Murder mystery hits close to home for Air Force Academy cadets

0 Comments | Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Sep 25, 2005 | by BILL REED THE GAZETTE

Cadet Mary Zinnel didn't mind her brutal murder so much.

Cadet Christina Smith admits she was a tad uncomfortable with her violent rape.

And Cadet Kaitlin Barlow was shocked to discover she was a raging psychopath with a vendetta against the Air Force Academy.

The three real-life Air Force Academy cadets appear as fictional characters in "The Shattered Blue Line," a new murder-mystery novel set at the Colorado Springs institution. As the bodies pile up, the book wades neckdeep into the sex scandal at the academy and the accusations of cover-ups to protect a good ol' boys club.

The thriller is the seventh book from Patrick A. Davis, a 1979 Air Force Academy grad who went on to fly U-2 spy plane missions over Iraq during the first Gulf War before retiring as a major to become an airline pilot. When he was furloughed by the airline several years ago, he began spinning mystery plots related to the military.

After three years of rejections, he's become successful enough to crack the New York Times best-sellers list and maintain a long contract with Simon & Schuster.

Davis' books are fast-paced romps with action and clues stuffed into every scene. "I don't like writing the fuzzy, emotional stuff," Davis said. "Some of that makes me feel like I'm gonna throw up."

Besides plot twists and gotchas, Davis specializes in writing "message thrillers," mysteries that tackle a social issue. So when a sex scandal erupted at his alma mater, Davis felt it was the perfect fodder for his next plot.

But he wanted to get it right. Davis spoke to old friends at the academy, military lawyers and pals working for the secretary of defense. He also visited his old haunts and interviewed former and current female cadets, including his sister, about the situation.

During his interviews at the academy, the current cadets said they wanted to appear in the book, even if their characters got offed. Especially if their characters got offed. Davis took them up on the offer and used their real names.

In Davis' admittedly biased opinion, the gender problem at the academy was exaggerated by media coverage and opportunistic politicians. That point of view comes through in the novel.

"I did want to write a book that was somewhat a defense of the academy. I'm a grad, and I know the academy is not how it was being portrayed as a haven for sexual harassers," said Davis, who lives in Texas. "But I didn't want to be defensive of the academy if it was all true and the women feel intimidated. After researching, I just thought it was blown out of proportion, but there were some guys who did bad things.

"Of course, the bottom line is I'm just trying to write an entertaining read."

Davis expects complaints from both sides. Although some passages read like an apologetic for the academy and the value of duty, this is a murder-mystery plot and there must be bad guys. Most of Davis' bad guys wear military uniforms because of the nature of his books, and some of his old pals don't care for that.

Still, Davis is brave enough to show his face around town. He'll speak to his old squadron and hand out free books to them. He'll also sign copies of the book Tuesday at the Barnes & Noble store near The Citadel mall.

The book is intensely local, with action at the academy, a Rockrimmon neighborhood and The Broadmoor hotel. A smarmy manager at The Broadmoor spouts things like: "This is the Broadmoor. Patrons aren't arrested on our premises. It just isn't done."

The cadets admit that it's spooky to walk by the places that became grisly murder scenes in the novel.

"You walk by where you go every day and think, 'That's where it happened,'" Christina Smith said.

"But it was a blast to read," Kaitlin Barlow said. "I thought, 'All right, I kind of like my character.' But then, 'Oh no, I'm weird.' He still surprised me."

Davis takes pride in his plot twists. He writes three or four endings before settling on one.

"You can't make it so the reader knows where you're going, and the best way is to not know where you're going," Davis said. "When I start off a book I just basically know I'm going to brutally kill someone.

"And everyone I know wants to die in the books now."

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0226 or reed@gazette.com

BOOK SIGNING

What: Patrick A. Davis will sign copies of "The Shattered Blue Line"

Where: Barnes & Noble, 795 Citadel Drive East

When: 5:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesday