PROLOGUE

At three o’clock in the morning, a sharp rap vibrated the window of Tonia Stowell’s bedroom. She moaned, rolled over and pulled the covers over her head. After the celebration of her twenty-eighth birthday at the Saddle Horn with a group of friends, she felt the agony of consuming too much champagne. When the second knock rattled the glass, she forced her eyes open and tried to raise her head.

“Tonia, wake up,” called a harsh male voice.

“Who the hell?” She threw back the covers and struggled to get up. Glancing at the clock, she cursed. “Damn, I’ve only been asleep an hour.”

She eased out of bed and clutched her head. Wrapping her robe around her nude body, she staggered toward the window and peered out.

“Dear God, what does he want?” she muttered, motioning for him to go around to the front door.

REVIEW

Hawkman's second adventure is a real winner!

Welcome back, Hawkman! In “DOUBLE TROUBLE”, the second book of her Hawkman series, Betty Sullivan LaPierre has written a taut, complex mystery that is even better than its predecessor.

In DOUBLE TROUBLE, the action is split between Los Angeles and beautiful Copco Lake five years after the explosive events of THE ENEMY STALKS. Now happily living with his wife Jennifer and their 15-year-old son Sam, Hawkman is a hard working private investigator. He is hired by Nancy Gilbert to protect her from her ex-husband Drew Harland, who has just been released from prison. Nancy is convinced that Drew murdered her sister Tonia, and that she will be his next victim. She asks Hawkman to protect her and her family as well as investigate Tonia's murder in Los Angeles. As he gets to know Nancy and her politically ambitious husband, Jack, Hawkman begins to suspect that nothing is what it appears to be in this case. There are secrets piled upon secrets: the more he finds out, the more complicated and confusing things become. Why is Drew really looking for Nancy? Why is Jack so angry with Nancy? Is it more than a coincidence that Tonia's murder and Drew's release from prison happened at the same time? Who is Tonia - really? Is she the one at the center of this maze? And what about Drew's twin brother David?

Hawkman must follow all of these threads in order to find the truth - a truth that no one was ever meant to know. At one point, Hawkman says, "We could be in for a heap of double trouble." That doesn't even begin to describe this case. There are layers of deceit and secrets: it seems that everyone involved had something to hide. There were points in this book that I couldn't figure out how on earth everything was going to be resolved. But it is! LaPierre skillfully weaves all of the plots and sub-plots together into a rich, satisfying story that is perfectly believable.

Reviewed by: Reviewer: Elaine Broome from Winter Springs, FL USA

EXCERPT

CHAPTER ONE

Private Investigator, Tom Casey, better known as Hawkman to friends and family, hurried down the Medford court house steps and jumped into his truck. As he drove down the street, he loosened his bolo tie, undid the top button of his shirt and let out a sigh. Nice to breath freely again, he thought, turning into his usual parking space in front of the Donut Shop.

He bought a chocolate covered pastry, then sprinted up the narrow stairwell to his office. When he reached the door, he could hear the phone ringing while he fumbled for his key. By the time he stepped inside, the answering machine had already picked up and a sobbing female voice echoed throughout the room.

“Mr. Casey, my name’s Nancy Gilbert. I need your help. My sister’s been murdered.”

Hawkman listened with interest while hanging up his suit coat and pouring himself a cup of coffee. He snapped up his eye-patch and rubbed his eyes with his fingers. The injury he’d received while working for the Agency was still sensitive to light. He flipped the patch back into place, turned on the desk light and punched the replay button, this time jotting down the information. Rolling his shoulders, he dialed the woman’s number, then leaned back in his chair. “Nancy Gilbert?”

“Yes.”

“Tom Casey returning your call.”

He sensed a worried woman from the short silence that ensued. “Mr. Casey, I need to meet with you. Is there some place we can go other than your office?”

“Sure.” Hawkman knew some first-time clients preferred meeting in a public place rather than a private investigator’s office. “How about Rimmer’s Coffee Shop in the Medford Center?”

“That’s perfect. How will I know you?”

He studied the coat rack. “I’ll have on a dark brown leather jacket and a cowboy hat. I have a black eye patch, so you won’t have any trouble spotting me.”