First published 2026
Detective John Sampson stares into a bomb crater carved through a Washington DC street. He radios for the FBI and ATF as smoke still rises from the asphalt. Meanwhile, hundreds of miles south in Chapel Hill, his longtime partner Alex Cross enters an empty apartment. His son Damon, a psychology graduate student, has vanished without explanation. Cross examines the sparse rooms for clues about where his boy might have gone. The two veteran detectives must work their cases from opposite ends of the East Coast. Sampson tracks the bomber through police stations and federal offices while Cross follows his son's trail across North Carolina. Distance tests their legendary partnership as both men face personal stakes. Cross wonders if Damon's connection to his famous father made him a target. The investigation pulls them through airports and crime scenes as they pursue answers to crimes committed hundreds of miles apart.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller, detective, action
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Washington DC
Period: 21st-century
368 pages · Hardcover · Little, Brown and Company
Content warnings: violence