Please welcome author Kris Bock to the blog today with an
excerpt from her new mystery, Something Deadly on Desert Drive: The
Accidental Detective Mystery Series. This is the second book of the series.
Back in April, author Kris Bock shared at excerpt from the first book, Something
Shady Sunshine Haven: The Accidental Detective Mystery Series here.
Published by Tule Publishing, this book is scheduled to be released on Tuesday in
eBook format.
Kate's father and his coffee group are worried. Their friend Larry
married a younger woman who now claims he has dementia and won't let anyone see
him. They think his wife and her lazy adult children are keeping him isolated
so they can steal his money. They're determined to save Larry, and they need
Kate’s help to prove what’s happening.
Before they can dig out the truth, a murder raises the stakes, and
Kate's father is among the suspects. To save him and Larry, she must reveal the
real murderer – but her investigation could put all their lives at risk.
Excerpt from Something Deadly on Desert Drive
“Looks like we’re the last ones to
arrive.” Dad raised his hand to acknowledge his friend’s wave.
I followed Dad to the diner table
where his friends sat. They greeted me warmly. This was only the second time
I’d joined Dad’s twice-weekly coffee group in the month I’d been home. They
were nice guys, but since I was living with my father again, I wanted to ensure
he had a social life apart from me. This time, however, they had specifically
requested my presence.
Which meant they wanted something.
I couldn’t wait to find out what.
I’d gotten through my first week
back home, after decades of traveling the world as a war correspondent, by
solving a mystery at my mother’s Alzheimer’s care unit and putting away a
killer. The next month had been filled with writing articles about those
events. I was ready for a new mental challenge.
I already had enough of a physical
one with PT and getting used to walking with a cane.
“Thanks for coming, Kate. We need
your expert advice.” Joe Washington and his wife had helped with the nursing
home investigation. Joe wore his white hair trimmed close to his head, forming
a handsome contrast to his dark skin.
“Glad to help,” I said. “What’s
up?”
The four men looked at each other.
Dad nodded to one of them. “You start, Clarence. You were the first to notice
something wrong.”
“We’re worried about our friend,
Larry,” Clarence said. “His wife died last year, and he remarried in the
spring. We have concerns about his new wife. She is very young, maybe your
age.”
While I chuckled at the thought of
being “very young” at 49, I had no desire to get involved in someone’s
marriage, especially if his friends’ disapproval was only due to the age
difference or loyalty to the old wife.
“At first, Larry seemed happy
after he married Pamela,” Clarence said. “They went on a month-long honeymoon
that must have cost a fortune. After they returned, I reminded Larry to revise
his will if he wanted to make sure his children got some of his money. He
agreed he would. That was the last time he seemed happy.”
The other men nodded.
“He hasn’t joined our coffee group
in over two months,” Dad said. “Pamela says he’s getting dementia. She won’t
let him leave the house.”
I could understand being protective
of an ill spouse. As a younger wife, she might be embarrassed by her elderly
husband’s infirmity. But when someone was old and sick, keeping him away from
his friends wasn’t helpful. Was she overprotective and perhaps making bad
decisions, or was something more serious happening?
“I’m glad to help if I can,” I
said, “but I’m not sure how. You need to know if Larry is really suffering from
memory problems, and if so, if he’s getting the right treatments.”
Joe leaned forward. “When you were investigating Sunshine Haven, you pretended to be writing a story so you could talk to the family members.”
Kris Bock ©2022
Kris Bock writes novels of mystery,
suspense, and romance, many with Southwestern landscapes. Sign up for her newsletter
and get a free Accidental Detective short story plus a free sweet romance set in
the world of the Furrever Friends cat café. Kris also writes with her brother,
Douglas J Eboch, who wrote the movie Sweet Home Alabama. Sign
up for their romantic comedy newsletter and get the short story Felony Melanie Destroys the
Moonshiner’s Cabin. Find the Felony Melanie books on Amazon US or All E-book retailers
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Thanks, Kevin!
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