The Chip Puzzle

by Barbara Burns

Alex Jordan had opened the door to his cottage and was ducking his head to enter when a hand fell on his shoulder and an unfamiliar voice said insistently, “Get inside. I need to talk to you.” Startled, Alex turned to see the visitor’s face in the dimly lit room and sputtered, “What about? And, who are you?” Mish, his old Irish sheepdog, picked that moment to rear up in surprise and catch Alex off balance. Falling into the door frame, he knocked his head and everything went black. When Alex woke up, he found himself wondering how much his quiet life on the west coast of Ireland had been compromised. Did someone try to rob him, thinking that he was a rich Yankee tourist? Were competitors after the secrets of his innovative computer systems? Or, was it the tentacles of his former life as a computer systems researcher for the US defence industry? When he left that work under a cloud of suspicion, agents picked through his life until there was nothing left of his spirit. He had turned away from that life, put those people out of his mind and moved on. He returned to his childhood home near Westport to take over the family computer business so his parents could retire. His rebuilt life was filled with business success, outdoor adventures along the coast, and time with his family and friends. Within days of the encounter at his cottage, however, Alex found himself embroiled in murders, old romances, threats to his twin sister, threats to his own life and international thefts of experimental computer chips. His quiet life was on the shelf until he could help the authorities recover the chips.

110 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 13, 2019