[Lou Mason 01.0] Motion to Kill

by Joel Goldman

  “All the same, watch your back. Are you going to spend the rest of your life tending bar?”

  “Nope. I’m just helping Blues. The DNA tests on one of the Philpott safety hooks turned up Tommy’s blood. I’m going to file a motion for a new trial next week. Then I’m going to hang my shingle out in an office upstairs and see what comes through the door.”

  “Just remember, Lou. My door’s always open.” She left him a nice tip.

  Mason wandered upstairs to his office. Tuffy was curled on a rug next to his desk chair, waiting for her ears to be scratched.

  He settled into his chair, swiveled around to look out his windows onto Broadway. His office was in a part of town the mayor described as “in transition.” He felt the same way. There was nothing fancy about the office—just the basics. Blues had given him an office-warming gift. It was a metronome. He told Mason to just listen to the beat. It was good advice.

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  LET'S CONNECT

  Joel enjoys engaging with his readers. Drop by his website, www.joelgoldman.com, to find out more about him and his books. Read what he has to say about the writer’s life on his blog, www.joelgoldman.com/blog and join him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/joelgoldman1 and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/joelgoldmanauthor. Check out all his books at www.Amazon.com/author/joelgoldman. And watch videos about Joel and his books at www.youtube.com/user/joelgoldmanwriter.

  For Hildy, the wife of my life

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  A number of people were instrumental in helping me with this book the first time it was published as a paperback original in 2002. From the beginning, my wife, Hildy, and my children—Aaron, Danny, and Michele—supported me. Many people, including my sister Susan, my cousin Merilyn, and my friend Dan, read and reread the early drafts, adding their enthusiastic encouragement. My agent, Meredith Bernstein, gave me a chance and became my good friend.

  The e-book revolution has given this book and the others in the Lou Mason series a second life. I’ve updated the book but kept the story intact. It’s like getting a do-over with one of your kids!

  Jeroen ten Berge, www.jeroentenberge.com, continues to create the best book covers in the business.

  Thanks to Jason Chatraw who did a great job formatting the book for the Kindle. You can find him at www.GreenE-Books.com. And, thanks to Ross Burck for his terrific work formatting the print edition. You can find Ross at rossburck@yahoo.com.

  Thanks also to Eileen Chetti for a superb copyediting job.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Joel Goldman is the author of the Edgar and Shamus nominated Lou Mason Thrillers, the Jack Davis Thrillers and the Alex Stone Thrillers. He lives with his wife and two dogs in Leawood, KS. He was a trial lawyer for twenty-eight years. He wrote his first thriller after one of his partners complained about another partner, prompting him to write a mystery, kill the son-of-a-bitch off in the first chapter and spend the rest of the book figuring out who did it. And he never looked back.

  NOVELS & SHORT STORIES

  BY JOEL GOLDMAN

  THE LOU MASON THRILLERS

  Motion to Kill

  The Last Witness

  The Cold Truth

  Deadlocked

  Final Judgment

  THE JACK DAVIS THRILLERS

  Shakedown

  The Dead Man

  No Way Out

  THE ALEX STONE THRILLERS

  Stone Cold

  THE DEAD MAN SERIES BY WILLIAM RABKIN & LEE GOLDBERG

  Freaks Must Die

  SHORT STORIES

  Fire In The Sky

  Knife Fight

  Cold Truth

  “Joel Goldman is the real deal. In Cold Truth, Lou Mason goes his namesake Perry one better and ought to make Kansas City a must-stop on the lawyer/thriller map.”

  John Lescroart, bestselling author

  “Wanted for good writing: Joel Goldman strikes again with Cold Truth.”

  The Kansas City Star

  Deadlocked

  “A certain death penalty case and execution is the catalyst in Joel Goldman’s legal thriller Deadlocked. The fourth Lou Mason case is the best and most thought provoking and when the action starts it is a real page turner delivered by a pro.”

  Mystery Scene Magazine

  “In his fourth novel, attorney-turned-author Joel Goldman delivers a well-plotted legal thriller that takes an insightful look at capital punishment and questions of guilt. Deadlocked’s brisk pace is augmented by Goldman’s skill at creating realistic characters and believable situations.”

  Oline H. Cogdill, Orlando Sun Sentinel

  Final Judgment

  “A page-turner of the highest caliber.”

  Michael Connelly, bestselling author

  “Even with all the crosses and double-crosses, only the most astute mystery reader will be able to figure out what is really going on. At that point, it may be too late for our protagonist. Final Judgment reads quickly and deftly combines both legal intrigue and hard-boiled crime elements.”

  BookReporter.com

  Stone Cold

  “In Stone Cold, Joel Goldman delivers a remarkably nuanced, edge-of-your-seat legal thriller. This is suspense at its very best, beautifully written by a pro who deserves to be in the same ranks as Grisham and Turow.”

  Libby Fischer Hellmann, author of A Bitter Veil

  “Stone Cold is another excellent novel by Joel Goldman. It is well written with numerous intriguing twists-a real page turner. The story takes place in Goldman’s favorite setting – Kansas City; with characters familiar to Goldman readers. If you enjoy legal thrillers this is one of the best.”

  Dale Dobbs

  Copyright © 2002 by Joel Goldman

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

  This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used factiously. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead) or events is entirely coincidental.