Moonlight Breaks Bad: A Dick Moonlight PI Series

By Vincent Zandri

THE INTERNATIONAL THRILLER WRITER'S AWARD AND PWA SHAMUS AWARD WINNING SERIES!

From NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY Bestselling author, Vincent Zandri, comes the next installment in the internationally acclaimed Dick Moonlight, PI series. For fans of Charlie Huston, Don Winslow, and Harlan Coben, the Dick Moonlight series is pure noir, tossed against a backdrop of hard-boiled action, with some romantic/suspense tossed into the mix

In Moonlight Breaks Bad, the "head-case" detective tries to escape Albany, NY and the memory of his beloved Lola altogether, for a new job in Rome, Italy, as a house-detective at a 5-Star hotel. But when an Italian beauty lures him into joining the "mile-high club" while his feet are still firmly planted on the ground, Moonlight suddenly finds himself the focus of a drug smuggling event that involves not only a crooked band of TSA members, but also the mafia.

"Tough, stylish, heartbreaking." --Don Winslow, bestselling author of Savages

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• Language: English
• Publisher: Vincent Zandri
• Release date: Oct 12, 2014
• ISBN: 9781502290021

Vincent Zandri

"Vincent Zandri hails from the future." --The New York Times “Sensational . . . masterful . . . brilliant.” --New York Post "Gritty, fast-paced, lyrical and haunting." --Harlan Coben, New York Times bestselling author of Six Years "Tough, stylish, heartbreaking." --Don Winslow, New York Times bestselling author of Savages and Cartel. Winner of the 2015 PWA Shamus Award and the 2015 ITW Thriller Award for Best Original Paperback Novel for MOONLIGHT WEEPS, Vincent Zandri is the NEW YORK TIMES, USA TODAY, and AMAZON KINDLE OVERALL NO.1 bestselling author of more than 60 novels and novellas including THE REMAINS, EVERYTHING BURNS, ORCHARD GROVE, THE SHROUD KEY and THE GIRL WHO WASN'T THERE. His list of domestic publishers include Delacorte, Dell, Down & Out Books, Thomas & Mercer, Polis Books, Suspense Publishing, Blackstone Audio, and Oceanview Publishing. An MFA in Writing graduate of Vermont College, his work is translated in the Dutch, Russian, French, Italian, and Japanese. Having sold close to 1 million editions of his books, Zandri has been the subject of major features by the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and Business Insider. He has also made appearances on Bloomberg TV and the FOX News network. In December 2014, Suspense Magazine named Zandri's, THE SHROUD KEY, as one of the "Best Books of 2014." Suspense Magazine selected WHEN SHADOWS COME as one of the "Best Books of 2016". He was also a finalist for the 2019 Derringer Award for Best Novelette. A freelance photojournalist, freelance writer, and the author of the popular "lit blog," The Vincent Zandri Vox, Zandri has written for Living Ready Magazine, RT, New York Newsday, Hudson Valley Magazine, The Times Union (Albany), Game & Fish Magazine, CrimeReads, Altcoin Magazine, The Jerusalem Post, Market Business News, Duke University, Colgate University, and many more. He also writes for Scalefluence. An Active Member of MWA and ITW, he lives in New York and Florence, Italy. For more go to VINZANDRI.COM

Book preview

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Watch for more at Vincent Zandri’s site.

Vincent Zandri invites you to join his

For Your Eyes Only Mailing list

at http://www.vincentzandri.com

PRAISE FOR NY TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR VINCENT ZANDRI

Sensational . . . Masterful . . . Brilliant.

—New York Post

The action never wanes.

—Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel

Gritty, fast-paced, lyrical and haunting.

—Harlan Coben, bestselling author of Six Years

Tough, stylish, heartbreaking.

—Don Winslow, bestselling author of Savages

Non-stop action.

—I Love a Mystery

Vincent Zandri nails readers’ attention.

—Boston Herald

"(Zandri) demonstrates an uncanny knack for exposition, introducing new characters and

narrative possibilities with the confidence of an old pro . . . Zandri does a superb job interlocking

puzzle pieces."

—The San Diego Union-Tribune

Well worth every minute . . .

—Suspense Magazine

ALSO BY VINCENT ZANDRI

The Dick Moonlight Mystery Series

Moonlight Falls

Moonlight Falls: Extended Editor’s Cut

Moonlight Mafia

Moonlight Rises

Blue Moonlight

Full Moonlight

Murder by Moonlight

Moonlight Sonata

Moonlight Weeps

Dog Day Moonlight

The Jack Marconi Mystery Series

The Innocent

Godchild

The Guilty

The Corruptions

The Chase Baker Action/Adventure Series

The Shroud Key

Chase Baker and the Golden Condor

Chase Baker and the God Boy

Chase Baker and the Lincoln Curse

Chase Baker and the Da Vinci Divinity

Chase Baker and the Seventh Seal

The Stand-Alone Novels

Everything Burns

The Remains

Scream Catcher

When Shadows Come

The Concrete Pearl

Permanence

The Ashes

The Shorts

Pathological

Banal

True Stories

MOONLIGHT BREAKS BAD

By Vincent Zandri

A pessimist is a man who thinks all women are bad.

An optimist is one who hopes they are.

—Chauncey Depew

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

1.

She’s going down on me in the handicap bathroom just outside the security checkpoint at the Albany County Airport. She’s younger than me, but not that much younger. Long, dark hair, a killer nose like a Renaissance Sculptor would carve on a Madonna with a slight hint of crookedness in the shaft, and big brown eyes that bowled me over when I found myself hopelessly staring into them at the bar only moments before. Her lipstick-red lips are thick, luscious, and I’ll be damned if they don’t feel like nirvana right now, considering their placement around my cock.

You’re an angel sent from heaven, I say, as she slips me out of her mouth, giving her jaw a rest while continuing to work on me with her hand.

I appreciate the compliment, Mr. Moonlight, she says, in a deep, sultry, Italian-accented voice. A woman likes to know when she is appreciated. I’m still sorry for spilling beer on you.

Oh, you are so appreciated, I whisper. And love means never having to say you’re sorry.

Okay, so what’s happening inside the dead-bolted handicap lav isn’t exactly love. But that doesn’t stop her from issuing the loveliest little giggle before taking me into her mouth once more. But that’s when something happens inside my brain. Looking down at this strange woman I’ve only just met, I see someone else entirely. Someone else with long dark hair. Someone else with whom I’ve shared some special intimate moments just like this one. Only not inside a handicap lav in the airport. More like, in the privacy of our own bedroom.

Lola. My true love, and now ex-love, who seems forever gone from my life. I see her long black hair, deep brown eyes, and perfect sultry lips, and suddenly, what’s been feeling like nirvana no longer feels like anything. My manhood, such as it is, turns into shrinkage.

Major shrinkage.

The woman, whose name is Adriana, stops what she’s doing, looks up.

Is there a problem?

I turn away, embarrassed. No, that’s not right. Mortified better explains it.

Then, a knock on the door.

Excuse me! someone barks. Judging by the deep voice, most definitely a man. How long are you going to tie the joint up?

Adriana gets off her knees, wipes her mouth with the back of her hand. She then straightens out her red mini dress, smoothing out the wrinkles with both open hands.

"Looks like someone needs to use the toilet rapido, she says before placing her fingers on my face, gently kissing my lips. I’m sorry if your ending was not a happy one, no?"

No worries, I say, as she turns for the door.

I will walk out first and see you in line at security.

"Come on