Book three in the author's Alan Bernhardt series (Silent Witness, 1990; Bernhardt's Edge, 1988) has a token appearance by Frank Hastings, SFPD, and a practically invisible Bernhardt, who merely hovers at the edges of his case: to find out who wealthy, powerful real-estate mogul Preston Daniels was carting to the Cape Cod dump in a garbage bag. Daniels's stepdaughter, the unattractive, unloved Diane Cutler, spied on the dump run, as did her drug-supplier/sometime-lover Jeff. When Jeff dies ``accidentally'' and someone starts stalking her after she's hotfooted it cross-country for safety, Diane admits she's scared, and Bernhardt steps in--just as Daniels's personal pilot/hit-man and a crooked Cape police chief demand bigger silence payoffs. Which of Daniels many blond bimbo mistresses got dumped? Did his wife know, or even care? How many times will Daniels kill to keep the first death a secret? At least once--before Bernhardt, the tycoon, the pilot, and the sheriff collide in a dark, smelly corner of the landfill. No surprises, just steady, quiet narration professionally humming to an inevitable conclusion. A civilized way to be scared.
