Detective Al Harris Cold Cases

Three Detective Al Harris Cold Cases in one volume. Volume includes Hide and Seek, Hook, Line, and Sinker, and Close to Home. What would you do if the stalker you thought had disappeared was suddenly back? How long would you wait to prove your son's death was no accident? In an small Midwest town, suspicions and fear never truly die.

Fifteen years ago Mary Anne Cromway was stalked by a violent psychopath that police were never able to identify. As the stalker became more obsessive and threatening, her boyfriend Bobby went missing. The town assumed that troublemaking Bobby had been playing a trick and had decided to run away when he got in to deep—or that Mary Anne was behind all of it herself. They were especially suspicious when the stalker disappeared right after Bobby did. Fifteen years later, Mary Anne receives another note from her stalker. She knew exactly who to go to for help. 

How long would you wait to prove your son's death was no accident? Dozens of family members and loved ones who never got any closure call Detective Al Harris to look into their cold cases. He ignores most of them, trying to get back to focusing on not doing any real work. Then a particularly persistent woman piques his interest. Her son died on a fishing trip with his friends almost a decade ago - seemingly just a tragic accident. But his mother is certain that it was no accident.

In an small Midwest town, suspicions and fear never truly die. Detective Al Harris faces one of the most prolific serial killers in the history of the Midwest. The case has remained unsolved for 40 years and is the reason why he was hired to work in the cold case department in Woodlawn in the first place. The murderer was dubbed the "Woodlawn Killer" during his murderous spree in the '80s.

An invitation to help solve a 20-year-old robbery is extended to Detective Al Harris. But the case quickly takes on a mythical quality when the stolen money is recovered by a couple of boys who followed a map to the spot where it was buried. Only half of the money remains, so where is the rest? Detective Harris takes the case thinking that a robbery with no deaths might be a pleasant break. However, as the detective delves deeper, he realizes that just because no one was killed, it doesn’t mean that no one was affected.

 Al Harris is not, and was not ever, an art connoisseur. But when a desperate young Jewish woman comes to him, convinced that her family’s stolen art is hidden somewhere in Woodlawn, Al is persuaded to take the case, as unlikely as it is that priceless European art has ended up in this small town.  

When Harris starts to investigate the disappearance of a young boy 20 years ago, he thinks that it’s going to be a sad but open-and-shut case. But then, he starts to discover signs that this wasn’t an isolated incident, that multiple boys were taken over the years, and that there might still be danger in the present day. His new independence gives Harris purpose and motivation, but without the police department behind him, and perhaps even against him, will he be able to close this case and prevent the past from becoming the present once again?

Striking a balance between the pros and cons of his job isn’t going to be easy, especially now that his reputation is growing. Harris has helped to solve a few more high-profile cases, and some people aren’t too happy about that. He thought that it would help get him more clients, and he’s getting noticed all right - by the wrong kind of people.

Al Harris’s actions haven’t gone unnoticed, and not all that attention is good. After being questioned by a couple of mysterious men, Harris comes back to find his office in ruins and Judy attacked - and all his case files stolen. What is it about those cases that is so important? The resulting investigation will take Harris back to the city of Chicago. The famous days of Al Capone and the Untouchables might be over, but the mafia still rules Chicago in its own way, and Harris is about to find out for himself just how alive and kicking they still are.