A teenage girl was brutally murdered. All evidence indicates that she became the victim of a maniac who intends to continue his bloody hunt. He must be stopped. But - how? He “inherited” enough at the crime scene, but these traces are too unusual for local criminologists to understand them. The police are forced to ask Kay Scarpetta for help... Kay vowed never to participate in crime investigations again. However, the facts stubbornly insist: Next on the killer's list are her niece Lucy and her friend. Kay is forced to once again enter a deadly game...