Jonnie Jacobs. Intent to Harm (2003) 304 pp.
San Francisco attorney Kali O’Brien goes the extra mile for a woman she only knows as Betty when she agrees to meet her in a deserted park near Lake Tahoe. Betty was very insistent on client confidentiality and privilege, making sure that Kali was paid with an anonymous money order so that privilege would cover their first meeting. When Kali and Betty finally meet, they only have time to exchange pleasantries before shots ring out. When Kali wakes up in the hospital, she learns that Betty is dead. The police identify the victim as Betty Arnold, the niece of Faith Foster, a high school teacher who disappeared eight years ago and is presumed dead. Unable to let matters rest, Kali does some sleuthing and discovers that Betty had found proof Faith is alive but is living under an assumed name. She knows that people are trying to find her and once again goes on the run, hoping to shake the determined killer on her trail. Kali is determined to learn why Faith is on the run and bring her out of the cold.
San Francisco Chronicle review

H.K.