Tony Hill and the police search for a serial killer who has resurfaced after five years time and targets children from abusive homes. DCI Jordan is in hospital after being mugged and hit by a car.

Dr. Tony Hill has his hands full. His principal interest is in solving a string of murders where he can find no apparent connection. A child molester, a divorced woman and an elderly pensioner are all violently killed and while there are a few similarities, the cases suggests that different personalities are at work. He begins to decipher the motives when he realizes that there are two killers working together, alternating their kills. Tony also finds that a woman he's met on an airplane is stalking him and developing a whole fantasy life around him. DCI Carol Jordan ...

A sniper is at work and Tony Hill is having trouble profiling him. The killer leaves a playing card at each site but there is no apparent connection among the victims. As the deaths rise, people are walking the streets in fear, the media is in a frenzy and DCI Carol Jordan is under extreme pressure to solve the case. Tony has a bigger problem however when a medical exam reveals he has a brain tumor that is growing rapidly and is likely malignant.