Pierre Eggar is an insurance investigator for Alliance Insurance, which operates within Independent Worlds Alliance. He's looking into a claim over the death of one Rob Sistrom. But something about Sistrom's death in a hovercar accident doesn't quite add up.

Could it have been a freak accident? Could it have been murder? If it was murder, who killed Sistrom? His wife? His daughter? An angry stranger? There's a half-million insurance policy at stake, so Eggar has work quickly to determine if the payout and the death are linked.

Robert Collins is the author of the science-fiction novels "Monitor," "Lisa's Way," and "Expert Assistance." He's also author of the fantasy novels "Cassia" and "The Opposite of Absolute," and the young adult novel "True Friends." He has several short-story collections available, including "The Frigate Victory Omnibus Collection" and "The Case Files of Gwen Conner."