What fun for a new adventure! Great respect for the characters, and very well written. It took me SEVERAL hours, but I couldn't put it down. Thanks-

Wow! I'm loving this. Mark's loyalty and Hardcastle's rather inept attempts to protect Mark are beautifully shown. This is wonderful!

A very well-written and absorbing story. Great opening, excellent plot development, believable dialogue (can't get enough of that good ol' Hardcastle-McCormick interaction) - and a wonderful depiction of the Las Vegas cityscape. I could especially empathize with a youthful Mark's trying to visualize, via a black-and-white television set, the myriad colors of Vegas in all its technicolor glory.

Great job, Cheri!

And this second part ramps up the tension even more-with guys back working on the same team. of course my favorite part has always been Mark talking about what it was like when he first got out of prison; that ranks right up there with your story 'The Verdict'. But plans and schemes, cross and double cross, the whole thing is a terrific read.

What a nasty, sneaky, HILARIOUS way to end this story.

A fabulous story with a nice meaty plot, lots of action, plenty of snappy banter, just the right touch of emotion at the end, and a multitude of wonderfully-drawn images. It's so hard to pick a favorite, but the best one might be the two of them waving at the cowboy.

Your dialogue is right on target and the auxiliary characters are distinct and memorable. Andrew's my idea of a perfect doorman and the cabbie's almost equally appealing. Thanks for the incredible trip to Vegas!

This was a Fabulous story.I was very interested in this all the way through.I could hardly stand to take a break from reading it.

I could very well picture all that was going on and for me when I can do that I know its a great story.

It showed exactly how much Mark and Milt cared about each and what all they are willing to go through to keep the other one safe.

Jeanne

It's just as good as the first time I read it: the slow, relentless build of suspicion and suspense-McC refusing to be bought off and stand aside; his investigatory scams, as natural as falling off a log and complete with all the little touches of humor that we'd expect from the resident loose cannon; his scam running head-long into Hardcastle's and the very real feeling of conflict that ensues.

But what I like most about this first half is the underlying premise-that even though H knows McC is going to be a pain in the butt and hard to evade, he brings him along anyway. There's a wonderful unstated premise here, that either H doesn't think he has any choice (McC simply won't be left out) or, even though he steadfastly tries to hold him at arm's length, Hardcastle subconsciously wants the kid along as emotional back-up. And you even have Mark figure that out first:

'"You’re worrying about nothing, kid, but I’ll tell you what: if it gets to the point where I do need help, you’ll be the first one to know, okay?"

"I already know," McCormick said stubbornly, “I’m just waitin’ on you to admit it.'

Just wonderful.

What a marvelous novel! As usual with your stuff, it's wonderfully plotted and paced. Also as usual, the dialog and characterizations were spot on.

Particular things I liked: Everyone running to poor Frank! Ha! The poor man. Particularly loved him asking the Judge why he took Mark wtih him which led to the very lovely line about Frank hearing all of the Judge's answers.

Mark's gentle scamming of the romantic Andrew. So glad Andrew got his happy ending. the judge's interesting relationship with Delancie. Nice spin on what could have become a mobster cliche. The side plot of Dalem poking his nose in. That really upped the ante in a very believable way. Mark apologizing for getting segregated-Aw! And followed by the interesting monologue about the first few eeks out of prison. Very believeable thoughts. The little detail of Mark wearing a hat to his booking. He would too! The lines: "you are a bottomless pit." "normal signs of problems might be hard to distinguich from you regular goofiness." And finally but only because I'm running out of room) my very farotie thing: powdered donuts! I'd do time for those.

Thank you *so* much for writing this. My gosh, it must have eaten your life!

Wonderful! So true in character and emotions.

From the very opening, it's clear this is a classic! The give-and-take of the banter, the zippy pace of the action, the humor, the emotional tug-of-war - it's all perfect. McCormick's irritated and concerned fuming, the judge's staunch, painful determination; Frank being in on the scheme (excuse me, _plan_); the intricate plot and fascinating other characters; memorable lines and peeks at the basis of the relationship without bashing the reader over the head with it. It goes without saying (but I'll say it anyway) that everything is believable and true to character. And a fascinating story!