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    Clearwater Crazy
    Clearwater Crazy
    Clearwater Crazy
    Ebook224 pages3 hours

    Clearwater Crazy

    By Al Rennie

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    About this ebook

    Fred has taken on an insurance scam investigation that turns into a murder case when the one witness who can prove the scam is murdered. Jeremy goes AWOL from his job with Homeland. Mia is quickly becoming the Donald Trump of the Clearwater real estate scene. Joe runs into some gender problems at the men's shelter, and Coop is going through some life style changes. Another crazy romp in paradise!

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAl Rennie
    Release dateNov 14, 2013
    ISBN9781311083838
    Clearwater Crazy
    Author

    Al Rennie

    I was born and raised in Toronto. I attended Upper Canada College before taking a degree at Queen's University. I have worked as a lifeguard for the Toronto Harbour Police, a youth worker for the Toronto YMCA, and an English teacher in Lakefield. I am married with two great daughters and an extended foster family. My interests include Maple Leaf hockey - this is our year - New England Patriot football and writing.

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      Book preview

      Clearwater Crazy - Al Rennie

      Clearwater Crazy

      By

      Al Rennie

      Smashwords Edition

      Copyright © 2013 by Al Rennie

      All Rights Reserved.

      Cover Credit: Rita Toews – probably the most caring, patient and inventive cover creator ever!

      Image Credit: Petr Kratochvil

      Formatting Credit: L.K. Campbell – as always just great – and thank you for the Kindle stuff…

      Dedication

      For my wife – Marsha

      Always there for me and always keeping my moral compass headed in the right direction!

      And Ilker of Altin Bilek Yaylinlari

      Who liked Clearwater Journals enough to get it published in his home country of Turkey. As an encore, he said he would be publishing Clearwater Diaries later this year.

      Turkey is a bit of a crap shoot right now, so I’m not holding my breath on that one.

      Thank You

      Ilker

      Acknowledgements:

      I’d like to thank the growing number of readers who are enjoying the Clearwater Series and who have sent me their kind and encouraging comments. I have enjoyed meeting a number of those people on Face Book. As well, I have been tickled to read the many very interesting and informative e-mails sent my way. California Michael is a special regular correspondent who I have enjoyed; he supplied the joke I used in Danger and another one can be found in Killer. A few of the other regulars include: Debby, Sandra, Dwight, Diane, Warren, Angie, Kathy, Pat, Bonnie, Edd, Carol, Cheerie, Dee, Donna, Steve and Merle. Thank you. Elaine, your water colour painting looks Florida fantastic, and Paul the Pelican enjoys a special place on my office wall watching my every move. Thank you again.

      You do not know how encouraging it is for a writer like me to read that his or her work has been read and then re-read and enjoyed. Beyond that, to be told that I had better be writing quickly because of the interest in what is going to happen next is very gratifying. Thank you Joe and Mia fans, whoever and wherever you are. You are making this ride so much fun. Let me assure the readers who have written asking for more Mia and Joe – I am writing as fast as I can bubbas!

      My three excellent editors have returned again to make my life miserable but your reading experience better. I’d like to thank my wife, Marsha and daughter, Jane as well as Annmarie Schwanke for their masterful work in editing yet another novel. Their efforts have made the story much better and the content easier for you, the reader, to decipher. The cheque is in the mail!

      I’d also like to thank Deputy Chief Ken Jackman (ret.) Peterborough Police Force, for taking time out of his busy life to answer my questions about aspects of being a police officer and working in the legal system. In this book, he was very helpful in helping me understand the intricacies and ramifications of the changes in procedural protocol in investigations as they are now done in Canada. I had never understood the significance of the famous Paul Bernardo case and how investigation procedure changed as a result of it. There was a discussion about suicide as well. If there are errors in my representation of what we discussed, the fault is entirely mine.

      Kudos to Skye Graham, she is the critical care nurse who assists with all things medical. She also happens to be a Joe and Mia fan.

      And thanks to Jamie Potvin for providing me detailed information on the various General Motors vehicles mentioned in the last few books.

      Notice to all young adult readers:

      As a former teacher – and therefore someone sworn to be concerned about the minds of our young people - I have to warn the under eighteen group that Clearwater Crazy, much like the other books in this series, contains a number of bad words, but maybe not as many as a few of the earlier works. And really, what is a bad word? I must also tell you that you will come across some pretty suggestive scenes and some very bad people – but nothing is likely to overly stimulate you or disgust you. Sorry about that. In any case, good reading bubba - enjoy.

      Best Regards,

      Doc

      P.S. – If any of you feel a strong need to communicate with me – try

      alrennie72@gmail.com or arennie@bell.net

      If you would like to see pictures of the Clearwater Beach setting, visit my revised website courtesy of Chance Faulkner Photography. I have included photos of Cooters, Wings, the Jolley Trolley and a few shots taken from Doc and Mia’s condo in Sand Key. If you really look closely enough, you might even see Doc hanging out at the marina. alrennie.com

      NOTE: If you are new to this series, this is not the title for you to start with. From Clearwater Killer forward, there is an assumption that you have met some of the regular characters in your reading of the earlier novels. There is no point in me repeating the same detailed descriptive information on an ongoing basis. If you want an introduction to Joe and Mia, go to Clearwater Journals. That is where the couple first meet. At that time, I did not enjoy the luxury of the editors I have now, so there are typos etc. that I have been too lazy to go back and repair. But it is free. The language is rougher and the humour is less evident. If you want lighter fare, try Clearwater Ambush. In one section of that book, Joe visits an A.I. Clinic. My youngest daughter, age – adult - claims that she wet her pants laughing so hard as she was reading those pages. Embarrassing…you bet! Jeez!

      Note: Clearwater Beach and the area surrounding it is truly my idea of paradise. It is a beautiful place to visit and to live – if you can afford it. The violence depicted in the Clearwater series is just that - fiction – i.e. – it never happened. Go there and find out for yourself. You’ll love the place. Say ‘hi’ to Betsy if you grab a bite to eat at Cooters, but don’t start chatting with Captain Frankie Donner at the marina; you’ll lose hours of your holiday time.

      A few Reader Responses to Clearwater Series:

      "What a cliff-hanger!! Please tell me the next one is coming out sooner rather than later. Love the Clearwater Series – Keep them coming, Al! I eagerly await Doc's next day in paradise. Jackie K

      I have read all of the Clearwater books and enjoyed them all. Clearwater Heat is such a cliff hanger that makes it mandatory to read the next book. I hope you are writing fast and will have it available soon. – Cynthia Brooks August 28, 2012 at 9:22 pm

      I just finished reading Clearwater Showdown, I got Clearwater Journals as a free Nook book, but it was so good I had to buy the other books. I have truly enjoyed reading this series, and hope you plan on taking Joe, Mia, Coop and Ida Mae further. I'm anxiously awaiting another installment. Corrina Wilke - a Doc Holiday fan (I'm your huckleberry lol)

      Review by: Merle Felger on March 26, 2013 :

      Clearwater Danger was great. I have read every book in the Clearwater Journals. I love reading about Joe and the things he manages to get himself into, and how Max, Coop and the rest of his entourage always have his back. I hope the next Joe and Mia adventure is coming out soon.

      Hi Al, I just finished Clearwater Predator, and I thought it was really great. I hope you have another adventure with Doc and his great crew coming soon. Without giving away anything to your other readers, there are lots of things I can’t wait to find out about in your next book(s). I have read all of your Clearwater books, and have loved each one and wait anxiously for the next to be published. Oh, and thank you so much for making Clearwater Predator a little longer just for me. . . Thanks too for sharing your great imagination and writing skills with us. Merle

      I just finished reading your latest book the Clearwater Predator - great book but like always you leave cliff-hangers can't wait to read your next book - so hurry ! Bonnie Walston

      just to let you know I just finished your newest book in the Clearwater series..,…it was great…don't want to rush you but am looking forward to many more…lol…best series I ever read…keep on… Sandra Orndorff

      Al: Just keep them coming! Clearwater is a great series. The Characters are becoming part of the family! …Edd Jenkins

      Looking forward to reading the next adventures of Joe and Mia…I read Intrigue and Danger in three days! Keep up the great work Al!!! Angie Day

      Wow that was great!!!! I loved it, humor was fantastic. Can’t wait to read the next book. If you like mysteries with great characters, great story line, you will love this book, couldn’t put it down!!! One of the best mysteries I have read in a long time. Thank you!!!!!- Erickson Sue

      Hi Al, I just finished Clearwater Extortion, and I loved it. I hope you’re working on the next book, because I can’t wait to see how things go for Jeremy and the boys with all of the new and exciting things happening in their lives. I have so much more to say about how great the book was, but do not want to give anything away to all of your readers who haven’t read it yet. Please hurry and finish the next book, because I can’t wait to find out what’s next for Joe and Mia. Thank you Al for giving us such fun and interesting characters to read about…

      Will be no slowing down for the summer frolicking – will have to sic Max and Mia on you…I have been an avid reader for 40 + years and have to say, this is one of my favorite series ever for pure reading enjoyment…how about a TV series, eh? Enjoy your summer. Steve Owle

      Love the books, can’t put them down and I even find myself slipping into some of the phrases!!! Not sure that will always be a good thing though! Carol

      Travis McGee was the old Joe Holiday. You have really done a great job!!! Greg Martin

      I have read the first three books in Al Rennie's Clearwater series and I was hooked right from the beginning. I find his books both interesting and entertaining. He has created a nice balance of suspense and mystery with a twist of romance between the two main characters, Joe Holiday and Mia. This author's offbeat sense of humor had me laughing out loud at times. The characters are well detailed and believable. I can’t wait to see what happens next. The ending of Clearwater Ambush, (his third book in this series) has left me on the edge of my seat so to speak. I find myself anticipating what happens next with these wacky and wonderful characters that one comes to know a little more with each additional story. I think it’s pretty safe to say that once a fan has read one of Al Rennie's books, he or she will not rest until all the others are found and read too! 5 star rating… Donna VandenBroek

      I read the book in one sitting. Great characters, great plot could not put it down. Love the part where he fell in the grave, very funny. I know you are writing another book because we have to find out what was in the safe. I wish I had a Joe in my family lol. Let us know when it's available; I might have to get a Kindle to get it quicker. Waiting patiently… Bonnie Walston

      Babe, call the hospital. I’ve gone blind. Everything is so dark… Cracked me up!!! Just finished Oops and again you hit it out of the park-grand salami, best of the best!!! Rock on Rennie!!

      Debby Charles

      Just when I thought it was over by reading Killer, you surprised me with another. Great job!!! I’m enjoying this series more than any I’ve read in years. I’m turning as many people as possible to it, and they all seem to be hooked. Please keep writing, and fast.

      Best wishes and warmest regards,

      Greg Martin

      The next endorsement is one that I cherish. It was written by another Canadian writer, the very accomplished, R J Parker.

      I read a lot of books in various genres. I really enjoy reading a series of books that have continuous characters. I'm sharing my favorite series of all time with you my friends and fans and hope that you start this and love it as much as I do. I have two more to read which I will do over the next few days. It's the Clearwater series by my friend and fellow Canadian author Mr. Al Rennie. The first book in the series is the Clearwater Journals and it's free. This series is available in all the markets, ie, Amazon, Barnes, Smashwords etc. As an avid reader for 35 years, I'm declaring this series to be my all-time favorite. It simply rocks!! Fast-paced, lovable characters and Al has a great sense of humor. If you're having a bad day, any one of these books will make you laugh. This is Al's website with the books in order… Let me know if you start these books and what you think.

      Blessings, RJ

      Chapter 1

      Clearwater Crazy

      Anything happening…?

      Not a fricken thing… same as always, his mother left around noon today, but nothing in the last two hours. How long are we going to keep this up, Joe? Four days with a pain in my ass from sitting, and I haven’t even had a whiff of the guy, Billy Ray said. The big guy’s frustration turning quickly to anger was barely disguised.

      I had just piled onto the passenger seat of an old banged up white van after Billy pulled the expensive Canon camera with its massive long range lens out of the way to make room for me. The fact that it had been sitting on the passenger seat un-used told me that nothing of significance had happened during the time Billy had been watching. It’s an investigator thing. We had bought the painter’s van some months ago for similar surveillance work we did in a new Tampa sub-division. The van had cost less than the camera with its long range photo lens.

      We were spying on a middle class home in St. Pete’s belonging to an early thirty something guy who had claimed, that as a result of an accident at work when he slipped on a wet floor and went ass over teakettle in the washroom, he was permanently disabled. I had seen the photo of him being taken, on an ambulance gurney, from the washroom to the emergency department of the nearest hospital. He actually looked like a dead guy wearing a neck brace. He had survived his ‘brush with death’, (his words), and was now looking to collect a mere million on the insurance policy held by the company for its employees in the event of accidental death or permanent disability. I guess Mr. Johns had expensive tastes and was a little vindictive because his suit against the company for lost future wages and punitive damages for the wet floor was a whole lot more … fifteen million more. That might be fair enough, I suppose, if it was all true, but the small manufacturing company and its insurance company that we were working for said, ‘no way Jose; the guy is running a scam.’

      I was Billy’s relief for this afternoon until Bobby Bonz relieved me, but Billy was not as anxious to return to his life away from CHIPs as I thought he might be. Maybe he felt sorry for me having to sit, bored cross-eyed for the next six hours. We sat and got caught up with what we each had been doing and which of the NFL teams looked good when the season opened. I have always been a Patriot fan, but New England had taken a few hard hits in the off season. Wes Welker had signed with Denver; Danny Woodhead had hooked up with San Diego and Aaron Hernandez was looking at a murder one charge in Boston after he allegedly shot a buddy in the face. You have to wonder how he treated his enemies. Being from this part of Florida, Billy Ray was a true orange Tampa Buccaneer fan, but even he acknowledged that generally, they sucked.

      In the weeks before we had started this investigation, one of our newest employees, retired Detective Sergeant Gerry Mulligan formerly of the Clearwater Police Department, had been serving a subpoena to a hostile witness, when he had had suffered a massive heart attack and dropped dead. He had not even been with us two months, but in that time he had become a popular member of our little company. The stories he told of his time when he was working as a cop had always been of the humorous and entertaining variety. The truly ugly stuff never made it to the surface. He had partnered with Fred Cooper at an early stage in their careers and those narratives were eye openers as to what my partner in CHIPs had been like as a younger man. For whatever the reason, Billy Ray had been more deeply affected by Gerry’s sudden demise than might have been expected. He went into a mild depression in the days after Mulligan’s funeral. I didn’t know how to help my big bud in those days, but gradually, he came around. We spent some time talking about how Fred might try to replace Gerry as CHIPs was again running short staffed.

      As we sat there talking, I watched quietly as a dark red almost maroon, new Toyota Highlander parked in front of the Johns’ home. A tall incredibly attractive young woman with gleaming black hair had climbed out of the vehicle and started up the walk to the front door. If Mia had been sitting beside me, she could have stated the exact cost of getting the gleam into that hair and it would have been in the several hundreds of dollars. There was a little bit of some very intriguing exaggerated hip action for any males who might be watching. I knew two who were sitting in an old white van, totally transfixed.

      Whoa, hold on there…who is this? Snow White makes a fricken house call …

      The company had taken the medical report including x-Rays and an MRI as well as a CAT scan to another supposedly objective spinal-cranial specialist, Dr. Martin Swartz, a highly regarded teaching research physician at Harvard Medical School. After reviewing all of the supporting and opposing documentation for the claim, Dr. Swartz wrote, using case sensitive euphemistic terms in his report that the disabled guy had to be kidding. A stronger translation of the wording of his report just missed saying, ‘Shame on you, sir; liar, liar pants on fire’. No way could this guy be permanently disabled with what his med reports read or looked like.

      Based upon Dr. Swartz’s report, the insurance company had informed the accident victim and his employer that they were going to withhold the money until they could check deeper into the matter. Or at least that was the

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