Louisiana Lament

Praise for LOUISIANA BIGSHOT,
the SECOND book in the Talba Wallis series by Edgar-winning author Julie Smith:
    “Talba Wallis has to be one of the most distinctive female detectives in the business. Her personality and her poetry are riveting reasons to read this book.”
    —
The Times-Picayune,
New Orleans
    “Smith has launched Talba Wallis on a welcome series of her own. Wallis is fine fun to get to know… a consistently interesting and likable woman of depth and complexity.”
    —
The Washington Post
    “Smith has perfect pitch. It’s great to hear her again.…Smith gives us a multilayered mystery and a quirky, believable heroine.”
    —
Booklist
    “Smith’s new series is a whole other kettle of crayfish: wilder and funnier.”
    —
Chicago Tribune
    “Join Edgar winner Julie Smith for a climax as harrowing as it is cunning.”
    —
The Clarion Ledger,
Jackson, MS
    “Highly evocative of the Big Easy,
Louisiana Bigshot
is an easy read filled with colorful, exciting people drawn with affection and intelligence. Talba seems to get smarter with each novel, and there’s even a small cameo appearance by Skip Langdon, Ms. Smith’s other New Orleans detective.”
    —
Dallas Morning News
    “The quirky pleasure of watching the Baroness strut her stuff is worth the price of admission.”
    —
Houston Chronicle
    “Unusual subject matter set off by an appealing but street wise heroine makes this a strongly recommended choice.”
    —
Library Journal
    “The strongly drawn characters are appealing. The interplay between the young black woman and her much older white boss is warm and respectful; Smith nicely plays it against the very real and very dangerous racial divide that Talba encounters when she investigates her friend’s smalltown past.
    —
Publishers Weekly
    “
Louisiana Bigshot
is a character-driven tale with plenty of action, suspense, and steamy southern atmosphere… It’s an exhilarating romp that will have you cheering for Talba.”
    —
The Mystery Review

The Talba Wallis Series
    LOUISIANA HOTSHOT
    LOUISIANA BIGSHOT
    LOUISIANA LAMENT
    P.I. ON A HOT TIN ROOF

Also by Julie Smith:
    The Skip Langdon Series
    NEW ORLEANS MOURNING
    THE AXEMAN’S JAZZ
    JAZZ FUNERAL
    DEATH BEFORE FACEBOOK
(formerly NEW ORLEANS BEAT)
    HOUSE OF BLUES
    THE KINDNESS OF STRANGERS
    CRESCENT CITY CONNECTION
(formerly CRESCENT CITY KILL)
    82 DESIRE
    MEAN WOMAN BLUES
    The Rebecca Schwartz Series
    DEATH TURNS A TRICK
    THE SOURDOUGH WARS
    TOURIST TRAP
    DEAD IN THE WATER
    OTHER PEOPLE’S SKELETONS
    The Paul Mcdonald Series
    TRUE-LIFE ADVENTURE
    HUCKLEBERRY FIEND
    As Well As
    WRITING YOUR WAY: THE GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL TRACK
    NEW ORLEANS NOIR (ed.)

LOUISIANA BIGSHOT
    A Talba Wallis Mystery
    By
    JULIE SMITH

 
    booksBnimble Publishing
New Orleans, La.
    Louisiana Bigshot
    Copyright 2002 by Julie Smith
    All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
    Cover by Nevada Barr
    ISBN: 9781617504464
    Originally published by Tor, a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
    www.booksnimble.com
    First booksBnimble Publishing electronic publication: November 2012
    eBook editions by eBooks by Barb for booknook.biz

DEDICATION
    To four good kids:
    Stella Tripp, Grant Smith, Paloma Tripp, and Will Smith

Chapter One
    Under normal circumstances, getting a Louisiana PI license is so routine as to be boring—you take a course, you pass a test, and you pay your money. Usually, there’s only one slight catch—you can’t be issued a license unless you’re already hired. But Talba Wallis seemed to have found another one.
    She
was
already hired, and she’d made ninety-seven on the test. For nearly five months she’d worked as an apprentice for Mr. Eddie Valentino of E.V. Anthony Investigations.
    And still, she almost didn’t get her license.
    You have to submit a few little things with your application—a copy of your driver’s license, five-by-seven-inch photo, and fingerprints. For the last, the State Board of Private Investigator Examiners provides official FBI cards. All you have to do is take them to any law enforcement agency that offers a fingerprinting service and plunk down a few small bucks.
    “Piece o’ cake,” Eddie said. “Take ya ten minutes, max.”
    So one gorgeous September day on her lunch hour, Talba drove out to 715 South Broad Street,