Down to the boat early this morning, checking things in advance of Hurricane Bill. No big wind expected here in central Maine, but there could be heavy rain, so the bilge pump will have to be working.
I was bent over wiring when I heard a squawking cry behind me. Glancing up, I saw an immature bald eagle pass twenty feet over my head, a second close behind. They landed in an oak on the shore, jostled for position and perched. The first one, the bigger of the two, kept up his squawking while the other perched quietly.
They were this year’s fledglings, mottled and gawky, flapping for balance as they moved along the limb. The loud one was crying for breakfast (probably why he was bigger) and the smaller one waited patiently. But where were mom and dad?
Ten minutes went by. The young eagles waited side by side, squawking more weakly. Crows were starting to caw down the shore and I figured the eagles would be mobbed before long. But then there was a barely perceptible whoosh, and the parent eagle swooped in low over the boat (massive at that distance), passed the young ‘uns, and went to a tree deeper in the woods. The fledglings followed and disappeared. No more crying. It appeared that food had just been delivered.
The Navajo believe that seeing an eagle is a good omen. Seeing three eagles up close for a long time must guarantee a very good day.
In PORT CITY SHAKEDOWN, the first Brandon Blake novel, Brandon gets a full dose of bad guys. A brawl in a funeral home introduces him to Joel Fuller, a sociopathic hustler. Fuller is fresh out of jail and determined to take Brandon out—after Fuller and his sidekick Kelvin shake him down.
Rocky isn’t a tough guy. He’s a skinny little kid with crooked glasses, and he shouldn’t be homeless in Portland, Maine. When McMorrow and Roxanne pluck him from under the stomping feet of a gang of street kids, Rocky latches onto McMorrow–and drags him into a world of murder, both old and new. Why is McMorrow protecting Rocky? The cops want to know. Why is Rocky on the run? McMorrow wants to know. Why does death follow in Rocky’s wake? Jack and Roxanne need to find out before they’re added to the list. 
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