The Brothers

It was their thirtieth reunion at John Adams College for the brothers of Zeta Chi. When one of them is found dead and the authorities refuse to investigate due to lack of evidence indicating foul play, the brothers say, “If you won’t investigate, we will.” Who knew it would turn into a murder investigation involving international terrorists, the CIA, and the U.S. Treasury cops called FinCEN.Y.I.T.B.: It means Yours In The Bonds. It was how they signed their letters and their emails to each other. They were The Brothers of Zeta Chi, and they vowed decades earlier that their pledge meant more than having drinking buddies for life. For these brothers it was an assurance that they’d be there for each other in good times and bad, and that their bond would go far beyond the occasional stock tip or job reference. For them, being able to count on each other was for real. It was their thirtieth reunion at John Adams College and they’d come in from all over for the momentous occasion. Bones was there, as was Stokes and Fighting Al. The Zen Master came in from Philly, Doc from Chicago, and Ducky brought wife number three, only too proud to gloat over the other brothers as to how he managed to marry a fine-looking dish like her, who also happened to be the local assistant district attorney. Harry “Dirty Harry” Curlander had organized the event, and he’d managed to convince all twelve brothers from their pledge class to attend; the only one missing was his roommate from back in the day, R. Todd Hutchinson, known to the brothers simply as Hutch. Hutch never did make it to the reunion, but he had a good reason. Hutch was dead, found locked in his car outside the bar where the other brothers were waiting for him. Was it suicide, or an accident? Was it due to natural causes? None of the explanations were satisfactory, and when the police, the DA, and the medical examiner all refused to authorize an investigation due to lack of any evidence indicating foul play, the brothers said, “If you won’t investigate, we will.” Who knew it would turn into a murder investigation, and that it would lead Harry and The Brothers into a showdown involving international terrorists, the police, the CIA, and the Financial Crimes and Enforcement Network inside the U.S. Treasury called FinCEN.