They Died So Young by William Mansfield
For twenty years Alex Wright, the Laguna Beach surfing real estate appraiser, has believed that his parents died in a freak auto accident on their way home from a weekend in Palm Springs. Now he learns that they were killed, mob-style, with single bullets to their heads. Why would they deserve to die this way?
Meanwhile, Alex’s wife, Rachel Fix, is not adjusting well to the settled life of wife and mother. She is drawn back to the excitement of celebrity and fame that she enjoyed during her ten years on the pro surfing tour.
So begins the seventh story in the Alex Wright Mystery saga. Will the marriage survive the tension of competing desires? With the help of his law enforcement buddies and a big assist from appraisal partner, Heather Maybach, Alex follows the thread of his parents’ lives from their marriage to their untimely deaths. For, in fact, THEY DIED SO YOUNG…
Targeted Age Group:: adult audience
Heat/Violence Level: Heat Level 3 – PG-13
What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
As I reached this point in the series, I felt it was time to reach back and tell the story of Alex's parents. He has often channeled his father whenever he needed to talk his way out of a tight spot. Now he will learn the truth of their lives from their teens until their early deaths.
How Did You Come up With Your Characters?
The main characters are reminiscent of folks I have known through the years of living the Southern California beach life. Alex Wright came to me as the answer to my often stated question: "Why can't a real estate appraiser solve crimes? They're trained to do research and be visually observant. If a doctor can do it on television and a middle aged English spinster can do it, surely a computer savvy, handsome, California surfer can too!"
Book Sample
A police report:
January 11, 1987, 1:32 p.m.
Highway 111, 4.2 miles northwest of the Palm Springs Tram
A double homicide report:
Officer Joe Petty was patrolling out of town, toward the I-10 interchange when he spotted a Mercedes stuck in the sand approximately thirty yards off the road.
He stopped to investigate and noted the broken glass beside the road, apparently from the rear lights of the sedan. As he approached the car, he realized both the driver and a passenger were slumped over in the front seats of the silver, S-class sedan. He stated that he moved more quickly to see if they were injured or just dazed. When he looked in the window on the driver’s door, he noted that both the driver and passenger were still held in position by the seat belts they wore, but their lifeless bodies were at odd angles. Their heads were pressed down toward their chests with one large caliber bullet hole in each of their foreheads.
He stated that he then ran back to his cruiser and called in the report.
I, Detective Timothy Sanchez, took the call and arrived at the crime scene at 1:53 p.m. A forensics team arrived shortly thereafter and the coroner removed the bodies at 3:08 p.m.
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