Teenager Marlene Vaughan's mother Gertrude was murdered in 1953. They lived in Baldwin Park, in the central San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles County. Gertrude was abducted from a bar in El Monte and found dead in Azusa. The case was never solved.
Four years later, Marlene obtains a lead on the killers, learning that they have returned to Los Angeles. She reconnects with her old friend Robby, and asks him to help her solve the crime because "he's the smartest boy she ever knew."
Robby recruits a team to work on the crime, including his stepmother, Clara, and his youngest uncle, Melvin. They form a picture of two itinerant salesmen who periodically visit L.A. and frequent the Silver Dollar Saloon in El Monte, where Gertrude disappeared.
The amateur detectives put the clues together and suspect that there are two killers, both World War II veterans, one with anger issues caused by a war injury, and the other a passive sidekick.
This complex murder mystery is a sequel to the author's book
Life Could Be a Dream,
and provides an intimate glimpse into life in Southern California in the 1950s.
(About the Author)
Henry Rex Greene grew up in the San Gabriel and San Fernando Valleys of Southern California. The semi-retired physician specializes in hematology, oncology, and hospice/palliative care. He has had "strong involvement in shaping the hospice movement and medical ethics." Dr. Greene is the author of numerous books, and resides with his wife in Henderson, Nevada. He credits his far-flung interests to great teachers who knew how to nurture their students.