{"id":54172,"date":"2019-09-11T15:28:41","date_gmt":"2019-09-11T05:28:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/69.30.214.42\/?p=54172"},"modified":"2024-02-17T17:15:26","modified_gmt":"2024-02-17T07:15:26","slug":"kod-in-the-volcano","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/kod-in-the-volcano\/","title":{"rendered":"Katrina Ogden Mysteries, Book 2: KO’d in the Volcano by Victoria Heckman"},"content":{"rendered":"

Honolulu police officer Katrina Ogden, also known as K.O., intends to become a homicide detective but she keeps becoming embroiled in cases that find her rather than the ones she’s assigned.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Paradise is filled with danger…<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"KatrinaWhen Honolulu police officer Katrina Ogden lands an assignment at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, her working vacation turns ugly. Caught between two forces–murder and Madame Pele, Goddess of the Volcano–K.O. races against time in her struggle to save lives before the volcano’s eruption sweeps them all away.<\/p>\n

GENRE: Murder Mystery\u00a0 \u00a0 Word Count: 54, 374<\/p>\n

\"Author<\/a><\/p>\n

\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n <\/colgroup>\n \n\n \n\n \n
Buy now from Writers Exchange, or from these Retailers:<\/caption>\n
Amazon<\/th>Apple Books<\/th>Google Play<\/th>Barnes and Noble<\/th>Kobo<\/th>
Everand (was Scribd)<\/span><\/div><\/th>
Smashwords<\/th><\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\"Buy<\/a><\/td>\"Apple<\/a><\/td>\"Get<\/a><\/td>\"Buy<\/a><\/td>\"Kobo<\/a><\/td>\"Everand<\/a><\/td>\"Smashwords<\/a><\/td> <\/tr>\n <\/tbody>\n <\/table>\n \n \n \n<\/div>\n\n

[wp_social_ninja id=”215787″ platform=”reviews”]<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Continue the series:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Katrina<\/a> \"Katrina<\/a> \"Katrina<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Katrina<\/p>\n

O ka la ko luna,<\/em><\/p>\n

o ka pahoehoe ko lalo.<\/em><\/p>\n

The sun above,<\/p>\n

the smooth lava below.<\/p>\n

\"mystery<\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

K.O. landed at Keahole Airport in Kona, Hawaii.\u00a0 She loved the little airport with the landing strip carved right out of the black lava.\u00a0 She descended the plane’s stairway to the tarmac, and inhaled deeply.\u00a0 Nothing else smelled like the Big Island.\u00a0 Scents of the ocean, jet fuel and plumeria blew in the warm breeze.<\/p>\n

She walked the fifty feet to an open-air, tree-filled courtyard.\u00a0 She hit the restrooms first.\u00a0 She never liked the tiny bathrooms on the noisy prop-planes, and had managed to hold it for the forty-minute flight from her home on Oahu, despite chugging three Diet Pepsis.<\/p>\n

Much relieved, she walked the few additional feet to baggage claim–another open-air pavilion with one carousel on each side.\u00a0 Progress, since the days when baggage was just tossed out onto the runway next to the plane.\u00a0 Some of the other outer island airports were still like that.\u00a0 She sort of missed it.<\/p>\n

The Big Island had always been one of K.O.’s favorite places in the islands, the true antithesis to the bustling city of Honolulu.\u00a0 As a Honolulu Police Officer, K.O.’s job in Records and Identification was to track data and minutiae for over a million people.\u00a0 K.O. herself lived on the far side of Oahu–the lush, peaceful windward side.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, she had been granted a transfer, and upon her return from this working vacation, she would move with her chief clerk Selena Wade to Evidence–a move she anticipated with relish.<\/p>\n

No security check–she hefted her large bag, and staggered toward the center curb to wait for the car rental courtesy bus.\u00a0 Once out of the shade, the sun was intense, and the sky seared the eyes with its blueness.\u00a0 Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano, soared above the airport, and disappeared into a greyish bank of vog– volcanic smog–that drifted from fifty miles away at Kilauea Caldera in the shadow of Mauna Loa.<\/p>\n

K.O. saw that more new housing had worked its way up the mountain since her visit a year ago.<\/p>\n

The Aloha Car Rentals courtesy van pulled up with a screech, and K.O. climbed into the blessed air-conditioned comfort before the driver could assist her.\u00a0 He loaded several bags for the tourists behind her.<\/p>\n

As he pulled away from the curb and exited the small airport, he clicked on the microphone.\u00a0 “Aloha, everybody, my name is Kamuela, and welcome to the Big Island.\u00a0 We’ll be at the Aloha Car Rentals office in just a few minutes, but if you have any questions, or if I can help out in any way, let me know.”<\/p>\n

K.O.’s blue-green eyes met Kamuela’s brown ones in the rearview mirror.\u00a0 She could tell he smiled, because his eyes squinched up.\u00a0 She smiled back.<\/p>\n

The van stopped at the office, and K.O. waited only a few minutes for her economy car.\u00a0 Translation:\u00a0 Don’t rent this car if you’re over 5’10”, or have more than two bags.\u00a0 Fortunately, K.O.’s 5-7 fit comfortably, if not spaciously, in the driver’s seat.\u00a0 Her large bag fit into the trunk, but her purse and carry-on had to ride with her.<\/p>\n

Before she pulled out of the lot, she tuned the radio to a rock station, and cranked up both the stereo and the A\/C.\u00a0 A short hop on the access road and she pulled out onto Highway 11, feeling like she was really on her way.<\/p>\n

K.O. buzzed into Kona proper fifteen minutes later, and made a quick stop at the KTA grocery store for bottled water and a Snickers candy bar.<\/p>\n

Her ultimate destination, the reason for her trip, was Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, on the other side of the island.\u00a0 She had decided to fly into Keahole airport, visit a few friends, and then enjoy the long drive to the park.<\/p>\n

* * *<\/p>\n

Marijuana plants, some over six feet tall, leafy and green, waved in the slight breeze on the slopes of Mauna Loa.\u00a0 Camouflaging the pakalolo <\/em>were ‘ohi’a <\/em>trees, maile <\/em>and bougainvillea.<\/p>\n

A feral pig, tusks gleaming, nosed for roots at the boundary.\u00a0 He bumped a thin wire, and a blast echoed in the stillness.\u00a0 He screamed and ran as shotgun pellets fanned over his head, embedding in the tree trunks three feet above the ground.\u00a0 All was silent again in the dappled sunlight.<\/p>\n

Two men and a woman pushed through the trees, stepped over the wire, and continued to the far side of the field.\u00a0 A small shack, roughly constructed and low to the ground, was their destination.<\/p>\n

“Ho, Gerald!” the woman called as she entered the shack.<\/p>\n

“Yeah, what?” Gerald answered, as he assessed the plants.\u00a0 Many were ready to harvest.<\/p>\n

“What you t’ink of dis crop?”<\/p>\n

“Yeah, brah,” echoed the second man.\u00a0 “What you t’ink we going get for dem?”<\/p>\n

“Tommy, relax already,” Gerald said.\u00a0 “I don’t know.\u00a0 Our job is just to cut ’em and haul ’em down da mountain.\u00a0 Rudy sells, and we just sit back and relax, have some beers, and count our money.”<\/p>\n

The woman, long dark hair tied back, wearing a stained tee shirt and shorts, with hot pink rubber slippers on her feet, reappeared with three machetes.\u00a0 She handed the first to Gerald, who immediately began cutting the ripe plants.<\/p>\n

The second she spun at the other man, who jumped out of the way.\u00a0 The machete landed point-down, quivering at his feet.<\/p>\n

“Shit, Jolene, you tryin’ to kill me, or what?”<\/p>\n

“Yeah, or what you moke.\u00a0 Jus’ cut.”\u00a0 Jolene strode to another section of the field and also began to cut.<\/p>\n

“Such a bitch.”\u00a0 Tommy picked up the machete, but stood staring at Jolene.<\/p>\n

Gerald sliced his way to the large Samoan.\u00a0 “Cheez, Tommy, we nevah gonna finish, you just stand there.”\u00a0 A stripe of dirt crossed Gerald’s forehead, and sweat ran across golden skin into his eyes.<\/p>\n

“Gerald, you evah t’ink what it’d be like to save some plants jus’ fo us?\u00a0 I mean, we do alla work, alla risk, and Rudy guys, they just make all da money.”<\/p>\n

“Tommy, don’ talk like dat.\u00a0 You goin’ get us busted.\u00a0 T’ings going da way dey s’posed to.\u00a0 Don’t rock da boat.”<\/p>\n

Tommy’s machete dangled loosely in his large hand.\u00a0 His blue “Hang Loose” tee shirt stretched tightly across his gut above his sarong, a wild blue and yellow print, that covered him from belly to ankles.\u00a0 He lowered his voice to a rumble.<\/p>\n

“You ever tink about taking a little on da side?”<\/p>\n

“What do you mean?”<\/p>\n

“You know, we been bustin’ ass for a year, and Jolene, she just hang around and make trouble.\u00a0 Just t’ink about it.”<\/p>\n

“No way, brah!\u00a0 You crazy?\u00a0 You been smokin’ dis stuff instead of jus’ cuttin’ it?\u00a0 Jolene is Rudy’s cousin, <\/em>man.\u00a0 We gotta watch her.\u00a0 She’s dangerous.”<\/p>\n

A muted thump, then Tommy pitched forward.\u00a0 A machete protruded from his back, a trickle of blood dampened his tee shirt.\u00a0 Jolene stood at the edge of the new growth.<\/p>\n

Gerald’s eyes grew wide.\u00a0 His heart hammered.\u00a0 “Oh, my God!\u00a0 You kill him?\u00a0 For what?\u00a0 You crazy?”\u00a0 His machete slithered out of his nerveless hand.<\/p>\n

“Rudy tol’ me Tommy was skimmin’.\u00a0 Tol’ me to take care of it.\u00a0\u00a0 After what I jus’ heard, this seemed the best way to take care of it.”\u00a0 She swayed up to Gerald, snaked her arms around his neck and ran her tongue over his unresisting lips.\u00a0 “Get ova it, Gerald.\u00a0 Don’ wimp out on me now.\u00a0 On us, <\/em>now.\u00a0 Rudy like make you one partner.”<\/p>\n

Gerald stared at Tommy’s body.<\/p>\n

Jolene’s voice grew hard.\u00a0 “Do whatever you like, but if we don’ get dis crop in, we both goin be busted.\u00a0 Rudy don’ like it late.\u00a0 We gotta dry it and get it to him for shipping.”\u00a0 Jolene looked down at Tommy’s body in disgust.\u00a0 “Da guy was such a pig.\u00a0 We canna carry him down da mountain.\u00a0 Shoots.\u00a0 Rudy goin’ be pissed off I did it here.\u00a0 Now we canna use this field ’til his body gone.\u00a0 Da pigs and dogs can have him.”\u00a0 Jolene wrenched her machete from Tommy’s back, and marched back to the harvest.\u00a0 Gerald picked up his machete, and slowly followed, never taking his eyes from Jolene.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Honolulu police officer Katrina Ogden, also known as K.O., intends to become a homicide detective but she keeps becoming embroiled in cases that find her rather than the ones she’s assigned.\u00a0 Paradise is filled with danger…   When Honolulu police officer Katrina Ogden lands an assignment at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, her working vacation turns ugly. Caught between two forces–murder and Madame Pele, Goddess of the Volcano–K.O. races against time in her struggle to save lives before the volcano’s eruption…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":147177,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[203],"tags":[862,859,861,81,858,860,863,864,56,717,713,711,714,106,710,121,52,434,716,712,29,740,44,806,663,652,305,107,573,417],"class_list":["post-54172","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mystery-thrillers-suspense","tag-bookaddict","tag-bookrecommendations","tag-booksbooksbooks","tag-kindle","tag-readingcommunity","tag-readinglist","tag-suspensebooks","tag-suspensefulbooks","tag-amazon","tag-bibliophile","tag-bookblogger","tag-bookgram","tag-booklover","tag-books","tag-bookstagram","tag-bookworm","tag-ebook","tag-ghosts","tag-ilovebooks","tag-instabooks","tag-mystery","tag-mysterybooks","tag-paranormal","tag-paranormalbooks","tag-reading","tag-serialkiller","tag-suspense","tag-thriller","tag-victoriaheckman","tag-writersexchangeepublishing"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/writers-exchange.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/kod-in-the-volcano-ebook-cover-logo.png?fit=777%2C1124&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1tQiy-e5K","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54172","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54172"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54172\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56447,"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54172\/revisions\/56447"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/147177"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54172"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54172"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/writers-exchange.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54172"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}