Rodeo Requiem

A cowboy turns up dead at the San Antonio Rodeo. Is it suicide or is it murder? Can one man uncover the truth behind the evil conspiracy before it's too late?

On a crisp night in February, a young, wounded warrior turning his life around makes a record-setting bronc ride, flashes a smile, tips his hat, and is never seen alive again. The police find a pistol and an empty snuff can filled with painkillers. Written on the can is Nick Fischer's name and number. Was it a cry for help-or was it murder?

The ME rules suicide, and the DA, nursing a grudge, is all too happy to file charges. The pistol was Nick's. The move puts Nick on the wrong side of the law, opposite SAPD homicide detective Diana Ochoa, his new girlfriend. Nick needs to clear his name, and the cowboy's estranged father thinks his son was murdered. He hires Nick to find the real killer.

The trail leads to a callous doctor operating a pill mill that preys on veterans seeking pain relief. The tentacles of the evil operation stretch from San Antonio to rural Central Texas and link to a shadowy ranch owner with ties to a Mexican drug cartel. When Nick locates a witness-a fellow veteran who can link the doc and the mysterious rancher to the murder-the witness is found hanging, cartel style, from a San Antonio River bridge.

Working on a hunch, he goes after the rancher and puts himself and everyone close to him in danger. The rancher tries to stop him by sending a killer to kidnap Diana's six-year-old son. Instead of backing down, Nick engages in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse, leading to the isolated ranch in the Texas Hill Country. Nick puts everything on the line-including his own life and career-to save the little boy and bring the cowboy's killer to justice. Can he reach the little boy before it's too late?