Cold Hit (Shane Scully Series #5)

What if the Department of Homeland Security could pull police officers off the street and hold them in cells indefinitely as material witnesses -- because they’re working on "sensitive" investigations?

They can . . .

The PATRIOT Act and the Homeland Security Act give enormous power to our nation’s top federal law enforcement officials. They operate under the presumption that these officials are honest, diligent, and fair.

But what if they’re not?

In The Cold Hit, Detective Shane Scully suspects that the regional boss of the Department of Homeland Security is thwarting a major murder investigation. But why?

Robert Allen Virtue can act without oversight or accountability. There’s no way to question him; there’s no way to way to check up on him; there’s no way to find out if he’s exceeding his authority. Virtually at will, he can bug anyone he considers a threat to national security, take over criminal investigations, and jail cops. Even if he is breaking the law, there’s no way to know it. There’s nothing to rely on but his integrity. His professional commitment. His good name. Virtue.

That may be a very big mistake.

Shane and his partner are investigating "the Fingertip Killer," a serial murderer preying on homeless Vietnam vets in Los Angeles. A bullet taken from one victim's skull matches the bullet that killed another man ten years earlier -- an unexpected ballistics match linking one unsolved case to another that police call a "cold hit." When the earlier victim turns out to have been an LAPD cop, the investigation becomes very personal for Shane. But there’s a problem: Robert Allen Virtue wants him taken off it.

To solve the cop’s murder, and possibly the Fingertip case, Scully must go behind the powerful bureaucrat’s back and deep undercover -- where he will begin unraveling a deadly far-reaching conspiracy that threatens to destroy everything he loves: his career, his freedom, and his family.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

In his thirty-five-year-career, Emmy Award-winning writer STEPHEN J. CANNELL has created over forty TV series. He has also penned the bestsellers The Plan, Final Victim, Riding the Snake, The Devil's Workshop, King Con, The Tin Collectors, The Viking Funeral, Hollywood Tough, and Runaway Heart. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and children.

BETWEEN A COLD WAR

Shane Scully has found his footing while his partner is going down in flames and a serial murderer rattles L.A.. Each corpse has been mysteriously defiled. Then, in the middle of the hunt, Scully gets an idea that may cost him his life.

AND COLD, HARD TRUTHS...

Scully suspects that someone with inside information has neatly "hidden" one murder inside this messy serial killer case. His copycat theory ignites a crossfire between LAPD and the Feds.

IS A WHITE-HOT CASE OF MURDER.

Now Scully knows he has a ten-year-old cop-killing to clear, while two street-smart detectives lead him into a secret world of international espionage and a powerful counter-terrorism chief from the top of the U.S. government warns him away. To do his job, Scully must risk everything—unraveling the mystery of a Cold War act of betrayal, a brutal street crime, and a killer just waiting to hit again...

"As the case spirals outward from local crime to international espionage dating back to the 1980s, the action rarely lets up. When it does, we're reintroduced to the back story that is one of the pleasures of reading the Scully series."—Los Angeles Times

Publishers Weekly

After a successful career as a television writer-producer (The Rockford Files; Wiseguy), Cannell is carving a strong second, thanks mainly to the series featuring LAPD homicide sleuth Shane Scully. In this outing, Scully's partner has slipped into an angry, alcoholic funk and their high-priority case-the search for a serial slayer who snips the digits of his homeless victims-is usurped by a task force headed by an arrogant FBI profiler. Cannell's strong suit has always been unique characters, and Scully's world-weary cop and family man is no exception. Add to that an intriguing mystery, authentic cop jargon (smoothly translated), snapshot descriptions of Southern California locales and a couple of tense and amusing LAPD-Homeland Security face-offs. Brick's rendition is clear, precise and effective in adding accent touches. While he knows how to build tension when a buzz saw is pressed to Scully's hand, his voice is too youthful and newsreader perfect to stand in for a disillusioned veteran cop. Scully narrates the novel, and a deeper, darker timbre would have turned this entertaining audio into an exceptional one. Simultaneous release with the St. Martin's hardcover. (Aug.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

In his thirty-five-year-career, Emmy Award-winning writer STEPHEN J. CANNELL has created over forty TV series. He has also penned the bestsellers The Plan, Final Victim, Riding the Snake, The Devil's Workshop, King Con, The Tin Collectors, The Viking Funeral, Hollywood Tough, and Runaway Heart. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and children.