The hitchhiker deception

by Dick Walsh

CJ Lockhart is a 25-year-old former active-duty Marine who works on a PennDOT road crew. Growing up fatherless, he was raised by his mother and grandmother. On the crew, he is befriended by Walter, who becomes a mentor to him. 

When CJ comes into possession of a backpack left in his car by a hitchhiker, its contents begin reshaping and redirecting his life. Inside is a laptop with a mysterious user account and a lottery ticket. Soon, CJ finds himself clashing with the state police, the FBI, and a thug with an interest in the laptop. 

Then deceptions begin entering the picture from those closest to him and the FBI uncovers a connection between the laptop and a criminal enterprise bent on adjusting the makeup of the U. S. Supreme Court. As deceptions continue to thread through the characters’ lives, they bring the potential of creating bitter riffs or forging tight new bonds. 

CJ Lockhart is an engaging character who most of us would like to count among our closest friends. Just not everybody sees it that way.

About the Author

A Pennsylvanian through and through, Dick was born and raised in Scranton and Dickson City and has made his home in the Keystone state for his entire life except during his military service. He earned a Penn State degree in zoology in 1971.

Acceding to the ongoing military draft, he served in the U. S. Navy from 1971 to 1979 both as a hospital corpsman and later as a Medical Service Corps Officer. Dick graduated from the Dickinson School of Law (now Penn State Dickinson) in 1982. He then engaged in the general practice of law through 1997 when he successfully ran for a seat on the bench. Dick served as a trial judge from 1998 through early 2013 when he retired.

He and his wife of almost 40 years now spend time at homes in Florida and Pennsylvania. Dick and Peg are the very proud parents of Hilary and her husband, Kyle, and Danny.

Dick Walsh