Marilyn raised her glass. “To Mike and Diana.”
I raised my glass. “To Terry and Marilyn.”
Terry raised his glass. “To show business.”
THANK YOU
If you want to write a crime novel, call a cop. I called some of the best. I am indebted to Detectives Wendy Berndt, Elizabeth Estupinan, and Leonard DeLeon of the Los Angeles Police Department, and to Undersheriff Frank P. Faluotico of the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office, all of whom took time from their demanding jobs to help me pursue my life of crime.
I’d also like to thank Craig R. Harvey, Chief Coroner Investigator and Chief of Operations at the County of Los Angeles Department of Coroner. I needed to experience the L.A. County Morgue up close and personal, and Craig gave me an education I’ll never forget.
Thanks to Dr. Paul Pagnozzi, who taught me how to exsanguinate; Mike Jackman, my film production guru; Rick Cook, my Texas connection; Tony Melone, V.P. at Verizon Wireless; Ron Frank, my weights and measures expert; Jonathan Berg, Mencken scholar; Wendy Karp, who taught me never to leave profredding to amatures; and to my Los Angeles location scout, Matthew Diamond, who knows all the best places to dump a dead body.
A big thank-you-I-love-you-guys to everyone at MacAdam Cage—Scott Allen, Melanie Mitchell, Dorothy Carico Smith, Julie Burton, Melissa Little, Karan Mahajan, Dave Adams, and especially to David Poindexter, who had the faith to publish my first novel and who continues to be the biggest champion of the Lomax and Biggs series.
I am particularly grateful to all the booksellers, librarians, fan magazines, bloggers, and readers, who have gone out of their way to be supportive. And to my editor, Jason Wood, who flew 3,000 miles to help me shuffle index cards, iron out story points, and deliver on deadline—thanks, kiddo; you rock.
And despite the fact that I can hear the band trying to drown me out and get me off the stage, I want to thank the love of my life, my wife Emily, who somehow manages to be both the wind beneath my wings and the person who keeps me grounded.
Table of Contents
Front
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
THANKYOU