Rough Justice

Burt Weissbourd

Description

In the first book of the series, Danger in Plain Sight, Callie James discovers that her bartender, Cash Logan, is smuggling erotic ivory carvings, netsuke, into her restaurant. Callie pitches a fit, has him arrested, then famously says, “When you get out of jail, don’t ever come back here.”

Two years later, Callie’s ex-husband, a French investigative reporter, is almost killed when he shows up at her restaurant, after a fourteen-year absence, asking for her help. Callie has no choice but to take on an unlikely ally, Cash Logan. This improbable, incompatible team has to save her ex, her business, and ultimately their own lives.

Now in Rough Justice, Callie and Cash are back, and their world is about to explode.

The scene is set as Callie and Cash are eating a late dinner upstairs at her restaurant, The Bronze Pig.

It’s been a year since they saved her ex-husband’s life and subsequently had to take on unexpected, lethal adversaries. During that process—confronting kidnapping, murder and assassins burning down her restaurant—they came together, and unexpectedly, they discover that they care deeply, romantically, for one another. Now, they’ve grown comfortable together, no, more than that, against all odds, their feelings for each other have evolved beyond anything they’ve ever known—they’re wildly in love.

So, imagine their surprise when they get an unexpected, half-Algerian female guest, twenty-five-year-old Sara, showing up at the restaurant and insisting on telling them her shocking, unbelievable story. Someone is trying to kill her, and they’ve stolen her identity. She needs their help now, and she has a stunning, life-changing secret to tell.

Yet, again, Cash and Callie assemble their unconventional ragtag family—including peg-legged Andre, and Itzac, “The Macher.” Together, they go to war with formidable adversaries to save Sara, and ultimately their own lives. The fierce battle leads them to Cuba where they have to launch an audacious offensive that shocks even them…and will absolutely take your breath away.

Sujets

• Amateur Sleuth
• Thrillers
• General officer
• General
• Crime
• Thriller
• Fiction

Informations

• Publié par: Rare Bird Books
• Date de parution: 11 octobre 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781644283332
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 4 Mo

Extrait

novels by Burt Weissbourd
Callie James Thrillers
Danger in Plain Sight
Rough Justice
Corey Logan Thrillers
Inside Passage
Teaser
Minos
In Velvet
a thriller set in Yellowstone National Park


Danger in Plain Sight
“Here’s what happens when you enter Mr. Weissbourd’s world: You can’t get out. You will be astonished not only by the colorful, playful, lethal characters, you will be hooked into a plot that laughs at whatever else you thought you were doing today. Callie and Cash, beauty and the beast, and the characters that swim through their world are each a gem of humanity observed.”
— David Field , screenwriter and former head of West Coast Production United Artists
“Weissbourd delivers a polished page-turner about terrorism, money laundering, and the price of sins rooted in avarice.”
— BlueInk Review
“From the author of the brilliant Corey Logan Trilogy, Danger in Plain Sight is the latest thriller from Burt Weissbourd and his finest novel yet. Weissbourd has created an entire genre— Seattle Noir . Callie James and her son, Lew, are indelible characters. I devoured the novel in a single night–and I think you will, too.”
— Jacob Epstein , writer and executive story editor Hill Street Blues , writer LA Law
“A woman gets in touch with her inner action hero in this bracing thriller.”
– Kirkus Reviews




Inside Passage
“A narrative that is relentlessly taut and exciting.”
— Foreword Reviews
“ Inside Passage hit all the hallmarks of a great read… Riveting story from the first paragraph.”
— Nightly Reading
“The family dynamics and insights to human behavior had me reeling.…Juicy, fascinating stuff.”
— The (Not Always) Lazy W
“ Inside Passage is a great thriller and the restaurants you include as part of the story: Canlis, El Gaucho, Tulio, Queen City Grill, Wild Ginger, are all very sexy places. You really captured our city!”
— Scott Carsburg , James Beard award winner and legendary Seattle chef
“I got completely hooked on Inside Passage ’”
— Nancy Guppy , host of Art Zone on Seattle Channel




Teaser
“A stunning, fast-paced thriller.”
— Roxy’s Reviews
“Burt Weissbourd is such a great writer… Such a great book!”
— So I Am a Reader
“Weissbourd, a seasoned screenwriter and film producer, has the mechanics down pat. Teaser is a fun, action-filled ride.”
— Foreword Reviews
“Weissbourd’s stellar writing, memorable characters and an extremely well-crafted narrative never disappoint.”
— Discerning Reader




Minos
“Original, consistently compelling…Minos is an exceptionally entertaining and engaging read from beginning to end.”
— Midwest Book Review
“These books transcend the expectations of genre fiction to become literature.”
— Jacob Epstein , writer and executive story editor of Hill Street Blues , writer LA Law
“Mr. Weissbourd draws you into a world of characters and stories that keep you riveted, and you’re pretty sure you are visiting people and worlds that have little or nothing to do with you. But he keeps going deeper, and by the end, he has delivered you back to yourself, a self you may not have admitted to before. Mr. Weissbourd, please keep writing.”
— David Field , screenwriter and former head of West Coast Production United Artists




In Velvet
“This thrilling novel has a breathless pace that combines science and nature to create nail-biting tension.”
— Foreword Reviews
“ In Velvet left me breathless, a bit contemplative, and completely satisfied.”
— Manic Readers
“Weissbourd’s writing reminds me of the great Raymond Chandler mysteries.”
— John McCaffrey , KGB Bar Lit Mag
“ In Velvet is a thrill from start to finish!”
— Closed the Cover






this is a genuine rare bird | blue city press book
Rare Bird Books 6044 North Figueroa Street Los Angeles, CA 90042 rarebirdbooks.com
Blue City Press 62 West Bayberry Road Islip, NY 11751
Copyright © 2022 by Burt Weissbourd
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever, including but not limited to print, audio, and electronic. For more information, address: Rare Bird Books Subsidiary Rights Department 6044 North Figueroa Street Los Angeles, CA 90042
Cover Design by Lisa Fyfe
epub isbn : 9781644283332 paperback isbn : 9781644283097
Publisher’s Cataloging-in-Publication Data available upon request.


To William Landau-Taylor


Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Special Acknowledgments



Prologue
People still argue about where, or when, it started. Some, mostly the hindsighters, say it began in Hong Kong, in the complex, unorthodox mind of an aging Chinese gangster, Yu Shin Shi.
Others start it with Fanny Rose, a.k.a. Rosie, the gifted queen of the Los Angeles Immigration Bar.
The mortified high and mighty at Immigration won’t discuss where, or when. Privately, they say Rosie and Yu were the Devil’s own instrument. Period.
If you were to ask Him—The Prince of Darkness, that is—he’d put it in LA. He’d start it when they got together.


Chapter One
Hong Kong, 1990
“And fast outta the gate, you bet your sweet cujones…I can take you back when Rosie was yeh high.” Smiling Danny “the Viper” Nash extended his hand at hip height, cracked his famous smile, and went right on, “Yes siree, she was a go-getter—you’d have the family over for dinner, she’d eat like a little lady, excuse herself, then steal the loose change right off your bedroom dresser.”
Yu nodded, apparently pleased.
The smiling Viper raised a manicured hand, palm up, punctuation. “This one time, I’m with her on a plane. Now, she can’t take flying, makes her sick. Well, she throws up on this fancy, well-muscled, mean-looking fella sleeping in the seat next to her. Fouls his extravagant, and I kid you not—$4,000 Loro Piana grey cashmere suit. Now I swear to God, I’m sweating bullets, my heart is pounding in my chest. I mean here’s the king a cool, covered with creamed codfish, and I see how he shifts in his seat and sets his meaty hand right in a puddle of creamed cod. Next to me, God be my witness, Rosie just keeps reading some comic book, like nothing happened. Well, just then, this big fella wakes up, making a face out of a nightmare. He’s snarling, staring down at this stinking, creamed cod covering—and I mean all over—his fine cashmere. Now, I’m near to passing out as he raises this dripping, cod-coated hand, a paw big enough to tear your head right off and turns toward her, eyes blazing. Well, sweet as molasses, little Rosie looks him straight in the eye, smiles and asks, ‘are you feeling better now, sir?’”
Smiling Danny lifted his Stetson, raised his bushy eyebrows, then he tapped his bald head, twice, with two fingers. “I am not kidding you, son, and she was eleven at the time. Hell, I knew she’d help you. That little gal was born to be a crackerjack lawyer. Yes siree Bob.”
Yu Shin Shi bowed his head ever so slightly, plainly pleased that he’d chosen this colorful, crafty man.
“Thank you, son. I like a man likes my stories,” Smiling Danny nodded. He paused, contemplative, then looked at Yu, shifting gears. “So, we got business?” Danny flashed old faithful. “’Cause if you’re here to soak up Jewish wisdom partner, then I’m granny goose.”
Yu raised his long arms as he graciously explained, “My esteemed friend, I fear that Hong Kong will eventually fall under the unstable hand of Beijing, and, as such, cannot be a good place to hold assets…After consulting your niece, Rosie, I have determined to immigrate to the great American West. I have prepared a list of places where you may buy land for me in California. As a child of Hong Kong, I believe in land. As a student of real estate, I believe in California.”
Danny smiled. “Now we’re cooking.” He looked heavenward. “Yes Lord, this is a fine day.” Danny took the list from Yu, scanned it hurriedly. Then he read it again, more carefully. He paused, took off his ten-gallon hat, then wiped his forehead with a red bandana. “Babe, you’re a friend of mine. I tell you as my friend, this is not smart. I mean you want to buy on the beach, fine. Buy it within an hour, maybe an hour and a quarter of the city. What you got here are the cheapest, least desirable beaches in the great state of California.”
Yu nodded. “Precisely.”
Smiling Danny frowned. “No one in LA is going to drive more than an hour to get to the beach. No way. Cambria…San Simenon…Santa Maria’s the boondocks. You got bums and winos sleeping on the beach, the hippies fuck outdoors. This is 1990—LA’s got never-ending traffic jams, no jet train. So even if you get sand, where’s your resale?”
“I hope you are sadly mistaken, as my course is set. If you are in some discomfort—”
“Hey, hold on. We don’t have to agree on everything, do we pal? I’ll still look out for you. Talk to me. Tell me what you got in mind.”
“Hotel and residential developments. They must be on, or have a good view of, the beach…and price affordable. That is all. You may look in Oregon and Washington State as well.”
“Yu, buddy, do me this one favor—before buying, consider that I got some better properties. Wilshire Blvd. apartments…West LA condominiums…Marin County view lots…You don’t have to go buying low-rent beachfront hours from anywhere.”
“I have considered the many alternatives you sugge