Salt and Pepper Detective Agency

Book excerpt: Houston Hayfield and Wilamina Robinson are released from Lancers Womens Prison after having been cleared of murder. For both women, life was never easy, starting with abusive childhoods and failed high school careers. Having received lengthy sentences, they thought their lives were over until an attorney took their cases pro bono and got their convictions dismissed. While incarcerated, Houston and Wilamina made good use of their time. They attended a six-month workshop that stressed the intrinsic value of every person. The attendees of the program learned self-worth, self-respect, purpose, and a belief in their own abilities. For the first time, these women felt hope. They found the strength to make better choices and realized they could have a decent, productive life in prison or in society. Now free, Houston and Wilamina want to have a positive effect on the world, so they start an investigative business. Since Houston is a white woman from Texas and Wilamina a biracial woman from the Carolinas, they call it Salt and Pepper Detective Agency. What they lack in formal education, they make up for in street smarts. They now vow to fight for the innocent, seeing all prospective clients as valuable, loveable, and deserving of respect.