Trapped

When a homeless man dies in suspicious circumstances, Victor Mitchum knows it wasn’t an accident. Someone is targeting Manchester’s most vulnerable—and they’re just getting started. Harry Sanders is found dead in a derelict pub. The authorities call it a tragic accident, but Victor recognises the signs of something far more sinister. He knew Harry from his own days on the streets—and Harry had been scared, convinced someone was following him. Working with private investigators Kasper and Zofia Dabrowski, Victor inherits Harry’s dog, Cleo, causing friction with Oscar, his own wilful dog, and uncovers a disturbing pattern. Homeless men with dogs are disappearing across the city. But as Victor closes in on answers, the detective agency itself comes under attack from a corrupt police officer with a vendetta. Caught between loyalty to his friends and an offer that could finally give him stability, Victor must navigate Manchester’s criminal underworld to unmask a killer. And when the investigation explodes into a deadly confrontation, Victor will have to decide how far he’s willing to go—and who he’s willing to become—to save the people he cares about. © 2026 by D. E. Beckler, all rights reserved.