The Talus Slope — Lee Mossel

Denver petroleum geologist turned PI, Cortlandt Scott, hasn't completely recovered from the murder of Gerri German, his long time girlfriend. His best friend, Denver Police Department homicide investigator, Tom Montgomery, has spent many long nights and weekends talking Scott through his grief aided by Cort's well stocked wine cellar. Now, as he attempts to rebuild his life as well as a new relationship with beautiful crime scene investigator, Lindsey Collins, an old friend asks him to look into some troubling aspects of the supposed accidental death of a United States Geological Survey employee. Quickly, Cort Scott finds himself immersed in a murky and dangerous world of international espionage, environmental terrorists, and US law enforcement inter-agency rivalries. Scott's penchant for bending the rules of investigation soon lands him in trouble with those same agencies...including Tom Montgomery. His relationship with Lindsey is complicated by his memories of Gerri and his position as executor of her estate. Cort's determination to unravel the mystery surrounding the death of a government employee puts his life in danger and, unfortunately, Lindsey's too. THE TALUS SLOPE plays out from the mountain peaks of Colorado to the California wine country with danger and intrigue at every turn.