James Patterson and James O Born

A superstitious killer targeting young women in every borough of New York City has Detective Michael Bennett facing his most terrifying case since Step on a Crack.

Aboard a police boat on the Hudson River, Detective Michael Bennett casts a wary eye into the cold, rough water. NYPD is searching for a murder victim—a young college student. They find her tossed in the dark waves, dressed for a night out in a sparkly black gown. The gruesome sight fills Bennett with the dread only a father could fathom.

As the obsessive killer extends his spree, a pattern emerges. One that Bennett’s eldest daughter fits to a disturbing degree.

Now NYPD’s top detective must lure the murderer into the light of day before the next deadly strike lands closer to home than Bennett could ever bear—as a parent, or as a protector.