This is an excerpt from the upcoming novel The Night Detective Volume 1 coming Christmas 2023.
Dante City
Dante City is where dreams are made and go to die. John Kovacs came here as a young man in search of fame and fortune, but the citizens of DC had another path for him. But that story is for another time. Kovacs has made a name for himself in the city as a Night Detective, a semiprivate, semi state sanctioned law enforcement agent who has the authority to solve cases and “close the account”. The Night Detectives were the judge, jury and executioners. It was not a job that Kovacs enjoyed particularly. It was extremely dangerous and he’s made fair few enemies over the years. The Detectives worked in the shadows and weren’t permitted to have families, let alone a pet. Those were just weaknesses that the “clients” saw as weaknesses. Like all the other Detectives, Kovacs was tough, street smart and resilient, but as of late, he was starting to feel the affects of his life.
Dante City isn’t for everyone. It is big, loud and bright. The citizens are brash, rude and have hearts of gold. The citizens of DC do not have the need to go outside of the city, it is a self-sustaining, living organism. All of the new innovative things come out of this city. The Great War some two decades ago was a good shot in the arm for the city when most of the world perished.
Humans, clones and robots all have been getting along well for the better part of the last hundred years, but every now and then, there is a glitch in that system. That’s where the detectives earn their money. Tonight, was no exception. Kovacs was driving through the nightly rain on his way to an opened case.
Dante City is what you make of it.