Back State of the Union Save as PDF
Chapters (40)
  1. Cover
  2. Chapter One
  3. Chapter Two
  4. Chapter Three
  5. Chapter Four
  6. Chapter Five
  7. Chapter Six
  8. Chapter Seven
  9. Chapter Eight
  10. Chapter Nine
  11. Chapter Ten
  12. Chapter Eleven
  13. Chapter Twelve
  14. Chapter Thirteen
  15. Chapter Fourteen
  16. Chapter Fifteen
  17. Chapter Sixteen
  18. Chapter Seventeen
  19. Chapter Eighteen
  20. Chapter Nineteen
  21. Chapter Twenty
  22. Chapter Twenty-One
  23. Chapter Twenty-Two
  24. Chapter Twenty-Three
  25. Chapter Twenty-Four
  26. Chapter Twenty-Five
  27. Chapter Twenty-Six
  28. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  29. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  30. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  31. Chapter Thirty
  32. Chapter Thirty-One
  33. Chapter Thirty-Two
  34. Chapter Thirty-Three
  35. Chapter Thirty-Four
  36. Chapter Thirty-Five
  37. Chapter Thirty-Six
  38. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  39. Epilogue
  40. About the Author

“What the hell do you want with me?” Shane asked the second the door closed behind Jeannie.

“Have a seat,” Jeannie said.

“I don’t want to!”

“I wasn’t asking.”

Shane jerked out a chair, sat down hard and folded his arms, all while glaring at Jeannie. “Now tell me what the fuck I’m doing here.”

Gonzo put down the photo of Ling Woo from when she was still alive. “Remember her?”

Shane looked at the photo. “No. Should I?”

Sam couldn’t help but notice how he seemed diminished somehow by the sight of that photo. “Why isn’t he asking for a lawyer?” Sam asked.

“I was just wondering the same thing,” Malone said.

“Is he too stupid to know he should?” Sam asked.

Gonzo pointed to the photo. “You met her at Rialtos when you were there with your friends, and she was with hers for Cassie Richardson’s birthday party. Ringing any bells?”

He shook his head. “I don’t remember her.”

“Let me fill in some blanks for you,” Gonzo said. “According to her friends, you were hitting on her somewhat relentlessly. Buying her drinks she didn’t want. Asking her to dance. Refusing to take no for an answer. It was so intense, she chose to leave rather than put up with you.”

Shane kept his gaze fixed on the photo.

“When you realized she was leaving, you told her she’d be sorry she didn’t give you a chance. Do you remember that?”

“Nope. I meet a lot of people.”

“Do you hassle a lot of women like you hassled her?” Jeannie asked.

“Some women don’t understand the concept of having fun. They’re so uptight, they can’t get out of their own way.”

“And you see it as your duty to get them to relax?”

He shrugged. “Since when is buying a woman drinks a crime?”

“Does it bother you when you buy a woman a drink and she’s not appreciative?”

“Lack of common courtesy is a problem in our society.”

“That sounds like something his father would say,” Sam said.

“Just thinking the same thing,” Malone replied.

“When women fail to show you the courtesy you think you deserve, how does that make you feel?” Gonzo asked.

“Disrespected.”

“And when you feel disrespected, what do you do?”

“What can you do? People suck. That’s never going to change.”

“Would you agree to provide a sample of your DNA so we can eliminate you as a suspect in Ling Woo’s murder?” Gonzo asked as he placed an autopsy photo of Ling on the table.

Shane recoiled from the visual. “What the fuck? Her murder? I didn’t murder anyone!”

“Then you won’t mind submitting a DNA sample, then, right?”

He stared at the photo for a long time without blinking. “I’d like to call a lawyer.”

“Damn it,” Sam whispered.

“Who would you like us to call?” Gonzo asked.