Lifeless in the Lilies by Dale Mayer

Riches to rags. … Chaos calms. … Suddenly it’s quiet. … Too quiet if Doreen’s involved!

What was supposed to be a leisurely stroll through a peaceful cemetery after a recent funeral turns into the start of a new case. Someone clobbers Doreen over the head and leaves her facedown among the funeral flowers.

Is it random violence? Revenge? A warning of worse to come?

No one knows, not even Doreen, but one thing is certain: the attack enabled the disappearance—perhaps the abduction?—of Doreen’s beloved African gray parrot, Thaddeus. Frantic, Doreen foregoes a trip to the emergency room in favor of heading straight home, where she hopes Thaddeus will return sooner rather than later.

But when he does, the bird sports an SOS message fastened around his ankle, leading Doreen to a odd corner of town and a curious little boy who know one will talk about.

Now someone is leaving threats on Doreen’s doorstep and then delivering threats in person …

Between birds and boys and Corporal Mack Moreau’s brother, the lawyer looking into her divorce situation, Doreen has her hands full. And that’s before her former lawyer shows up unexpectedly at her home! Off-balance by all these events, Doreen opens her door to someone with a serious grudge to take her down …