Cause for Murder by Mystery Author Betty Sullivan La Pierre

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ISBN: 1419607065

Cause For Murder
# 7 of The Hawkman Series
© 2005 by Betty Sullivan La Pierre

When it’s discovered Burke Parker might have been poisoned, the suspicion of guilt falls on his wife Lilly, daughter, Maryann and Maduk, the Indian who is Maryann’s biological father. Sam and Richard face danger when they become privy to data collected by Hawkman, along with information they’ve discovered while fixing up the Parker house.

Hawkman follows clues he’s received and finds the investigation leading him in all directions as he deals with an Indian man who’s killed once before, and an abused daughter and wife, who all have excellent motives for murder.

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"Cause For Murder" is a mystery for people, who love to sip a book as a good liquer, curled up with a cat near a brightly lit fireplace.
~Gianfranco Cazzaro - Reviews With Care~

Ms. Sullivan La Pierre has written yet again a very thrilling murder mystery. This time Tom Casey, the lead character in The Hawkman Mysteries, is asked to help in a murder investigation that puts the life of his son and his own in immediate danger. It is a well written book with a plot that has enough drive and unsuspected turns to keep you reading right up till the end. Readers familiar with The Hawkman Series will certainly find this book a worthy addition. However, each book in the series can be read separately. ~Maura - EuroReviews~

A recommended read sure to please any mystery fan who likes well-drawn characters, surprise endings and plenty of forward movement to keep you turning the pages. You'll be looking for other books by this talented author. Enjoy. I did. ~Anne K. Edwards - Mystery Fiction~

Burke Parker is found dead in a hotel room, and at first it appears he mixed too much booze with his medicine and ended up killing himself. But then the coroner finds paraquat, a deadly herbicide, in his body, on the alcohol bottles, and in his food, leading the police to believe he was murdered.

Tom Casey, also known as Hawkman, is called in to help the local police. Three suspects are at the top of Hawkman’s list.

Lilly Parker, Burke’s wife, endured years of spousal abuse at the hands of her husband, but since she didn’t believe in ending a marriage, she hung in there even though she was having an affair with a local Native American. Finally she got tired of Burke’s abuse and kicked him out, but he still came back demanding she leave him the leftover bottles of alcohol she was allowed to take home from work at the bar out on the porch along with a bag of food, especially fried chicken, or Burke would break in and beat her. Perhaps Lilly decided to get rid of Burke for good.

Maryann Parker, Burke’s daughter, who looks suspiciously Native American, has made it no secret she hates Burke. She once shot him in the leg and threatened to shoot him again at another time if he didn’t leave her mother alone. Maybe she decided to choose another way to do away with her father.

Madukarahat or Maduk for short, a Native American of the Shasta tribe has waited not-so-patiently for Lilly to be free of Burke. Maybe he ran out of patients…after all, he did kill a man once.

Ms. Sullivan La Pierre sure knows how to write a page-turning mystery. Though, about a third of the way through Cause for Murder I had a sneaky suspicion who the murderer was, I still eagerly turned the pages to find out if I was right, and I was! If you’re looking for a light, entertaining mystery on a rainy weekend, look into Betty Sullivan La Pierre’s Hawkman Mystery Series. They are sure to capture your attention. ~Author Margaret Marr~

Hawkman sat in the living room in one of the swivel chairs overlooking Copco Lake. His legs were stretched out on the ottoman as he tried to read the paper, but Jennifer kept running the vacuum around him, making him move. "Honey, for crying out loud, it's only Sam, not the president coming home. Like most kids, he won't hang around long enough to notice whether the place is clean or not."

She shut off the noise maker and put a hand on her hip. "Hawkman, if it weren't for women, men would live in pigsties. And not only that, there wouldn't be any birthday celebrations, no Easter bunny, no tooth fairies and probably no Christmas if it were left up to the male population."

He looked at her with furrowed brows. "What brought that on? I didn't say anything about holidays. I just wanted to read the morning paper in peace."

She waved her hand and flipped on the vacuum. Hawkman finally exited to the deck. He'd no more gotten comfortable on a lounge chair than Pretty Girl let out several loud squawks from the aviary.

Hawkman glanced at the falcon. "Good Lord, what's with you females today? Can't a man have a little peace and quiet?"

The bird finally fluffed her wings and settled on the perch. Hawkman continued to read the local news, and spotted an article about a Mr. Burke Parker from Yreka found dead in a motel room. An autopsy would be performed.

The name rang a bell and Hawkman rubbed his chin. Reading down a few paragraphs, he spotted the list of survivors and it brought the name into focus. Parker's daughter, Maryann, was one of Sam's high school classmates and they now attended the same university. He raised his gaze to the lake and speculated on why Parker would be in a motel room. If he remembered correctly, they had a home in Yreka and he'd not heard mention of the Parkers separating. He scratched his sideburn. Have to ask Jennifer about that one. She knew more about Sam's friends than he did and might have heard some scuttlebutt.

When Hawkman didn't hear the vacuum for several minutes, he took a chance, ventured inside and sat down in his chair. Jennifer marched from the back of the house, rearranging strands of hair that had slipped out of her pony tail.

She shot him a grim stare. "Hawkman, don't mess with me right now. I'm not in the mood to fool with your remarks. I'm worried about Sam. He should have called by now."

"Come on, honey. He's a grown man. Men don't call their moms every time they head home."

She threw up her hands in disgust. "You're probably right. Kids drive you nuts."

"I read in the paper where a Burke Parker from Yreka died. The survivors listed are Lillian Parker and his daughter, Maryann. Do you know his wife and didn't Sam go to school with the girl?"

Jennifer flopped down on the couch and wrinkled her forehead. "That's sad. I don't think I ever met Burke and Lilly personally, but I do remember seeing Maryann at the high school on a few occasions. A beautiful girl, but very quiet and reserved. I believe Sam took her out a couple of times. I recall a big stink arose about Lilly and Burke last summer."

"I gathered he drank a lot and they fought constantly. I heard he came home one night roaring drunk, staggered into Maryann's room and tried to rape her. When she let out a terrifying scream, her mother came running with a gun in her hand. Lilly chased Burke outside and shot at him, wounding him in the leg." She shrugged. "Of course, it's all gossip, so who knows the truth."

Hawkman flipped open the paper to the article and handed it to her. "Well, there might be some veracity to it. Your story certainly explains why they found his body in a motel and not at home."

Jennifer read the article and shook her head. "Poor Maryann. That's all she needs to have happen now. At least school is out for the summer. It will give her time to recover from the loss of her father."

Sam packed what he needed and said goodbye to Dan, the fellow who'd sublet his apartment for the next three months. Sam decided he didn't want to go to summer school this year. After three years of college and constant studying, he needed a rest. Jennifer and Hawkman agreed. A few months at home sounded great. His last chance to relax before he conquered the world.

He loaded his stuff into the Toyota pickup his parents had given him as a reward for making the Dean's Honor Roll last year. The thought of fishing and riding his motorcycle in the hills around Copco Lake, with the wind whipping through his hair, made him feel good all over.

He'd contacted Richard, his close friend, at his university to find out when he'd be home. Even though they were the same age, Richard had just finished his sophomore year. Being deaf made it difficult for him to carry a full load. And his Uncle Joe didn't want him to get burned out on school, so he wouldn't allow him to attend the summer sessions. Even though Richard had a scholarship, he insisted on working for his spending money while he had this time off. Sam admired the guy's stamina and liked him a lot. He hoped they'd be able to get together and do some bike riding.

As he covered and tied down his belongings in the pickup bed, he spotted a figure approaching out of the corner of his eye. He recognized the female before she got close enough to speak. Her tall frame, skin tight Levi's, and cowboy boots with little conchos tied to the pull tabs gave her away. She lived in the next door apartment complex. How he wished he'd left fifteen minutes earlier. This woman had a big attitude problem.

She strolled up beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hi, Sam, when are you leaving?"

"Sure, Maryann. But there's no charge. I don't think an extra person will make much difference in the mileage."

When she got out of ear shot, Sam sighed. Maryann was quite pretty, sported a great figure and must have American Indian blood in her veins, as she had high cheek bones, olive skin and long black hair accenting dark brown eyes. But she had a negative approach about life and never appeared happy. He just didn't care to be around her.

They'd gone through high school together and dated a couple of times. He felt sorry for the girl as her family didn't have much money; only meager funds her grandmother had left for college expenses. Maryann worked at the university cafeteria and took any extra jobs she could find to supplement the school cost. He had to admire her. At least, she didn't have a lazy bone in her body. And to top it off, she had brains and made excellent grades. He resigned himself to the fact it might be nice to have company on the long ride home, and since she lived in Yreka, it wouldn't be out of his way to drop her off.