Hardball by Sara Paretsky

Hardball (V.I. Warshawski Novels) - VI Warshawski asked by a dying woman, Miss Claudia, to find her nephew, Lamont Gadsden.  Lamont’s mother, Miss Ella, believes her son walked out to be more involved with the black gang the Anacondas.  Miss Claudia insists that Lamont was a good boy.  VI meets resistance from the members of the gang and Lamont’s friends.  Petra, V.I.’s cousin is in town working on a political campaign.  The powers to be in the campaign have Petra working against V.I. to determine how much she has learned about a murder that happened in 1967 during a civil rights demonstration.