Amanda Miller, an inquisitive journalist, is looking for distraction from a troubled home life when she crosses paths with Detective Terry Walkingstick, newly promoted and eager to prove himself. Local police have just linked the disappearance of several area residents. A task force is created to investigate, but no one yet realizes a killer is hunting on the quiet suburban streets, snatching his victims without witnesses and seemingly at random. When Terry and Amanda join forces, following the scant leads available, they discover what may be the elusive link between the missing people. Can a decades-old fire really be the connection? And why do so many trails lead back to a local funeral home? Was a cunning serial killer forged in that fire? The couple's independent investigation uncovers leads and evidence, landing them in the middle of the case and in a killer's crosshairs.