The Wine Red Road
by
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What was left of an orange early-model Volkswagen Bug smoldered among the boulders at the bottom of the ravine. The Bug was right side up about 150 yards below the fire trail. Its rear end appeared to be caved in. I assumed the vehicle had hit a large rock or something while rolling down into the ravine. Four CHP officers, three male and one female, and a couple of firemen, stood about 20 feet away from the wreckage, unable to approach any closer because of the intense heat. Dad and I fought our way down through the charred brush. I snagged my pants and scratched my hands and probably looked like I’d been involved in a wreck myself by the time we reached the circle of people standing around the Volkswagen. Then I saw the crispy critter and caught the scent of seared human flesh and raw gasoline.
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About the Book
When is a burning vehicle at the bottom of a ravine not a traffic accident but an attempt to cover up a murder? When the vehicle involved has been pushed into the ravine and the crispy critter who was the driver of the vehicle is discovered to have a gunshot hole in her head. And why are officers of the California Highway Patrol prime suspects in the murder? Only a jilted wife really knows the answer.
About the Author
Jim Perkins is a former California Highway Patrol officer. After leaving the Patrol, he worked for several years as a small-town newspaper reporter, editor, publisher, and freelance contributor to magazines. Jim currently publishes a blog titled “According to Sam and Jim,” which can be found at accordingtosamandjim.blogspot.com. The Wine Red Road is Jim’s second novel. He previously published The Red Jacket. Because Jim barely got to know his real father and spent his childhood with a stepfather, his fiction is wrapped intimately around the dynamics of father- or stepfather-and-son relationships. A stepfather himself, he knows the trials, pitfalls, and triumphs of parenting a son. Since Jim enjoys fiction, he likes to describe himself as tall, dark, and handsome; blue-eyed, part Italian, a lot of fun, hopelessly romantic, independent, an outdoor enthusiast, loyal and kind—better than a $20 bottle of wine. Jim likes good coffee and stimulating conversation, lots of pasta, crisp fall days, cozy bed-and-breakfast inns, football, and baseball. Jim looks for the funny or ironic side of things. He lives in the Pacific Northwest with his wife and two-year-old Shih Tzu dog.