San Francisco. Late September, 2004.

The Giants are hanging on to the slim hope of a spot in the Major League baseball playoffs.

The Forty-Niners are hoping for their first win of the season after three losses.

Vinnie "Strings" Stradivarius is in the intensive care ward at St. Francis Memorial Hospital--and Jake Diamond is hoping Vinnie will both survive and avoid a homicide indictment if he pulls through.

Vinnie has been double-crossed, shot and left for dead at a crime scene, and he is the chief suspect in the murder of one of the city's most influential businessmen.

Anyone who knows Vinnie knew he wouldn't hurt a fly.

But the District Attorney and the San Francisco Police Department brass don't know him--and they don't care. Pressure from the Mayor's Office and the public is calling for a quick indictment and conviction--and Vinnie is handy.

Jake Diamond has a strong dislike of the double-cross. If asked why the chicken crossed the road, Jake would suggest the road had crossed the chicken.

In a race against time--with the help of Darlene Roman, Detective Sergeant Roxton Johnson of the SFPD, Sonny "The Chin" Badalamenti, bookmaker William "Big Bill" Conway, and Mob Underboss Tony Carlucci--Jake frantically scrambles to find answers before the case is closed with Vinnie taking the fall.

In Abramo's first Jake Diamond mystery since the Shamus Award-winning Circling the Runway, Jake is determined to prove that you cross the chicken at your own risk.

Praise for the Jake Diamond mysteries:

"One of my all-time favorite PI series." --Steve Hamilton, Edgar Award-winning author of The Lock Artist

"Think it's impossible to find a new take on the wise-cracking San Francisco PI? Meet Jake Diamond and think again...sharp and smart, convincing and complex." --S.J. Rozan, Edgar Award-winning author of Absent Friends