Cool Change: A Tony DeLucca Mystery (Originally Pressed Mysteries)
Music-Infused Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Minnesota
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Windbreak Press
Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 1, 2026
Print length ‏ : ‎ 249 pages

Synopsis

After ten years as a Military Police investigator, Tony DeLucca thought coming home would mean peace and quiet. He was wrong.

Days after returning, Tony finds himself at the center of a murder investigation—not as an investigator, but as the last hope for his new landlord’s son. When local musician Derek Paulson is found dead and Ryan White is arrested for the crime, Tony can’t shake the feeling that the wrong man is behind bars.

What starts as a favor to a desperate father quickly unravels into something darker. Gambling debts, a missing guitarist with a violent past, and someone who seems just a little too helpful all point to secrets worth killing for.
With Ryan’s preliminary hearing looming and the deputy chief determined to shut him down, Tony must navigate a tangled web of lies, grudges, and secrets. The evidence points one way, but his instincts say another. Trusting the wrong one could cost an innocent man his freedom.

A small-town mystery where solving a murder becomes more than a case—it’s the beginning of everything Tony didn’t know he was looking for.

Amazon

Character Guest Post

Coming Home

A reflection by Tony Delucca

I want to be clear about something. I did not come back to Flat Rock, Minnesota, with a plan. I came back with a duffel bag and a truck that needed an oil change. I also came back to my father, who was alone for the first time in thirty-plus years. The Army gives you a lot of structure, but the idea of being close to him after my mother passed was better than re-enlisting for reasons I couldn’t fully articulate yet.

I’d been gone a decade. Ten years of new bases, new assignments, new everything. You’d think coming back to a town of a few thousand people would feel like stepping backward. And honestly? For about the first forty-eight hours, it did. Everything seemed smaller. The streets I remembered as long felt short. The buildings I’d thought of as landmarks were just… buildings.

And then something shifted.

I started noticing things I’d been too young to notice the first time around. The way a hardware store can smell exactly the same for as long as anyone can remember. Or how comforting the hiss of a needle falling into the groove of a record can be. The way my dad moves through his Saturday morning routine, like it’s a ritual he’s been performing his whole life. Because he has.

Coming home when you’re in your thirties is strange. You’re not the person who left, but the town doesn’t entirely know that yet. People remember you a certain way. Jerry Thorton, who coached your high school track team, still calls you “flash” when he spots you in Family Foods. Your dad still makes burgers on Friday, like you never grew up. One day, you find yourself sitting at the kitchen table where you ate breakfast as a kid, trying to figure out who you are now that the structure of military life no longer holds everything in place.

It’s equal parts humbling and terrifying. I won’t pretend otherwise.

But there’s something else too. Something I didn’t expect. A quiet kind of hope that crept in somewhere between unpacking my duffel bag and buying furniture for an apartment on Monroe Street. The feeling that maybe starting over isn’t the same thing as starting from scratch. That coming home, really coming home, means you’re not as lost as you thought.

I’ve got my father a few blocks away. I’ve got Jeremiah, who is either a close friend or a chronic inconvenience, depending on the day. I’m dating a woman who makes excellent coffee and has questionable judgment when it comes to men. And I’ve got my record player set up, ready to begin the new soundtrack to whatever comes next.

Excerpt

The Flat Rock Police Department occupied a single-story brick building on Third Street, sharing a parking lot with the fire department and city hall. I’d been here once before, five months ago, and I hadn’t exactly made friends with everyone in the department during that visit.

Deputy Chief Greg Ortworth’s face confirmed that the moment I walked through the front door.

“Well, well,” he said from behind the reception desk, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed. “Tony DeLucca. Back to play detective again?”

I kept my expression neutral. “I’m here to see Ryan White. His father asked me to visit.”

“Did he, now?” Greg made no move to check any paperwork or buzz me through. “Last time you were sniffing around this department, we had a real mess on our hands. Stolen property, corruption charges, and people losing their jobs. You’ve got a real habit of stirring up trouble.”

“I have a habit of finding the truth,” I said evenly. “There’s a difference.”

“Is there?” He stood up, walking around the desk to face me directly. “Because from where I’m sitting, you’re just a guy who got lucky once and thinks that makes him some kind of detective.”

“I’m just here to talk to Ryan.”

“This is straightforward. We’ve got our guy. He had motive, opportunity, and a timeline that doesn’t add up. Open and shut.”

“Then you won’t mind if I talk to him.”

“Actually, I do mind. Civilians don’t get to waltz into my jail and interrogate suspects just because they feel like playing cop.”

The door to the back office opened, and Police Chief Kent Larson stepped into the reception area. He took one look at Greg and me facing off and let out a long sigh.

“What’s going on out here?”

“Just explaining to Mr. DeLucca that we don’t need his help on the Ryan White case,” Greg said.

Kent’s expression didn’t change, but I saw something flicker in his eyes. “Mason called me this morning. He said Tony would be coming by to see his son, with my permission.”

“Chief, I don’t think—”

“I don’t care what you think, Greg.” Kent’s voice was quiet but firm. “Mr. White has a right to have someone check on his boy. And while Tony’s methods might have been a bit unorthodox, he did find answers last time when we needed them.”

Greg’s jaw tightened. “This isn’t like last time. We’ve got real evidence here.”

“Then, Tony seeing Ryan shouldn’t be a problem, should it?” Kent turned to me. “Ten minutes. That’s all you get. And if I find out you’re interfering with our investigation, Mason’s approval or not, you’re done. Clear?”

“Crystal.”

About the Author

Kevin Zelenka is an avid reader, amateur chef, and expert procrastinator. A former parenting writer and editor, he’s had an unfinished manuscript (or three) rattling around in his head for decades. Originally from Minnesota, he eventually escaped the cold and settled in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he lives with his wife and their twin sons.  Cool Change is Book 1 in the Originally Pressed Series.

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