It wasn't like Hazel to go off so silently. But she did. I tried calling her at the motel. No Hazel, no message. So I had to do some checking of my own.

I went to see Hazel's business manager Nate Pepperman - the man whose call had taken Hazel away in the first place. Nate ought to have known where Hazel was. And maybe he did. But he wasn't saying anything this time. How could he with his throat slit ear to ear

And that was when I knew I was in for another bout of mayhem and murder. Only this time the black shadow of the Mafia made life even more difficult.