Always a Cop

What we have here is the story of a career cop named Beau who’s been retired for a few years and two fellow retired cops, Finn Fincannon and Matsuo Shimada. All three have something that makes normal investigative work a little more difficult. Beau, who was a philandering cop, lost his wife and his life’s savings and is forced to live in a boarding house. Not to worry though, at the age of seventy, he still has his way with any woman he sets his eyes on. Fincannon has Alzheimer’s disease and Matsuo Shimada doesn’t do anything unless it involves the possibility of a golf game.

The story starts with Beau coming up on an accident scene. What evolves from there is an interesting story filled with twists and turns as takes you by car, foot, and bike all around Sacramento, mixed in with a trip to Yosemite and Mexico—all while looking for a kidnapper. The plot thickens when Beau discovers a murder victim. Beau is suspected by the DA as having committed the murder. There is a surprise motive and confession from a long-time friend that ties many loose ends up, if they can catch him.

Fincannon is able to assist with the case in his moments of lucidity. Shimada is an interesting player in this story because of the things that happen to him that are somewhat funny.

You get a pretty good idea of who Beau is as a person. There’s a part of the story where his young grandson starts to emulate Beau’s behavior when it comes to attracting women, but in an adolescent way. Beau is asked by his daughter to talk to his grandson, Michael, about this and Beau is in a quandary about this because of his own behavior.

Though the story line moves fairly slowly in places, the author writes eloquently enough to keep the reader interested. For those in the Sacramento area, you will find this a fun read, because the author takes you to actual places.