In this action-packed caper novel, a long-retired cop gets wrapped up with a girl on the run

Long-retired cop Fitch Henry Haut is terminally ill and living out his final years alone. As he sits in his favorite diner enjoying the meatloaf special, he watches as a young girl steps in and spots two rough-looking men at the counter. When they see her, she runs off and they give chase.

His cop instincts kick in and Fitch follows, catching up with them in the parking lot. As the two men try to force her into their vehicle, Fitch manages to get the upper hand, and he and the girl take off in his broken-down Winnebago.

The girl is Wren Jones, a runaway from an abusive foster home. Earlier that day she overheard the two men going on about a casino robbery they just committed, and this was the second time she got away from them that day. Fitch realizes the men will come hunting for them again, and that the ailing rig he’s driving won’t be hard to spot. A bond forms as Fitch and Wren struggle to escape out of town, both aware that time is not on their side.

Dietrich Kalteis’s short stories have been published widely, and his screenplay Between Jobs was a finalist in the 2003 Los Angeles Screenplay Festival. Kalteis lives in West Vancouver, British Columbia. This is his first novel.

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“Valor, betrayal, and bad alliances collide in this exciting crime novel set on Canada’s West Coast … A brisk pace and sharp attention to character help propel this lean story of chance encounters amid a battle for survival. Fans of gritty crime fiction will be gratified.” — Publishers Weekly

“A lot of people try to write books like this. Kalteis not only succeeds, he takes it to another level.” — Dana King, two-time Shamus Award nominee and author of the Penns River series

“The time spent on the characters allows for the development of more fleshed-out characters which adds to the enjoyment of the novel.” — Mystery & Suspense Magazine

“I’ve reviewed a few of Dietrich Kalteis’ books: Under an Outlaw Moon, Cradle of the Deep, and Zero Avenue. This one just might be my favourite. Well recommended.” — Murder in Common