Zigzag Read online

  Murder-suicide, period.

  Because I can’t, I won’t, believe the dead can harm the living in any way for any purpose.

  Because there is no such thing as a revenant.

  “NAMELESS DETECTIVE” MYSTERIES BY BILL PRONZINI

  Zigzag (collection)

  Vixen

  Strangers

  Nemesis

  Hellbox

  Camouflage

  Betrayers

  Schemers

  Fever

  Savages

  Mourners

  Nightcrawlers

  Scenarios (collection)

  Spook

  Bleeders

  Crazybone

  Boobytrap

  Illusions

  Sentinels

  Spadework (collection)

  Hardcase

  Demons

  Epitaphs

  Quarry

  Breakdown

  Jackpot

  Shackles

  Deadfall

  Bones

  Double (with Marcia Muller)

  Nightshades

  Quicksilver

  Case File (collection)

  Bindlestiff

  Dragonfire

  Scattershot

  Hoodwink

  Labyrinth

  Twospot (with Collin Wilcox)

  Blowback

  Undercurrent

  The Vanished

  The Snatch

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Bill Pronzini has been nominated for, or won, every prize offered to crime-fiction writers, including the 2008 Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America. It is no wonder, then, that the Detroit Free Press wrote of him: “It’s always nice to see masters at work. Pronzini’s clear style seamlessly weaves [story lines] together, turning them into a quick, compelling read.” He lives and writes in California with his wife, the crime novelist Marcia Muller. You can sign up for email updates here.

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  CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Copyright Notice

  Dedication

  ZIGZAG

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  GRAPPLIN’

  NIGHTSCAPE

  REVENANT

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  “Nameless Detective” Mysteries by Bill Pronzini

  About the Author

  Copyright Acknowledgments

  Copyright

  COPYRIGHT ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  “Zigzag” copyright © 2016 by the Pronzini-Muller Family Trust. An original novella.

  “Grapplin’” copyright © 2014 by the Pronzini-Muller Family Trust. First published in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine under the title “Who You Been Grapplin’ With?”

  “Nightscape” copyright © 2007 by the Pronzini-Muller Family Trust. First published in slightly different form in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine under the title “The Winning Ticket.”

  “Revenant” copyright © 2016 by the Pronzini-Muller Family Trust. An original novella.

  This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in these stories are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  ZIGZAG

  Copyright © 2016 by the Pronzini-Muller Family Trust

  All rights reserved.

  Cover design by Drive Communications, New York

  Cover images © 2016 Shutterstock

  A Forge Book

  Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC

  175 Fifth Avenue

  New York, NY 10010

  www.tor-forge.com

  Forge® is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.

  The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

  ISBN 978-0-7653-8103-3 (hardcover)

  ISBN 978-1-4668-7677-4 (e-book)

  e-ISBN 9781466876774

  Our e-books may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by e-mail at [email protected].

  First Edition: May 2016