Tunnel Vision
by
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Denise Phelan, Assistant State’s Attorney for Remington County, had been planning to grab a sandwich at Pinky’s. But, catching sight of Steve Berglund at the window table, she kept right on walking north on Main Street until she reached Consuelo’s. The spicy Tex-Mex food suited her mood today. A natural redhead who wore her flaming hair very short and spiky in a style that accentuated her upswept brows and pale blue eyes, she always looked ready for a fight despite her petite stature. As she munched on a burrito, Denise reflected on the case that would pit her against Berglund. In her opinion he was a conceited jerk, a big duck in the little pond that was Drummond, Illinois. But he had also lived here forever and knew everyone in town worth knowing. More to the point, he was in sync with the mood of the community in a way that she, transplanted from an affluent northern suburb of Chicago, could never be. Denise was aware of her reputation as arrogant and overly ambitious. Well, so be it. She was sick of Drummond’s small-town, good-old-boy atmosphere and would do everything she could to change it, especially when the law was on her side. Still, it would be a challenge. Acquaintance-rape cases always hinged on whether the jury believed the defendant’s or the accuser’s version of events.
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About the Book
Twelve citizens of Remington County, Illinois, are chosen as jurors in an unsavory date-rape case. But the jury hangs, and a mistrial is declared. While awaiting a new trial, the defendant—Brian Briggs—is free on bail.
When his accuser is found murdered, suspicion naturally centers on Briggs. He threatened the victim in front of witnesses and lacks a solid alibi for the night of the crime. In jail once more, he seems likely to face another trial—this one for murder.
But is he really guilty? Jill McKinnon, a young farmer’s widow and member of the jury that couldn’t convict him of rape, begins to wonder when she learns that another female juror has died in an apparently accidental fall. Then still another tells Jill about an unpleasant encounter with one of the male jurors.
About the Author
Linda Rich considers herself a rehabilitated technical writer because, earlier in her career, she specialized in reference manuals for business and educational use. Her transition from the corporate “dark side” to fiction writing is relatively recent and has resulted in three novels so far. Tunnel Vision is her first mystery.