Available in early 2027
Second mystery of the Portland series featuring Jim Gance
An old murder and a buried treasure
It’s 1994 and Jim Gance, the elected Portland city auditor, gets drawn into the schemes of treasure hunters who hope to find hundreds of old stock certificates after their owner, Duke Ohman, was murdered in front of his house.
The problem is, the certificates were lost twenty-seven years earlier by the police, with many failed attempts to find them. One possible location is the city auditor’s archives center, buried among a million other documents.
Knowing the case, Gance delves into the unsolved murder of Duke Ohman, a classic mid-century wealthy playboy. Gance tracks down Duke’s old friends and neighbors, who recollect their 1960s parties and carefree living, while he suspects one of them is the killer.
More troubles arise with an audit about police excessive force that upsets the city council and every officer in the police bureau. Gance pressures an angry mayor and unwilling police chief to cooperate with the audit, while navigating among city hall personalities and an inescapable public spotlight.
As his many entanglements tighten, Gance has no easy moves, and accepts critical support from his colleague Deb Morgan, the elected Multnomah County auditor, who supplies a key link to solve Duke’s murder.