A socialite accused of murder, planted evidence, and mysterious enemies challenge blind detective Daiyu Wu in her new sleuthing adventure.
When a highly respected member of the ‘Little Mexico’ community is killed in 1930 Dallas, all the evidence points towards Grace Pierce, wife of a local businessman and a former member of the Ku Klux Klan. Grace’s son Truman turns to Daiyu Wu and her unique detective skills for help, but Dai quickly discovers that nothing about this case is what it seems.
With her companion Jacques and canine bodyguard Prince Razor, Dai must navigate a family in turmoil, racial tensions, and shady business deals to find the actual killer before Truman’s mother is sentenced to death.
For lovers of Agatha Christie and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Excerpt
Everyone seemed too aware of our existence, even if they acted like we weren't there. Going to the second floor to peek into the deceased's boudoir would not only be rude, but it might get us lynched once we came back down. "No. Sorry."
"Oh well, I had to ask." She sounded disappointed, but not surprised.
"Why would you want to, anyway?" I asked.
"I wanted to see if she owned any perfumes, but there are other ways to find that out," Dai said. "Plus, whether she does or doesn't, it might not be pertinent. I am groping in the dark, as it were."
We stayed close to an hour, and still more people came to pay their respects. Mrs. Fuentes may not have had blood relations here, but she definitely had a family. It was clear she had touched a lot of lives. Their belief that she had been murdered in her home added an undercurrent of shock and disbelief to everything. I got the feeling everyone had thought she'd be guiding them for many more years to come.
The priest was still manning the door as we made our way outside. An exhausted Prince lay nestled in Dai's arms, his new friends luckily too tired to follow.
"Thank you for coming today," he said. "Might I ask how you knew the señora?"
His English was quite good, which led me to wonder if he'd learned it at seminary or here. Rosa had explained that in the last decade, the Daughters of Charity had opened first a small kindergarten and medical clinic, then more recently a larger school named St. Ann's. There all the children of the neighborhood could go to learn to read and write and adults could avail themselves of English classes. Once the new school was open, the sisters had converted the original building into a small convent so they could remain nearby and better help and teach the community. Unlike most nuns, these sisters weren't tied to a lifelong vow to Christ, but a yearly one. They were also unique for the cornettes they wore, a type of wimple composed of white, starched cloth, folded into a distinct shape which gave it the appearance of having wings.
I hadn't noticed it when we'd first arrived, but one of the priest's cassock sleeves was emptier than the other, no hand showing past the bottom.
Rosa answered for the group. "I knew her from some charity work we were both involved in. I'm Rosa Natalia Vega Ramirez. My friends were nice enough to drive me here since I don't live nearby."
"That was very kind of you, Mr…?"
"Haskin. Jacques Haskin." Out of habit, I extended my right hand, then realized my mistake. "Sorry, I—"
"All is well, Mr. Haskin. It's an old injury," he said, giving me a small smile. "I'm Father Ignacio. Pleased to meet you. And the young lady?"
"Daiyu Wu, Padre," Dai said. "And this is Prince." She held the mutt a little higher. The mutt half waved a paw in the priest's direction.
"Nice to meet you both." He hid his surprise at Dai's name well. "It was kind of you to come."
She set Prince down. "It looks like Señora Fuentes impacted a lot of people."
"She was indispensable, and did everything she could for the community." The priest crossed himself with his left hand, a sign of respect for the dead woman. "The señora had a will of iron and could be a little unbending, but those same qualities are what made her exceptional. Her loss is a great blow to El Barrio."
"And it's an even bigger tragedy that someone felt the need to kill her," Dai said.
Father Ignacio took a shocked step back, crossing himself again. "You are not wrong, Señorita Wu. The entire congregation is praying for that misguided person's soul."
Dai nodded. "I'm aware that anything said during confession is sacred," she said. "But if the murderer makes themselves known to you, I hope you'll encourage them to turn themselves in to the police." Her tone was polite, even if the words weren't. "An innocent woman has been charged with this horrible crime. It would be much more damaging to the killer's soul if she were to be executed for it."
"Madre de Dios." Rosa crossed herself, eyes widening. It was hard to tell if it was due to the arrest of an innocent woman or how much Dai appeared to know about the details of the murder itself.
The color drained from the priest's face. "I hadn't heard anyone was arrested. How do you know she is innocent?"
Dai didn't shy away from the question. "Because, Father, the señora was not killed in her home. Her body was brought back here after her death, and some convenient evidence was left around for the police to find. Plus, in such a tight-knit community, a person who didn't belong would have been noticed and remembered. Yet no one inside mentioned seeing anyone like that."
Revenge is Fun series. Publisher Vinny Vitali deserves to be whacked, but for some reason he's like a cat with 9 lives. He's holding a mob widow's memoir hostage and the authors want to kill him, but he won't die.
