O'Hara: One for a Kill

By Xavier Carter

Jack O'Hara, friend of Don Steel and James Stanton(see Orchard Falls), takes on a request from his doctor to protect her. She has received death threats via eMail. Jack, an Orchard Falls resident, takes his assignment seriously. Along with his faithful companion, Rudy his dog, they watch over the pretty redheaded doctor. His past training comes in handy in his work.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xavier Carter
• Release date: Feb 7, 2016
• ISBN: 9781311804570

Xavier Carter

When Xavier was an adolescent, he devoured books in the science fiction genre. All types of science fiction. From the future military novels and shorts stories by David Drake, Andrew & William Keith and Keith Laumer, to the geopolitical novels of Mack Reynolds and Gordon R. Dickson, he liked them all. Fantasy stories on the other hand did not quite have an appeal for him in fact the only fantasy type series Xavier read were the Pern novels by Anne McCaffrey.By far Xavier's favorite authors were Robert A. Heinlein, Gordon R. Dickson, Christopher Anvil and Fred Saberhagen. From Fred Saberhagen’s Berserker series to Robert Heinlein’s Starship Troopers, he fell in love with military sci-fi. He also thoroughly enjoyed Gordon R. Dickson’s Dorsai series where the future of combat in the universe is in the hands of mercenaries.Stories of cataclysmic destruction of the world we know today fascinated him also. Near future history sci-fi, post apocalyptic sci-fi. How the human spirit would cope dealing with a situation completely foreign to them.Another aspect of sci-fi Xavier found fascinating was the prospect of time travel or inter-dimensional travel. What would happen if you suddenly found yourself in another time? What would you do? How would you react? What if...Xavier first started writing in 1989, after finding himself laid off from his first full time job after graduating. During that time, he started three different novellas’, all of which have been lost due to a disk malfunction. After a long hiatus, he started again in late 2004. His first efforts were not up to his own standards for publication. Xavier has since reworked some of them and published them on web sites where they were well received. This has made him bold enough to attempt to publish via an eBooks publisher.Links:Other:[e-mail]

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O'Hara - One for a Kill

An Orchard Falls Mystery

by

Xavier Carter

Smashwords Edition

O'Hara - One for a Kill © 2016 Xavier Carter ISBN:  9781311804570

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This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

First Edition – Feb. 2016

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Cover Art © 2016 by Xavier Carter

O'Hara - One for a Kill

An Orchard Falls Mystery

by

Xavier Carter

Copyright © 2016

by

Xavier Carter

All rights reserved

Prologue

Jack O'Hara was born and raised in Orchard Falls. After high school he left for college, the first in his family to do so since they decided to settle there. His parents set up a small trust fund on his birth. Jack took all the required course and those electives he thought might server him in his future. After college he joined the service. When he signed up, he chose the Military Police unit. He wanted to be a cop. For six years he worked his way up the ranks, he never told the Army about going to college so, he was enlisted.

Once he finished his enlistment, he went back to Orchard Falls and looked up his old high school buddy, James Stanton. Jimmy, as he was called by his friends was a Captain in the Orchard falls police department at that time. Jimmy was glad to sponsor Jack to become a police officer. For ten years Jack worked. First as a patrol officer, then as a detective. He met a fellow office, Don Steel. Don was a good cop, but he was in real bad shape after a break up with his wife.

Don's wife had left him without notice. He was served the divorce papers in front of all his pals in Smitty's Bar. As Don read them, he started drinking. He had already started to drink fairly heavy before then, but the divorce papers pushed him over the edge. Jack tried to help him. But, he just kept getting worse. One day Jack heard he had checked into the Orchard Fall Rehabilitation Center. His career in the police department was finished.

Jack, however, was still a rising star. He was offered the job of Police Chief. Jack had thought that his friend Jimmy would have been offered the job way before himself. Jimmy urged him to accept the offer, which he did, then made Jimmy Deputy Chief. At first he really enjoyed the job. He instituted several programs to make things easier on what, were now his men. He was very popular with the rank and file.

It was not to last though. After five years, Jack quit. He recommended that Jimmy take over. Don Steel just happened to be on the city council and rammed the recommendation through. Jimmy was made Chief of Police. Jack retired. He had server enough time, with his regular stint as a cop and the five years of being Chief to get fifty percent of his pension benefits. Some speculated that was all he wanted out of being a cop. And maybe it was, but he had learned a lot, from people like Don Steel and James Stanton to name a couple. He was happy and he could now do as he wished.

Chapter 1

She had hired me to protect her. Well not hired. Asked as a favor. Which I was glad to do. She was younger than me. She was pretty. Very pretty. She was also married. A professional woman. A doctor. My doctor. She was in trouble. From whom, she did not know. Threats had been made. In writing, well via email, same thing. She didn't know who was making the threats. And from the emails, even though I had the header information, neither did I.

So I was watching her. From a distance. Just me and my faithful companion Rudy. Rudy was my dog. Black Rottweiler, Pit-bull mix. He was smart and would do anything I asked of him. Yes, he was that smart. I was sitting in my car, down the street from her house, watching. She was in the house alone. Her husband was out of town. Some conference for whatever he did for a living. I didn't pay that much attention as she told me. We had talked a long time. In the exam room at the clinic where she practiced...

I don't know what to do, she told me, stopping to think.

Have you gone to the police? I asked the stupid question. I had to.

I did. They said there was nothing they could do without proof. They said the email wasn't proof, just a veiled threat, no real harm...and they had no way of finding out who sent them.

Yeah, they aren't big on stopping crime now a days, just solving crime.

Can you help me? I know you know about computers and things...

Sure. I'll have a look at that email...

I'm frightened...

I know. I can see it in your eyes.

She blushed and smiled for a second, looking away from my gaze.

I can help in other ways too, I told her.

What?

I can keep you safe. I could become your bodyguard...

No. I don't think I need something like that...

Then I could just watch over you...from a distance, I told her.

That might be better, she said a little relieved.

I couldn't quite tell why. Why was she frightened to have me protect her? We left it at that. I would follow her home from work and sit on her house for the night. And that's what I was doing. Me and Rudy. It was a cool spring night. No clouds in the sky. A full moon high over head. The street was lit by lights about every fifty yards. Bright, glaring, yellow lights. Rudy sat in the passenger seat. Watching. Listening. Sniffing. Traffic was light on this street. Cars would turn onto the street. Pull up in a driveway and park. Rudy would watch the person or persons getting out of the car until they went inside the house they parked in front of.