Four years ago Wayne Burgess killed his parents, and his plea of insanity lead to a verdict of not guilty. Now, after four years in a mental institution, he has been released and is obsessively determined to murder his wife and young daughter.

Delia Riordan, the newest addition to the Glendale Police Department, is on the case. A little girl has been abducted - and she could provide the lead in the Burgess affair if only the police can see the connection in time. But will they?

'My favourite American crime-writer' New York Herald Tribune