Kidnapped - A Novel

Twenty years after that fateful night, in her first days as a novice reporter working for managing editor O'Connor, Irene Kelly covers the groundbreaking ceremony for a shopping center -- which unexpectedly yields the unearthing of a buried car. In the trunk are human remains. Are those of the infant heir among them? If so, who is the young man who has recently changed his name to Max Ducane? Again the trail goes maddeningly, perhaps suspiciously, cold.

A family is found murdered. In a cruel twist, one of the Las Piernas Police Department's own, Philip Lefebvre, is suspected of killing the only witness. When that detective disappears, a crime boss goes free. And the LPPD is forever changed.

Called in to investigate the wreckage of the missing detective's plane, Frank Harriman is given a set of cold cases that have suddenly become white hot. Detective Harriman's conviction that the LPPD tagged the wrong murder suspect is wildly unpopular. Alone, his instincts and integrity questioned at every turn, Harriman must stop the killer before hundreds of lives, including Harriman's own, are lost.

Despite her reporter’s nose for trouble, Irene Kelly’s life has almost returned to normal—the Las Piernas News Express wobbles along in defiance of its financial woes, and with the help of her husband, Frank, and a good therapist, she’s recovered from the debilitating post-traumatic stress disorder that haunted her after her near-fatal encounter with notorious serial killer Nick Parrish. Until she receives some unwelcome news: Parrish, once thought permanently paralyzed by the injuries he sustained fleeing recapture, is walking again. And the rumor among the Moths, Parrish’s online fan club, is that he’s coming after Irene.

On the morning after this mother of two disappeared, her family sought the help of reporter Irene Kelly. But despite Irene's best efforts, until now only one person has known where to find Sayre: her killer.

Nick Parrish, brilliant and sadistic, already faces the death penalty in a torture-murder case. Now he wants to cop a plea -- life imprisonment in exchange for directing police to the isolated mountain grave where he buried Julia Sayre. The D.A. agrees to the controversial deal, and form a specialized team of law enforcement and forensic experts to accompany Parrish on his grisly journey. When the Sayres and the newspaper pressure the D.A. to include Irene on the expedition, their wishes are honored over the protests of the team.

From the start, Parrish makes Irene the object of his unnerving attention. His knowing smile and relentless stares make her wonder if heavy chains, armed guards, and a protective search dog will be enough to keep him at bay.