The Talus Slope

Denver PI, Cortlandt Scott, has struggled since the murder of his longtime girlfriend. Not wanting the riches and power he inherited from her estate, he found solace in the words and counsel of his best friend, Denver homicide detective, Tom Montgomery, and in the contents of his liquor cabinet and wine cellar. Now, as he attempts to rebuild his private investigation business, an old friend asks him to look into the purported accidental death of a United States Geological Survey geologist. Hank Francis doesn't believe his field mapping supervisor "accidentally" fell to her death in the rugged oil shale outcrops of western Colorado. She was too careful and too experienced to be killed in a moment's negligence.

Cort's investigation soon confirms Hank's fears. But why would someone target such a seemingly harmless victim who was only conducting a field evaluation of oil shale reserves? What possible motive would they have? Cort takes on the case and is quickly immersed in a murky world of international intrigue, spies, and murder.

Enlisting the aid of his new girlfriend, forensic investigator, Lindsey Collins, throws both of them into harm's way. The Talus Slope plays out from the mountain peaks of Colorado to the California wine country with danger and intrigue at every turn.