Annie Avants turned her back on her Southern roots and became a homicide detective in Kern County, California after working for several years in her hometown of Mena, Arkansas.
Her parents are unhappy with her. Their dream for her was always to settle down in Mena with a good husband and give them lots of grandbabies. That isn't what Annie wants for her life. She's happiest when she's working to unravel the criminal minds of serial killers and protect his or her crime victims by putting together the pieces of criminal evidence that will help her solve the latest murder mystery that confronts her.
Her partner, Tom Weston, suffered his own life tragedy when his wife was killed on live camera TV during a bank hostage situation gone awry.
Deputy District Attorney Jesse Greyeyes wants to be District Attorney, and he wants Annie, but his Native American roots make him both arrogant, defensive, and unsure of himself. And Annie is afraid if she commits to a relationship, Jesse will want to run her life.
Laine DelMonte, Chief of Technical Investigations is great at analyzing criminal evidence and has been instrumental in helping Annie and Tom solve their cases. But, this beautiful Texas native has a secret that she's kept hidden and she is always looking over her shoulder.
In this dusty farm community, someone is abducting and killing young Hispanic females. The weapon of choice - black widow spiders.
The serial killer leaves no clues and very little trace evidence. Annie, Tom, and their friends and colleagues are at a loss as to how to proceed and panic mounts in the streets of Bakersfield when a third girl goes missing.
Who will be next?
Cause of Death is a spine-chilling detective thriller that keeps you guessing right up to the last minute - and makes you wonder about the "normal" people in YOUR daily life.
Genre: FICTION / Mystery & Detective / GeneralCause of Death is still popular. At one time, it was in the Top 10 on Amazon under the category Police Procedurals. This is the first book of the Det. Annie Avants series and, as more books are finished, the sales for this title increase. There are now four books in the series, and I am writing the fifth.
Gabby looked down at her body and realized she was nude. "Why," she whispered.
"Didn't someone once say, 'Ours is not to reason why, ours is but to do and die'? Hmmm? Are you familiar with Alfred Lord Tennyson? Probably not."
He taped her mouth with some fresh duct tape.
"Can't take any chances of someone wandering by and hearing you complain. Now, are you ready for the next step? My pets are ready."
He got up and walked over to a shelf along the wall. She turned her head and followed him with her eyes. She could see that the shelves held row after row of pint-size canning jars.
He seemed to contemplate the contents of the jars.
"Ahh, this one looks perfect. A little bigger than the other two," he said, as he walked back over to her cot carrying a jar.
Her eyes opened wide in terror. Inside the jar she saw a huge black widow spider.
"This really won't hurt much tonight."
He opened the jar and dumped the spider on her lower stomach.
"Quit squirming and thrashing around or I'll have to tie you more firmly to the cot. You'll only make her mad."
He picked up a long stick and started toying with the spider. He kept up his agitation until the spider bit Gabby. Then, he knocked it to the floor and squished it.
"Three down, hundreds to go. That's number three, my dear. The pain should be much more exquisite by tomorrow.
"I'll leave you now. I have to get some sleep as tomorrow is a workday. A man has to make a living, you know?"
Gabby could only lay there and moan. She saw no way out of her prison - no way to escape. She wanted her mama.
| Language | Status |
|---|---|
|
Portuguese
|
Already translated.
Translated by Ana Amelia Zanin
|
|
|
Author review: Wonderful translator. Very easy to work with. I hope we can work together again. |
