labyrinthine case that wraps a web of danger around her and those closest to her--and threatens to wreak fear and death far beyond Virginia--in this "standout" (New York Newsday) thriller from #1 bestselling author Patricia Cornwell.

"Fascinating, frightening . . . Reaffirms that Cornwell is one of the best crime fiction authors working today."--The Miami Herald

IN DEVELOPMENT AS THE ORIGINAL SERIES SCARPETTA STARRING NICOLE KIDMAN AND JAMIE LEE CURTIS

On New Year's Eve, the last day of Virginia's bloodiest year since the Civil War, Dr. Kay Scarpetta plunges into the murky depths of the Elizabeth River to recover the very human remains of Ted Eddings, an investigative reporter. Was Eddings probing the Inactive Shipyard for a story, or simply diving for sunken trinkets? And why did Scarpetta receive a phone call from someone reporting the death before the police were notified?

With the advent of a second murder--this one closer to home--the case envelops Scarpetta, her niece Lucy, and police captain Pete Marino in a world where both cutting-edge technology and old-fashioned detective work are critical offensive weapons. Together they follow the trail of death to a well of violence as dark and forbidding as the water that swirled over Ted Eddings.