|
JAKE
DANGER
A
Coney Island bad boy who never got caught, Jake has always walked
the line between the guys he chased as a cop and the ones he schemed
with as a kid. Now a private detective, he prowls the gritty streets
of New York during the last days of the Kennedy era, looking for
truth, justice and a decent corned beef sandwich, not necessarily
in that order. He is haunted by a past that includes a mob boss
who had Jake's father killed 25 years ago, and the death of his
partner in an undercover mafia sting, which made Jake throw in
his badge. Ex-small time hood, ex-war hero and ex-cop, Jake is
a lone urban warrior in a battle where the rules constantly change
and it's always a guess as to whose side anyone is on. In a world
of chaos he stands and acts on his principles, which doesn't make
him very popular at parties, unless the dress code includes a
smoking 38.
TONY
MARINARA
Jake's
best friend from Coney Island. He was a starter for the New York
Yankees, but to help Jake out of a jam, Tony enlisted and was
shot in the leg during the Korean war. Blessed with both a high
IQ and an annoying interest in the burgeoning field of psychology,
Tony now spends his days running a greasy spoon called "The
Last Inning" in Brooklyn. He offers Jake a shotgun back-up,
and sometimes a good kick in the head. What are friends for?
SUZIE
BRIDGES
Born
Suzanne Constance Isabelle Bridges, which she feels no one should
ever have to put on a napkin, Suzie is a reporter who used to
follow Jake around when he was a cop. She's always trying to get
a story that will rescue her from the Society pages, her pedigree
of Connecticut prep schools and her parents' names etched firmly
in the Social Register. She's tough, smart, determined, and in
the male-dominated world of New York newspapers, almost totally
outgunned. Tony suspects she is sweet on Jake, but to Suzie it
is all business. She has her eye on a story that will give her
a big break, and she keeps thinkin' Jake is her ticket out. As
far as Jake is concerned she can keep thinkin' that. Everybody
needs a hobby.
|
|
J.J.
LACROSSE
Jake
has been enlisted by this mysterious millionaire to help discover
who has been stealing from one of his companies, and to do it
as quietly as possible. Richer than God, powerful beyond means,
with a taste for phony-accented henchman and Italian opera, Jake
isn't sure what to do about Lacrosse. Trust him, or get as far
away as possible. Maybe the ex-employee laying in the morgue with
three slugs in him has something to do with it.
ALLISON
UPTON
Beautiful,
mysterious, the daughter of a millionaire industrialist, Allison
was educated at Vasser. A high society girl with the best clothes,
the best schools, and life a bowl of cherries before her, until
her family was financially wiped out and her father commited suicide.
She now works for Lacrosse, the man who drove her family into
ruin, as his personal assistant. Jake is curious about her strange
career choice and intends to find out her real agenda. But he
better watch his back because this gal has a lot of hidden talents,
and not all of them are sugar and spice.
MACK
HARRIGAN
Mack
was Jake's partner, who was killed during an undercover sting
three years before this story. He sometimes appears to Jake as
a wandering spirit, dispensing cryptic advice, especially after
Jake has consumed large quantities of Jack Daniels. Is he real
or just a figment of Jake's suppressed guilt? He isn't telling.
GIOVANNI
The
elusive mob boss that Jake has never met, but is determined to
bring to justice. Responsible for both the death of Jake's partner,
and for Jake leaving the police force, bringing down Giovanni
is the one thing that Jake needs to rectify before he can put
the pieces of his life back together. Even if it kills him.
|
