Brittle Bones, by Paulla Hunter
Brittle Bones, by Paulla Hunter
In this second book of the Darcy Moreland Mysteries, Darcy notices yellow police tape and Detective Hank Nelson’s pickup in front of an old home not far from the TV station where she works. It is likely a homicide. She calls for a camera crew and is annoyed when her nemesis, Bryce Adkins, shows up with permission from the owner of the station, his Uncle Arnold, to take over the investigative story.
Understanding the politics, she stands back but gets permission from her boss, station manager Zach Horton, to do a side-bar story about the investigation. Darcy becomes embroiled in the riddle of two sets of bones found in a crawl space of an old house but buried 60 years apart. She inserts herself into the investigation and does several stories following the bones for her KCHY TV station, and the ratings rise.
As usual, more-than-just-a-friend, Detective Hank Nelson is in charge of the investigation and tries to keep Darcy safe and out from under foot. Darcy’s friend and former English teacher Abby McNeil shares a childhood memory which gives a hint about who lived there 60 years ago. The clues lead Darcy to a forensic reconstruction lab in Colorado. Broadcasting the life-like images of the skull reconstruction leads to unintended consequences and puts a target on Darcy’s back.
She continues digging through personal interviews and following leads, resulting in personal threats, a brutal murder, and creating chaos in both her personal and professional life. Can Darcy uncover the truth about the bones before she becomes part of the body count?