Matters of Doubt

CalClaxton is determined to reinvent himself as a small-town lawyer in the aftermathof his wife’s suicide. Once a hard-charging Los Angeles prosecutor, he nowlives in solitude in an old farmhouse overlooking Oregon’s wine country. When ascruffy, tattooed kid shows up asking for help in solving a cold case—that of hismother’s murder—Cal wants to say no. Times are tough, and he’s no private eye,anyway. But the kid, who calls himself Picasso, has ridden a bicycle in therain all the way from Portland, and something about his determination touchesCal. Itturns out that Picasso is homeless, joining the legions of kids who are drawnto Portland’s Old Town. He is also a gifted artist in the process of painting a mural on theside of a health clinic run by an idealistic doctor named Anna. Things take anugly turn when Picasso is charged with the murder of a prominent Portlandbusinessman. The evidence against him is overwhelming, but Cal steps in todefend Picasso at Anna’s urging. Suddenly Cal finds himself pitted against thepolice, the media, and some of Portland’s most powerful citizens. IsPicasso being framed? And if so, is there a connection between the two murders?Cal’s desperate search uncovers a dark web of blackmail, deception, and alineup of suspects from Portland’s A-list. As he peels back the layers oftruth, he realizes too late that he has put both himself and Anna in the crosshairsof a ruthless killer.