DP Lyle

UNBALANCED

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JAKE LONGLY #7

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COMING JULY, 2024

From Oceanview Publishing

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It was a simple task. Five minutes tops. 

Pancake and Ray ask Jake and Nicole to pick up some papers from Carl Davis, the owner of Orange Coast Realty. But Jake senses this wouldn’t be as simple as advertised. Was it ever in Ray’s world?

What they found was an empty office—-except for Carl’s body lying on the floor, a single gunshot to his head. See? Not simple.

Who would want Carl dead? A nice guy and a respected businessman and father to all who knew him. Particularly his devastated daughter Savannah and her fiancé Dustin, who was being groomed to take over Carl’s position once he retired.

All signs point to partner Mitch Littlefield, the focus of Ray’s investigation and the subject of the needed papers. Evidence suggests he had been embezzling cash from the company for several years, and now that his crimes face exposure, his escape route might be to kill his partner and doctor the books to cover his crimes. Made sense, or was he simply the convenient suspect? Maybe it was a past disgruntled employee like Gary Wayne Frawley, or a former client such as Everette Lowe, who felt Carl had scammed him in a deal. Or did Carl have a secret lover and maybe an angered rival for the woman’s affection? 

Lieutenant Brooke Peters of the Orange Beach PD heads up the investigation. Initially reluctant to deal with Ray and crew, she ultimately sees the wisdom in involving them, and by default Jake and Nicole. The long suspect list and numerous potential motives make untying the knot difficult. With millions of dollars at stake, weeding through Carl’s entanglements requires all hands on deck and yet again drags Jake into Ray’s domain.