Free Ticket To Nowhere: Chapter 1
A Stark Mystery
The name is Stark. My first name doesn’t matter, everyone calls me Stark. I am a private eye. A gumshoe. I have a fleabag office in a fleabag part of a fleabag town.
It was a day like any other day. I had just finished mopping up the cheap gin I spilled on my desk with a two-day-old donut. Here’s a tip, powdered sugar donuts soak up gin better than glazed. They taste better also.
Suddenly an envelope slid under my door.
I recently had a bad experience with a message slid under my door, so I was leery of opening the envelope. But I figured there was a slim chance it was a client payment. Not that I have had any clients for weeks, but I’m a cynical optimist. It was worth a look.
Inside was an airplane ticket to Miami and two sawbucks. Plus a note that said,
“There will be more money once you arrive. I need an investigator with your particular skill set.”
Well, they had me at “more money once you arrive,” but the “skill set” line was the icing on the cake.
Obviously, my reputation is making its way across the country. But why did it have to be Florida? I hate sweating. And alligators. And mosquitos.
