Dead Guilty

BEVERLY CONNOR
    Praise for the novels of Beverly Connor
    ‘‘Calls to mind the forensic mysteries of Aaron Elkins and Patricia Cornwell. . . . Chases, murder attempts, and harrowing rescues add
adventure.’’
to this fast-paced
    — Chicago Sun-Times

    ‘‘Connor combines smart people, fun people, and dan gerous people in a novel hard to put down.’’ — The Dallas Morning News
    ‘‘Outstanding. . . . Connor grabs the reader with her first sentence and never lets up until the book’s end. . . . The story satisfies both as a mystery and as an entre´e into the fascinating world of bones. . . . Add Connor’s dark humor, and you have a multidimen sional mystery that deserves comparison with the best of Patricia Cornwell.’’ — Booklist (starred review)
    ‘‘In Connor’s latest multifaceted tale, the plot is ser pentine, the solution ingenious, the academic politics vicious . . . entertaining... chock-full of engrossing anthropological and archeological detail.’’
    — Publishers Weekly
continued ...
    ‘‘Connor’s books are a smart blend of Patricia Cornwell, Aaron Elkins, and Elizabeth Peters, with some good, deep-South atmosphere to make it authentic.’’
    — Oklahoma Family Magazine
    ‘‘Crisp dialogue, interesting characters, fascinating tid bits of bone lore and a murderer that eluded me. When I started reading, I couldn’t stop. What more could you ask for? Enjoy.’’
    —Virginia Lanier, author of the Bloodhound series
    ‘‘Beverly Connor has taken the dry bones of scientific inquiry and resurrected them into living, breathing characters. I couldn’t put [it] down until I was finished, even though I wanted to savor the story. I predict that Beverly Connor will become a major player in the field of mystery writing.’’
    —David Hunter, author of The Dancing Savior
    ‘‘Combine[s] forensic anthropology with some pretty sharp antagonists. There is something about ancestors and bones that adds unspeakable excitement and fore boding to a mystery story. . . . Connor’s style is origi nal and fresh.’’ — Midwest Book Review
    ALSO BY BEVERLY CONNOR
    ONE GRAVE TOO MANY* AIRTIGHT CASE SKELETON CREW DRESSED TO DIE QUESTIONABLE REMAINS A RUMOR OF BONES
    *Published by Onyx

DEAD GUILTY

A DIANE FALLON FORENSIC INVESTIGATION

BEVERLY CONNOR

    ONYX
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand,
London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Books Australia Ltd, 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia
Penguin Books Canada Ltd, 10 Alcorn Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4V 3B2
Penguin Books (NZ), cnr Airborne and Rosedale Roads, Albany, Auckland 1310, New Zealand
Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices:
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
First published by Onyx, an imprint of New American Library, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
    Copyright © Beverly Connor, 2004
All rights reserved
    REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA ISBN: 1-101-11127-5
    Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval sys tem, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
    PUBLISHER’S NOTE
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resem blance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
    The scanning, uploading and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punish able by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
    To Charles Connor

    ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to give thanks to Judy Hanson and Terry Cooper for patiently answering my questions.

    ‘‘Rule number one of crime scene work: If it’s wet and sticky and it ain’t yours, don’t touch it.’’ —Terry Cooper,

    crime scene specialist, Georgia Bureau of Investigation

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