The Drill Is Death

Nathan Shapiro might be the gloomiest member of Manhattan's finest, but that doesn't stop the dour detective from getting the job done when the going gets tough . . . Englishman Reginald Grant readily admits that the differences between British and American culture sometimes elude him. Unfortunately, a gruesome discovery soon forces the respected poet and visiting professor to deal with an institution he has little knowledge of: the New York City Police Department. After answering questions about the young woman he found stabbed to death in the back of a cab, Grant leaves the station and considers his part in the unfortunate affair over. But when two men who claim to be with the police want to ask him a few more questions-and promptly take him hostage-Grant discovers his troubles are just beginning . . . Det. Nathan Shapiro thought the poet seemed truthful when he claimed not to know the victim, but now it's major news that Reginald Grant was actually the girl's teacher-and the man himself is missing. With a blunder to make up for, Shapiro must do his best to bring everything to a justifiable end. But there's more to this story than what's in the headlines.