A Vendetta for Valerie

THE BASIC STORY LINE When Julio Milano arrives at his girlfriend Tabitha's apartment, he finds her dying. Her throat has been slashed. Valerie, Tabitha's seven-year-old daughter, chillingly asks Julio to kill the person who murdered her mother. He responds, "He might kill me." The grim-faced child says, "No, you'll kill him." A promise has been made to bring the killer to justice. This is easier said than done. There are no good clues. However, Julio manages to zero in on several suspects. One suspect is Frankie "Swoonatra" Rossi, Tabitha's ex-lover and possibly Valerie's father. He is a lounge singer in Las Vegas. Another suspect is Old Man Garibaldi, a winery owner. He lives with his granddaugher, Nicola, under suspicious circumstances. There is the possibility that Tabitha was blackmailing him. A third suspect is Lucy, a prostitute and Tabitha's sister. Tabitha was responsible for Lucy's entry into the profession. As Julio pursues his investigation, he discovers that Tabitha had a dark side to her personality that had escaped him. Julio soon learns that his quest for revenge is fraught with danger. He has to run more than one life-threatening risk in order to obtain the information he seeks. The story ends with a deadly encounter between Julio and Tabitha's murderer. SOME CENTRAL CHARACTERS JULIO MILANO. Julio is an unlicensed investigator, a self-destructive, down-on-his luck alcoholic. He is over sixty, and lives alone in a rundown duplex. He is able to bring himself out of his doldrums in order to solve a crime involving a person he cares about. VALIER WALKER. Valerie is a seven-year old orphan, the slain Tabitha's daughter. Valerie is bright and loving. She wants to become a veterinarian and loves animals. She has become, so to speak, "allergic to death." This is true in spite of her chilling request asking Julio to kill her mother's murderer. MARIE MILANO. Marie is Julio's ex-wife. She still provides him with nurturance, understanding, and a safe haven when he needs one. LOU MILANO. Lou is Julio's brother. He owns a liquor store in town. He attempts to put a restraint on Julio's impulsive, risk-taking behavior, usually without much result. AL MARTINEZ. Al is a detective on the San Aqua police force. He threatens Julio with a murder charge. He is mean and dangerous. And he gives Julio trouble. OLD MAN GARIBALDI. Garibaldi is the owner of a winery. He is a sly, deceptive person. He was instrumental in ruining the Milano family winery. NICOLA FERRARI. Nicola is Garibaldi's housekeeper and granddaughter. Julio suspects that her relationship with Garibaldi is incestuous. GABRIELLE WASHINGTON. Gabrielle is Julio's granddaughter and a former prostitute. Now married to the solid Naldo Washington, she and her husband seek to make a home for Valerie. SAM WRIGHT. Sam is the Chief of Detectives in San Aqua. Officially, he is opposed to Julio's investigation of Tabitha's murder. Unofficially, he is an approving friend. RED O'HARA. Red is a former stripper, now a clinical psychologist. When Julio ends up in the alcoholic ward in the state hospital, Red, an old friend, is his therapist. Eventually they become lovers.