SCORPION BAY by Michael Murphy is out

Award winning mystery and suspense novelist, Michael Murphy, introduces a chilling thriller of murder and revenge and a surprising splash of humor.

When a car bomb kills the prosecuting attorney and a key witness against a powerful bioengineering industrialist, the blast shatters the life of the attorney’s husband, popular Phoenix television investigative reporter, Parker Knight. After authorities hit a dead end, Parker risks his career and his life to seek his own revenge. Riding a high tech motorcycle and wearing a black disguise, the crusading newsman inadvertently becomes a media created superhero jeopardizing his quest for justice.

This book is available in paperback and in eBook format everywhere, including Kindle and on Smashwords.

EXCERPT:

Parker awoke in a hospital bed, hooked to an IV drip while an annoying heart monitor beeped beside him. Only a florescent light above a mirror and the green glow from the monitor illuminated the dimly lit room.

He felt groggy, no doubt from pain medication, and gazed down at a bandage on his left forearm and wiggled his fingers. He struggled to lift his arm and the room began to spin. He took a deep breath and managed to move his left leg then his right. Taking inventory of his injuries, Parker felt sore in spite of the medication, but nothing seemed broken.

The window blinds showed the darkness and soft glow from a parking lot. A flash of lightning briefly illuminated the room.

Closing his eyes, Parker replayed the accident as the details of the night began to emerge from his foggy memory. He remembered the abduction, his escape and shots fired by Carl as he and Lenny pursued Parker outside the drop house. His Kawasaki might be totaled, but at least he’d escaped the clutches of Raymond Camino’s men and was safe in the hospital.

Wanting to know about his condition and how long he might be hospitalized, Parker reached for a call button. A moment later, a nurse entered the room and closed the door.

“What time is it?” Parker asked, aware he was slurring his words. What kind of drugs had they given him?

“Time for another pain pill.” She stepped forward, poured water from a pitcher and handed him the pill and a plastic glass. “I’m going to take good care of you, Parker.” A lightning flash revealed the nurse’s smiling face.

“Kimberly.”

“So you haven’t forgotten me.”

Parker palmed the pill and pretended to place the drug into his mouth. He sipped the water and tried to set the glass on a tray beside the bed.

Kimberly set the glass on the tray then slid a chair beside his bed. Her employee-of-the-quarter smile twisted into a scowl as she looked down at his balled fist. She pried his fingers apart and grabbed the pill.

Turning her back to him, Kimberly crossed the room and stopped beneath the light. “If you won’t take the pill, Mr. I’m-too-busy-to-call Anchorman, I’ll have to give you an injection.”

Parker tried to shake his drug-induced stupor. He reached for the call button but only managed to send the device clattering to the floor. His mouth went dry as Kimberly approached the bed holding a long syringe with a two-inch needle at her side.

Kimberly’s eyes burned with contempt. Her voice choked with bitterness. “Before I give you the Demerol, explain why, Parker Knight, after I sent all those beautiful roses day after day, you never called me.” She brought the syringe closer to the IV line in his wrist. “Never!”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Part time urban chicken rancher and full time writer, award winning novelist Michael Murphy and his wife make their home in Arizona with their two cats, four dogs and five chickens. He enjoys writing mystery and suspense novels with twists and turns and splashes of humor. Scorpion Bay is his seventh novel.

If you like a laugh along with your chills, you might want to give one of Michael Murphy's novels a try.

Visit his website at: http://www.mjmurphy.com/
Find Michael Murphy on Amazon.com HERE
Find them at Smashwords HERE