Ebony Continental: The Sandeen Mysteries, Book One
Dennis E. Smirl
- Kristina
- Bonner
- had
- what
- every
- girl
- wanted.
- She
- was
- slim,
- tall,
- athletic,
- auburn-haired,
- beautiful,
- and
- a
- straight-A
- student
- in
- a
- well-respected
- public
- high
- school
- in
- the
- year
- of
- our
- Lord,
- 1987.
- Her
- wealthy,
- connected
- father
- doted
- on
- her,
- granting
- her
- every
- wish,
- and
- on
- the
- night
- of
- her
- senior
- prom,
- he
- handed
- her
- the
- keys
- to
- a
- prized
- possession,
- a
- classic,
- perfectly
- preserved,
- black
- 1956
- Continental
- Mark
- II.
- She
- drove
- away
- in
- it
- that
- night
- and
- was
- never
- seen
- again.Sandeen
- is
- a
- writer
- of
- true-crime
- books,
- an
- espresso-shop
- owner,
- a
- gear
- head,
- and
- a
- sucker
- for
- unsolved
- mysteries.
- After
- John
- Bonner,
- Kristina's
- father,
- had
- spent
- almost
- thirty
- years
- exhausting
- all
- conventional
- investigative
- avenues,
- he
- encounters
- Sandeen
- and
- asks
- him
- to
- find
- his
- daughter,
- or
- failing
- that,
- learn
- her
- fate.
- Sandeen
- agrees,
- but
- only
- because
- he
- believes
- he
- can
- get
- a
- book
- out
- of
- it,
- hopefully,
- a
- best-seller.The
- inquiry
- takes
- Sandeen
- to
- the
- small
- town
- of
- Catalpa,
- Kansas,
- John
- Bonner's
- family
- home
- at
- the
- time
- Kristina
- disappeared.
- Once
- he
- starts
- asking
- questions,
- Sandeen
- becomes
- a
- target
- for
- those
- who
- still
- have
- a
- lot
- to
- lose.
- Sandeen
- begins
- by
- interviewing
- members
- of
- Kristina's
- graduating
- class,
- and
- starts
- to
- put
- a
- frightening
- picture
- together
- when
- he
- learns
- that
- two
- other
- people
- Kristina's
- age
- disappeared
- at
- about
- the
- same
- time.The
- local
- sheriff's
- office
- becomes
- an
- impediment
- to
- the
- investigation,
- first
- managing
- to
- frustrate
- him,
- and
- then
- arresting
- him
- on
- trumped-up
- charges.
- Sandeen's
- attorney
- and
- former
- gal-pal,
- Elaine
- McClelland,
- manages
- to
- get
- him
- out
- of
- jail,
- but
- then
- has
- to
- defend
- him
- against
- allegations
- tossed
- about
- by
- Homeland
- Security
- agents.Sandeen
- learns
- that
- Kristina
- had
- a
- step-brother,
- and
- manages
- to
- find
- and
- interview
- him.
- He
- also
- finds
- that
- one
- of
- the
- three
- young
- people
- who'd
- gone
- missing
- simply
- left
- town
- and
- no
- one
- cared.
- As
- he
- gets
- closer
- to
- the
- solution
- of
- the
- mystery,
- Sandeen
- picks
- up
- two
- unexpected
- allies.
- Chief
- of
- Police
- Burnside
- didn't
- grow
- up
- in
- Catalpa,
- and
- he
- holds
- no
- loyalty
- to
- those
- who
- might
- be
- involved
- in
- one
- or
- more
- murders.
- The
- 'old
- guy'
- who
- refuses
- to
- give
- his
- name
- hands
- Sandeen
- tantalizing
- clues,
- but
- never
- quite
- enough
- to
- solve
- the
- mystery.As
- Sandeen
- gets
- very
- close,
- a
- off-duty
- deputy
- sheriff
- attacks
- him,
- having
- first
- disabled
- Griffee,
- the
- only
- friend
- Sandeen
- has
- made
- in
- his
- stay
- in
- Catalpa.
- In
- the
- fight,
- Sandeen
- permanently
- disfigures
- the
- deputy,
- but
- Chief
- Burnside
- has
- a
- trusted
- witness
- who
- points
- at
- the
- deputy
- as
- the
- aggressor.When
- all
- the
- pieces
- come
- together,
- Sandeen
- lays
- the
- mystery
- out
- for
- Chief
- Burnside.
- The
- final
- pieces
- of
- evidence
- are
- in
- a
- cemetery
- in
- another
- county
- and
- Burnside
- has
- no
- authority
- there.
- After
- some
- convincing,
- Burnside
- agrees
- to
- help
- find
- those
- final
- pieces.
- As
- Sandeen
- and
- Burnside
- dig
- into
- an
- all-but-forgotten
- and
- mis-labeled
- grave,
- they
- are
- attacked
- by
- the
- two
- men
- who
- as
- boys
- killed
- Kristina
- Bonner
- and
- one
- of
- her
- friends,
- and
- then
- stole
- and
- hid
- the
- ebony
- Continental.
- In
- the
- fracas,
- Burnside
- is
- grievously
- wounded,
- Sandeen
- is
- disabled,
- but
- the
- two
- men—one
- of
- them
- Kristina
- Bonner's
- half-brother—wind
- up
- dead.At
- the
- belated
- funeral
- for
- Kristina
- Bonner,
- Sandeen
- is
- confronted
- by
- the
- 'old
- guy'
- who
- is
- content
- that
- he
- solved
- the
- mystery,
- but
- furious
- that
- so
- many
- people
- suffered
- and
- died
- to
- get
- to
- the
- truth.
- He
- calls
- Sandeen
- an
- amateur
- and
- then
- walks
- away,
- leaving
- Sandeen
- to
- wonder
- if
- it
- was
- all
- worth it.
