Clearwater Confession

By Al Rennie

A rich man has lost his trophy wife; he wants her back. Doc is hired to find her and learns that the Russian mob might be involved. A teenage boy is arrested for the murder of his mom. Instead of calling a lawyer; he calls Joe. A rapper has a Cinderella moment that involves CHIPs. A lawyer in Calgary calls Doc to find the missing 23 year old son of his clients. It's another crazy time in paradise.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Al Rennie
• Release date: Sep 30, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370378036

Al Rennie

I was born and raised in Toronto. I attended Upper Canada College before taking a degree at Queen's University. I have worked as a lifeguard for the Toronto Harbour Police, a youth worker for the Toronto YMCA, and an English teacher in Lakefield. I am married with two great daughters and an extended foster family. My interests include Maple Leaf hockey - this is our year - New England Patriot football and writing.

Book preview

Clearwater Confession

By

Al Rennie

Dedication

For my wife

Marsha

And to all the kind and supportive readers

of the Clearwater Series.

Copyright © 2016 by Al Rennie

All Rights Reserved.

Cover Credit: Rita Toews – probably the most caring, patient and inventive cover creator ever!

Photo Credit: Public Domain Photo – Petr Kratochvil

Formatting Credit: Lucinda K. Campbell – as always, just great … thank you!

I am now up to five excellent editors on my team. It might be difficult for anyone to believe that as a former English teacher, I would need five editors. The scoop is, they are looking for a sixth and seventh. How is that for a confidence builder? In any case, they have once again returned to make my life miserable but your reading experience that much better. I’d like to thank my wife, Marsha, and youngest daughter, Jane as well as Annmarie, Donna and Sue for their masterful work in editing yet another episode of The Clearwater Series.

The cheque is … hold on, what cheque?

A very few Reader Responses to Clearwater Series:

On the advice of the critics, editors and Ellen, I have limited the number of reader responses. The suggestion was that no one reads them anyway. I know that I do. Apologies to those cut.

Hi Mr. Rennie, Once again you nailed it with Clearwater Penalty. You have an amazing sense of timing and a creativity that can’t be topped. I read about 100 books a year and you are by far my favorite author. I am thrilled by your ability to keep me engrossed by every one of your books. I appreciate Grisham, Brown, Balducci and many others; however, you are the guy that keeps me coming back as soon as you next book is released. You have an unbelievable gift and don’t let anything or anyone discourage you from entertaining your public. Thank you once again. Nancy

Love the books, can’t put them down and I even find myself slipping into some of the phrases!!! Not sure that will always be a good thing though! Carol

I found you first on Smashwords; after that, I kept hitting the buy button in iTunes. I laughed, cried, and told my patients how I almost went to You Tube to look for your video. I see patients in long term care facilities. I have shared your stories and with my patients living on the seawall in Galveston, Tx. You have brought life, love and a bit of silliness into the lives of my patients and have made me a better practitioner. I am forever in your debt. Katherine

Thanks Al for another chapter (Clearwater Hustle) in the lives of my favourite imaginary friends. I'll go and put some stars and comments on iBooks which is where I get my copies. Anthony Templeman

I love your books! I discovered Clearwater Journals while in the hospital. I downloaded every free mystery I could, and started reading. I thought your free book was a mistake because it was head and tails above the quality of everything else I’d seen! Once I started, I couldn’t stop and ended up purchasing every book you’ve made available on ITunes. Thank you so much for your work! However, it did create a little problem….Do you know how pissy world-famous heart surgeons get when you tell them to wait a minute, you have to finish your book before you will go to the operating room? It’s definitely not pretty! I’ve read the entire series Clearwater series twice now, and can’t wait for the next book to come out. Please, please hurry! Cheers, Sue

This series is the best!!!! I read each one as soon as it is published. Al Rennie, you rock!!!! 5 stars! Marianna Smith

Better and better! ***** by AuntSuze (copied from ratings and comments on I-Books)

OK folks, full disclosure here. I'm a big fan of Rennie's work. All of his work is more New York Times Best Seller List quality than an indie publication.

Double Cross is the most complex and surprising book yet. The plot lines completely surprised me and I loved the twists and turns. His ability to describe scenes made me feel like I was right there in Florida! Best of all, his ability to create in-depth characters and make me care about them is a rare gift and makes his books so much more enjoyable.

How does one know a great writer? When one studies a written scenario and agrees with it like was a real situation. I enjoy tearing apart his reasoning and putting it back together just like a study of Shakespeare or Confucius. Thank you for making your novels come to life. Write on, sir! Bearknoll

If you love slightly wacky mysteries, this book – in fact the whole Clearwater series – is a must read for you.

Carl Hiaasen meets Elmore Leonard and ‘Bob’s your uncle’…

Congratulations Al on your 25th book in this wonderful series. I have enjoyed each and every one. It seems like I know the characters and can't wait for the next installment to see what's happening in their lives. There have been many changes since Clearwater Journals. You have to write faster Bubba. I just finished this one and I need more Joe and cast, eh. R.J.

Mr. Rennie I just wanted to take a moment and thank you for your wonderful books and the enjoyment you have provided in my life. In March of 2012 I was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. In April I had a double mastectomy and began chemotherapy and radiation needless to say I spent a lot of time in the hospital. My wonderful husband who has been an amazingly strong individual bought me a Kindle because I am an obsessed reader. I was just learning how to download books on my new Kindle and came across Clearwater Journals and that was the beginning…. I now have all 27 in the series and can't wait for more. My husband and I have never been to Clearwater and since I read him parts of the books he decided to surprise me and planned a trip for my one year cancer free. We went last September and I would move there in a minute; it is everything you described in the books. We ate at Frenchy's – best super grouper sandwich ever! We went to Wings and Pier 60. My all time favorite snack is now chocolate coconut patties! I just really wanted to say thanks. I love the Clearwater, the series, and the best vacation spot ever!

Sincerely, Lorrie

Just finished Escape, and it ranks right up near the top in the series. I have now read the series 3 times and it just doesn't get old!! I just don't believe some TV producer hasn't found this yet, would be the greatest detective type show since Columbo. Keep well and hurry up with the next one!! Steve

Nancy’s Amendment to Annie’s Amendment – she’s blonde!

The Clearwater Series in the sequence the titles were written.

1) Clearwater Journals

2) Clearwater Diaries

3) Clearwater Ambush

4) Clearwater Abduction

5) Clearwater Heat

6) Clearwater Kiss Off

7) Clearwater Showdown

8) Clearwater Magic

9) Clearwater Intrigue

10) Clearwater Danger

11) Clearwater Predator

12) Clearwater Extortion

13) Clearwater Killer

14) Clearwater Oops!

15) Clearwater Crazy

16) Clearwater Undercover

17) Clearwater Hunter

18) Clearwater Justice

19) Clearwater Skip Trace

20) Clearwater Assault

21) Clearwater Folly

22) Clearwater Homesick

23) Clearwater Hustle

24) Clearwater Stakeout

25) Clearwater Fit

26) Clearwater Double Cross

27) Clearwater Vice

28) Clearwater Escape

29) Clearwater Bubba

30) Clearwater Betrayal

31) Clearwater Penalty

32) Clearwater Deception

33) Clearwater Confession

Note to Joe and Mia fans

In today’s glutted writing environment, reader ratings and reviews can make a huge difference in the success of an indie author. If, as a reader, you have enjoyed a particular book, please take a few moments of your time to give it a favorable rating, and if you are so inclined, a positive short review. Your affirming assessment will mean a great deal to the author and to his or her chances of survival in the current literary marketplace

Chapter 1

Monday, August 1, 2016 – The dog days of summer

Hey Mrs. F … it’s going to be another hot one today, eh? Do you wanna bet what time it hits the 100 F mark?

You know that I am not a betting woman, Joseph.

Yeah, I always meant to ask you. How did that work out for someone who, as a twenty or thirty something woman, dealt blackjack in Vegas? I figured that gambling would be in your bones.

Hardly a youngster and Las Vegas is how. You learn early in that game that the odds are always with the house and stacked against you. There’s someone waiting for you in your office. I wasn’t certain what time you might arrive this morning, so I asked Ken to talk with him.

As I entered my office, CHIPs’ most recent hire, a retired deputy chief of police from Ontario named Ken Jackson, was sitting behind my desk talking quietly with a darkly tanned very fit looking guy who appeared to be in his early fifties. Ken looked up at me and chirped brightly, ‘Hi boss!’ as he started to pick up his yellow legal pad as if to vacate my chair. I told him that I was okay on this side of the desk and pulled out the chair beside the man.

Before I sat down, I introduced myself and shook hands with the guy who had stood to meet me. He was muscular, but not in the Gold’s Gym fashion, and about two inches shorter than me. This was ‘workman’ strong. His hands were thick and rough. He was wearing a loose fitting T-shirt and well worn, beige coloured shorts. I smiled and nodded at his faded and sweat stained Lightning baseball cap that looked like it might be an almost permanent fixture attached to his head.

You’re a fan …? I asked nodding at his cap.

Yeah, next year will be our year …now that Stamkos has re-signed and Hedman has a contract.

Maybe … but I’ve been saying that ever since 1967 …

You’re a Leaf fan …

Born in Toronto, grew up in Ontario, so I have to be or they’ll revoke my citizenship.

I’m out of here … and he made like he was going to leave, before he turned and said with a wide smile, Just fooling around. Since they got Shanahan and Babcock as coach and now Lou Lamorello and the first draft pick – that kid Austen Mathews is pretty friggin’ impressive – they’re going in the right direction.

A man who knows his hockey … I was hoping the Leafs might entice Stamkos to come back home.

Right … Toronto weather versus Tampa … I don’t think so.

Good point …

I was thinking that this dude was not a ‘sit behind a desk to make money’ type. The Rolex on his thick wrist was testimony to the fact that the guy had made or stolen money and could afford our services even though the old shorts, Lightning t-shirt and ball cap might suggest something else. When I saw that he was wearing flip flops, I was thinking, ‘my kind of guy’ I figured that he’d left his work boots in his truck.

Joe Holiday, sir…

Darryl Linden … Call me Darryl…

I sat down and through the next few minutes, Ken re-capped what he had already learned. Darryl Linden focused on what Ken was telling me and didn’t interrupt the flow of narrative to correct my guy even once. Once again, Jackson had impressed me as an investigator. He had got it right in one.

The back story to the job we were being asked to take on was an interesting one. Darryl was a widower at the age of forty-eight. His wife, Darlene, had died of pancreatic cancer at Christmas in 2011. At that point, more as a distraction than anything else, Darryl had thrown himself into his job and what had already been a relatively successful landscaping company, grew and prospered beyond whatever he had hoped for when he started the business. He now did work for some big name clients and had lucrative contracts with a few prestigious companies. He had several crews working steadily throughout the Tampa Bay and the four counties area. In a word, Darryl Linden was doing very well financially.

During the time since his wife passed, he had gone out on a few dates, ‘outings actually’, that had been arranged by friends, but nothing with the few women he had gone out with more than once lasted. He was smiling when he told us that he honestly believed that he was destined to remain unmarried until he died. He and Darlene had not had any kids and, as far as he knew, his only living relative was a cousin living somewhere in New York State who he hadn’t seen since his wife’s funeral. Essentially, if you threw out the three or four men with whom he occasionally played penny ante poker, Darryl was alone with only the Lightning, Rays and Bucs to keep him company.

That was until he received a weird e-mail one night back in early 2014. The e-mail looked like a junk spam, and he was going to delete it as he said that he would have done with any other e-mail of that type. But, in this case, for whatever reason, he didn’t. He admitted that his decision may have been fueled by the few beers that he had enjoyed while watching the game and that he had been intrigued by the wording of the e-mail topic heading; Elaina loves Darryl!

He tentatively opened the e-mail thinking that he might be allowing a hacker access to his computer but then he thought, ‘What the heck, all my business and banking documents are password protected. I’ll take a peek’. He opened the letter and found the image of a young blonde woman, in the very attractive altogether, reclining lazily on a sand dune. The photo had been shot from higher up on the dune, so the woman’s body was visible top to bottom but her face was not in the frame. The words beneath the photo were simple; I am a woman living in Russia looking for a man to love me as much as I will love him. Please reply … I really want to meet you.

And that’s as far as we got, Ken said.

So I got here in time for the good stuff, I said. What happened when you contacted her?

You know that I contacted her …?

Had to be, or why would you be here telling us this story?

Darryl glanced at both of us and continued. He recalled that he had gone to the fridge to get another beer and then sat there in front of his laptop studying the photo while trying to decide what to do. His first inclination was to simply delete the e-mail and go to bed, but then he thought, ‘what the hell’ and he sent back. ‘I think you have the wrong guy, but thanks for sharing.’ And then he went to bed. When there wasn’t anything more from Elaina on his laptop in the morning, he figured there really was nothing more to it and went about his daily routine.

Three days later, there was a new e-mail from Elaina. This one did not include a nude photo, but it did a fair job of introducing the mysterious Russian woman to Darryl. He told us he read the letter numerous times looking for some other meaning before he wrote a short note back to her saying that he was a lot older than her and that he lived in the United States, so he really thought she might do better to ‘dangle her line’ again. The next morning there was another e-mail from the mystery woman waiting for him.

What is this ‘dangle line’? I do not understand.

The language of the letter was generally in good English though, yeah? I asked.

Yeah, I guess so … at least I understood it.

Do you still have those e-mails?

No … I got a new laptop last Christmas. I wiped the content on the old one back to its factory settings and donated it to a literacy group that works with disadvantaged kids in Tampa.

Okay Darryl … so how long did the e-mails flow back and forth?

As Darryl eased back into his story, I sensed that he was getting some relief just being able to talk to someone about whatever had happened. Ken must have sensed the same thing because we both sat back and let the story evolve. There would be time for questions later.

The e-mails continued and over a period of a few months, the content of them became more personal. Darryl was no dummy; he figured out that the goal of this strange woman was to find a way to come and live in the U.S. He also knew that he was her ticket. Elaina shared some