3rd Degree

3rd Degree words.

Chapter 10.
'If you MOGULS have a moment,” I called. “It’s Sunday and the markets are closed. We have three dead, a missing baby, and an entire town house burned to the ground in a possible bombing.”
Moguls- A very rich or powerful person.

 Page 50
“Let me tell you what’s doable, Mr. Zinn.” I fastened on his phony, compliant grin. “What’s doable is that we’re back here in two hours with a subpoena, and anything deleted from those files in the past twenty-four hours goes under the heading of impeding a murder investigation. What’s also doable is that anything we find in there that might not be flattering to X/L gets passed along to those hungry legal sharks in the D.A.’s office. Any of that sound doable, Mr. Zinn?”

Doable- Capable of being done.
Subpoena-the usual writ for the summoning of witnesses or the submission of evidence, as records or documents, before a court or other deliberative body.
Impeding-to retard in movement or progress by means of obstacles or hindrances; obstruct; hinder.

Page 85
“This isn’t just a threat.” I tossed the e-mails back on my desk. “It’s extortion, coercion. You’re a lawyer, Zinn. The reference to his daughter is a blatant threat. You came in here to deal, Mr. Zinn. Here it is: This doesn’t get out. The name on these e-mails stays between us. But we send in our own team to ascertain where they originated from.”

Coercion- the act of coercing; use of force or intimidation to obtain compliance/force or the power to use force in gaining compliance, as by a government or police force.
Blatant-Usage Problem Totally or offensively conspicuous or obtrusive: a blatant lie.
Ascertain-Archaic To make certain, definite, and precise/To discover with certainty, as through examination or experimentation.

Page 90
Julia was on the floor, listening to the TV, the auburn wig ditched after her assignment last night. There was a news interruption about the murder at the Clift. “Listen.” She turned it up.

Auburn- A reddish-brown or golden-brown color.

Page 95
About seven, I was back at my desk. My teams scattered all around the area, chasing the leads we had. Cindy had gotten me a copy of this book, Vampire Capitalism. She said it would give me an idea of the new radicalism that was starting to take hold.


Radicalism-the holding or following of radical or extreme views or principles/the principles or practices of radicals.

Page 103
“Ah, Police Inspector Boxer,” he said. “Please sit, be my guest. Sorry the surroundings are not so plush.” The room was musty and smelled of books and smoke. An ashtray and a pack of unfiltered Rothmans were on the desk.
 “Homicide,” Lemouz read, bunching his lips, seemingly impressed. “So I suspect it’s not some rogue etymological nuance that brings you here?”
He sighed. “Yes. Even a man with his nose in his books most of the time brings it out now and then. Tragic. Totally counterproductive. Fanon said, ‘Violence is its own judge and jury.’ Yet, one cannot find it completely surprising.”
Lemouz’s phony sympathy appealed to me about as much as a dentist’s drill. “You mind telling me just what you mean by that, Mr. Lemouz?”

Plush- expensively or showily luxurious.
Musty- having an odor or flavor suggestive of mold, as old buildings, long-closed rooms, or stale food/dull; apathetic
Etymological-the derivation of a word/an account of the history of a particular word or element of a word/the study of historical linguistic change, esp. as manifested in individual words.
Nuance-a subtle difference or distinction in expression, meaning, response, etc./a very slight difference or variation in color or tone.
Counterproductive- thwarting the achievement of an intended goal; tending to defeat one's purpose: Living on credit while trying to save money is counterproductive.
Phony- not real or genuine; fake;false or deceiving; not truthful; concocted.