He's the Guy! - Suzi B. Mystery #4
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About this ebook
A man calls the police to report that he saw what he believes to be some gun flashes in the window of an apartment near his boat.
When the police respond to the call they discover two dead men who look like they shot each other, and the CSI and medical examiner agree that it was a shoot-out... that they both won.
The police and District Attorney can't find any motive or evidence of anyone else being involved, so they both close their files on this mutual-murder of two men who have never seen each other before, and are writing it off as a burglary gone bad… until Suzi B. reads the police report and notices that everyone else missed, so she manages to have the coroner call for a formal inquest hearing, at which time she promises to prove that someone has committed perjury and that the double-murder case should be re-opened.
In order to prove that a witness has lied, Suzi must enlist the help of Jack Bibberman, the law firm's top investigator, Stuart Schwartzman, a friend and client who also owns an aerial photography company, and also an expert from the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, who might provide Suzi with the statistical information she needs to crack this case.
Peter ex-wife Myra, the county's elected District Attorney is also in the picture this time, but for once she's on Suzi's side, but still doesn't know what's going to happen at the inquest
Gene Grossman
GENE GROSSMAN was born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in the North side neighborhood of Albany Park, where he attended Hibbard Elementary and Von Steuben High School. He pursued majors in psychology, chemistry and mathematics at Wright Junior College, Roosevelt University and Illinois Institute of Technology - all the while working his way through high school and college by playing piano in clubs on Chicago's then-famous "Rush Street." After moving to Southern California, he worked his way through law school playing piano in night clubs and appeared as a musician in seven major motion pictures. While slowly building his law practice, Gene purchased a truckload of movie equipment he rented out to film production companies and then started his own production company which over the years produced more than 50 educational programs on subjects ranting from Boating and Celestial Navigation, to legal subjects (Depositions, Bankruptcy, etc.) Sign Language Instruction and many more. Always having been interested in boating, getting divorced prompted him to buy and move onto a 45-foot Chris Craft motor yacht in Marina del Rey California,. Years later, while serving as navigator on a yacht delivery from the U.S. to Tortola, Gene wrote his first book, "Celestial Navigation for Dummies" (before the popular series of 'Dummies' books was created). He used his own production equipment to shoot a video on the subject Celestial Navigation - "Sextant Use and the Sun Noon Shot" and unintentionally started the nautical video industry in this country. Over the next few years he followed that first title up with more than 50 other educational DVD titles, all displayed on his production company's website at www.MagicLampDVDs.com. Having moved on from doing scripts for his video productions, Gene turned to writing fiction, and now spends most of his time in the marina on his new boat, where he created the 15-book series of 'Peter Sharp Legal Mysteries,' all now available both in print and as eBooks at Smashwords via www.LegalMystery.com In addition to the 15 Peter Sharp novels, Gene compiled a group of fiction and non-fiction titles that he has either written or edited for others, plus some classic stories: the publishing company he formed (www.MagicLampPress.com) now has more than 60 books in print. The Peter Sharp Legal Mystery Series #1: Single Jeopardy #2: ...By Reason of Sanity...
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He's the Guy! - Suzi B. Mystery #4 - Gene Grossman
HE’s the GUY
Suzi B. Mystery #4
By Gene Grossman
Author of the 15
Peter Sharp Legal Mysteries
From
tmp_d8c00233097b3fdf502b1414327f39e0_ans0CR_html_m66730ab7.gifDistributed through
www.LegalMystery.com
Copyright 2012 by Gene Grossman
Smashwords Edition
* * * * * * *
FOREWORD
The Suzi B. Mysteries are a continuation of the 15-book series of Peter Sharp Legal Mysteries, in which Suzi B. is a featured character. If you haven’t read any of them it might help you to know a little background information about these characters.
Attorney Peter Sharp’s wife Myra threw him out of their home (which she owned before they were married), due to a conflict of their philosophies about legal representation: she was a tough prosecutor with the District Attorney’s office, and Peter was a defender of those throngs of poor unfortunate people ‘wrongfully’ accused of crimes by his wife’s gang of mean prosecutors.
For a while Peter stayed in their back yard on a dilapidated old Chris Craft cabin cruiser he was attempting to restore, until
Melvin Braunstein, a former law school classmate, arranged for him to rent a slip in Marina del Rey California.
Peter had the old boat trucked there, launched at the boatyard and towed to the slip. He then moved aboard and started making court appearances for Melvin, who operated his own small law practice from a houseboat in the Marina on the same dock as Peter’s boat.
When Melvin died in a plane crash, Peter inherited his former classmate’s modest law practice, along with the office manager that came with it - Melvin’s little thirteen-year old step-daughter Suzi, a Chinese computer genius - and her huge St. Bernard.
Pursuant to a request in Melvin’s Will, the court appointed Peter as Suzi’s legal guardian, and through a series of misfortunes that miraculously worked out, they wound up living on the Suzi B, a beautiful 50-foot Grand Banks trawler-yacht.
Sooner or later in each of his legal cases, Peter usually wound up butting heads with his prosecutor ex-wife Myra, who Suzi adores and is constantly scheming to get back into the Sharp household.
There’s also Stuart Schwartzman, Peter’s old friend and frequent client, who is the most entrepreneurial person in Southern California – and Jack Bibberman, the best private investigator that Peter ever met.
When Peter wasn’t having expensive Patrón Margaritas at one of the marina’s local watering holes, he was usually involved in some losing legal case that little Suzi inevitably solved, leaving Peter with the impression that he was really as good as he thought he was. Suzi started to resent Peter always getting the credit, and these Suzi B. Mysteries chronicle what happens when she decides to go out on her own and solve some crimes.
The same cast of characters is still around from the original series, and they inevitably get ‘drafted’ to help Suzi out… but make no mistakes who is really solving the cases – as she so successfully did in her first solo adventure, …Sorry Wrong Number – in which a brave member of the LAPD Bomb Squad had to pull her out of danger.
All of the Peter Sharp Legal Mysteries are summarized at the end of this book, and if you’re curious about them, more details are at www.LegalMystery.com, so please sit back, relax, and read Suzi B.’s 4th mystery, as told by Suzi’s legal guardian, attorney Peter Sharp.
It should also be noted that in several places, laws may be mentioned. Please keep in mind that this book is a work of fiction and not intended to be legal advice or an accurate interpretation of any laws this book’s characters cite or discuss.
If you’re interested, more details about the laws used in this book are discussed in the Appendix – at the end of the book.
Magic Lamp Press • Venice, California
* * * * * * *
Chapter I
Making Waves
I like boats: it’s just that I’m not that fond of actually boating.
This feeling of mine confuses a lot of people when they hear it, but what it really means is that like many of the seven thousand boat-owners here in Marina del Rey, I enjoy spending time on the boat while it’s sitting still - right here in the slip… but not that excited about actually going out past the breakwater into the Pacific Ocean.
Quite often, when I’m talking to a person who knows that I live on a boat, the most common remark they make to me is about their admiration of my lifestyle, and their dream of someday sailing off into the sunset. Yeah, great idea.
What they really dream of doing is sailing away from their bills, their job, their boss, their in-laws, and all their responsibilities… but what they’re not dreaming about is no hot water, no showers, no fancy meals, no television, no internet, being on a boat that’s constantly moving up and down and tilted over on a fifteen-degree slant, and no room to do any kind of exercise for the couple of weeks it takes to sail from the mainland to Hawaii – the most popular dreamed-of boat destination.
The problem is that whether you’re sailing on a yacht to Honolulu or driving your car to the supermarket, it doesn’t make any difference, because distance doesn’t count: your problems stay with you… but today is one of those days that I don’t really look forward to.
Suzi wants to take our Boston Whaler dinghy out for a spin and I’ve been invited to join.
On our boat, the word ‘invited’ is actually a nice way of saying ‘commanded,’ because when the kid wants me along on one of her excursions, whether it be on land or on sea, it usually means that if I don’t join in with the ‘program,’ I’ll wind up paying for it one way or another.
Today’s informal boat parade is to show support for one of the marina charities that Suzi and a lot of other boaters support that does something nice for underprivileged kids.
I don’t know how she did it, but the kid got my ex-wife Myra, who’s now the District Attorney of the county, to come along for the ride.
Myra has become quite the political animal, so maybe she decided to join us after being told that some news cameras might also be covering the event. I’m sure this is also an attempt by the kid, in her never-ending mission to get us back together again – which I’m sure Myra would agree is an act of futility.
Because our law firm is apparently a large contributor, we will make an appearance by using our little speedboat to zip in between the other boaters, waving and smiling, with some sort of supportive banner attached to the side of our boat. Bernie will be sitting up in his favorite spot – on the cushion up at the front end of the boat – which I’m told should be referred to as the bow.
Everyone thinks I’m a really great guy who taught this young girl how to drive a boat, but the truth is that she’s the experienced boat driver who someday wants to teach me how to drive the big boat we both live on.
She’s tried several times in the past, but learned that it would be easier to teach her Saint Bernard how to drive a boat than it is to teach me.
I don’t even know how to start the engines on our big boat, and have no ambition to drive it. My yellow Hummer is the biggest mechanical thing I ever intend to operate.
When it comes to big-boat handling, some people have it, and most don’t… and I’m in the don’t column.
* * * * *
At least the weather is beautiful today, so it’s not too much of a strain being out here about a half mile past the breakwater.
The wind kicked up a little last night, so the water’s a little choppy, but my sea-sick pills have kicked in and I’m almost starting to enjoy myself – except for some jerk in a fast sport cruiser that’s coming at us a little too fast.
As he zips past us, his wake sprays us good so we’re all now sitting in the boat soaking wet - and to make matters even worse, Suzi’s dog, which had been relaxing on his large cushion, has decided to shake himself dry, giving all of us downwind of him another saltwater shower.
When the driver of that fast boat sped by us, I could swear he had a smirk on his face, like he was enjoying himself. What a jerk.
Other boaters see this yahoo and toot their horns at him; many yell at him to slow down, but he ignores them all and just keeps going.
From what I hear from Suzi’s ship-to-shore radio conversation with one or two of the other boats in our parade, the guy’s name is John Harris, and other than the fact that he can handle his boat well enough to back it in to one of those difficult sea-wall slips, his reputation is less than stellar: everyone wishes he’d move to another marina or just give up boating