Crimson Gold

MYSTERY/THRILLER FINALIST IN THE 2015 RED CITY REVIEW BOOK AWARDS.

In September of 1939, in the Dutch Hills of Alaska, the body of an old prospector, Elias Franks, was found in his cabin with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Within hours, they find the bodies of a successful prospector, Harmon Johnson, his wife Zelda and one of their employees, John Brady. All three had been brutally murdered. The case appeared to be a simple murder/suicide case until evidence reveals a more sinister crime.
George Johnson, who lived in Monrovia, California, was still reeling from the news that his older brother Harmon and sister-in-law, Zelda had been brutally murdered in Alaska. Recently unemployed and unable to travel to Alaska, George agreed to let his brother, Ron, an ex-con, make the trip. Ron’s job was to get information on the investigation and the estate.
After two months without any contact from Ron, George discovered that Ron had convinced the U.S. Attorney to give him access to funds from the estate. Ron now had the money to start working Harmon’s mining in the Spring. George knows that greed is the only thing that drives Ron. He is convinced that Harmon’s mining sites were still producing gold and that Ron had no intention of sharing the profits with George and their sister, Ruth. George realizes that he had to find a way to make the trip to Alaska, even If he had to borrow the money. Although he would have to leave his wife and two daughters with family for several months, he and his wife Elizabeth agreed that it was a risk they had to take.