Every man needs a good woman who'll make him happy, don't you think?" She leaned a little closer to him.

As always, Josh ignored her attempts at seduction. He didn't think she could be serious, but only wanted to show him she was all woman. "This note says Aston Chambers wants me to call as soon as I can. Did he give you a clue as to what it's about?"

"No. Just said it was important. I think I put that down."

Josh nodded and went into his inner office. He picked up the phone and dialed Aston's number. He knew it would be busy in the company with his father gone, and the last thing he needed was a problem arising in the legal department of Ferrington Industries, which often happened when the top man in the law firm called personally.

"Yes, Josh, I'm glad you called," Aston said. "I need to see you right away."

"What's up, Aston?"

"I'd rather see you in person. Can you come to my office or would you prefer I come there?"

"With Dad on his honeymoon, I'm pushed this morning. Just tell me what's going on."
"You're not going to like it."

"I probably won't, but spit it out anyway."

"Cindy's parents have decided to sue you for custody of your son, Amos."