Lovers Crossing — James C. Mitchell

Former INS agent turned private eye Roscoe Brinker carries the bullet scars of life on the Arizona-Mexico border, where desperation, greed and corruption thrive on both sides of the fence. When Mo Crain, a wealthy Tucson car dealer, hires him to investigate the shooting murder of his wife -- an activist who worked as a border nurse helping abandoned and battered children -- Brinker soon realizes he's up against a faceless enemy from his INS days: someone inside the agency who wants him dead. The further he digs into the reasons behind Sandra Crain's murder, the darker the trail becomes on a border that casts a long shadow and covers a multitude of sins.

In a world where gunshots are simply background noise, the truth is doubly grim as Brinker's own past demands its due.