COYOTE BLUE
by CHRISTOPHER MOORE (1994)
This book is dedicated to the Crow people.
Author's Note
The people in this book are all products of my imagination and any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental. While some of the places in this book do exist, I've changed them for my own purposes, and any resemblance to real places is just an oversight on my part. In short, the whole thing is a damnable lie and contains not a shred of truth.
Pronunciation
NOUN
When the word coyote refers to a canine animal it is pronounced KAI-YO-TEE.
PROPER NOUN
When Coyote refers to a character of human appearance, or in the name Old Man Coyote, it is pronounced KAI-YOTE.
ADJECTIVE
When coyote is used as a modifier, as in coyote ugly (if you wake up in bed with your arm under the head of someone who is coyote ugly, and you would gnaw it off rather than wake that person up), it is pronounced KAI-YO-TEE.
TITLE
The title of this book is pronounced KAI-YO-TEE BLEW. Readers who have a problem with pronunciation might want to read it silently the first time through. This is doubly important if you are reading this on an airplane.
Part 1
Epiphany
CHAPTER 1
Life Will Find You
Santa Barbara, California
While magic powder was sprinkled on the sidewalk outside, Samuel Hunter moved around his office like a machine, firing out phone calls, checking computer printouts, and barking orders to his secretary. It was how he began every business day: running in machine mode until he left for his first sales appointment and put on the right persona for the prospect.