Smoke and Mirrors — Bob Moats

Sam Hunt was a decorated Viet Nam Army sniper. He now lived in a quiet suburb outside of Detroit and yet he enters a battle for justice after his neighbor was murder in what looked like a hit. Sam and his new Police Detective friend, Roland Royce, solved that case and are now tasked to find the killer of a local fortune teller. She was murdered by a bash to her head with her own crystal ball. Sam and Royce interrogate numerous suspect until they meet the madam's son and his ornery transgendered partner. Sam does his best to help Royce as a C.I., as he tries to battle his own inner demons caused by PTSD and alcohol. This book is a novella, longer than a short story, but shorter than a novel.