New York police officer Steve Burnett is having doubts about his job. He could do without the extra passenger on night patrol: Carl Shaw, a writer researching a novel. But when a thief almost kills Steve and his partner, Carl saves their lives, using an unlicensed gun. The gun has a history: someone in Vermont used it to kill Sarah Westlake a year ago. Wanting to believe that Carl is innocent, Steve drives up to Vermont to discover the truth. As Steve probes deeper into the lives of Carl and those around him, he runs into several suspects. Steve's investigation turns up a ruthless murderer who is willing to kill again, and finding out what happened to Sarah Westlake may take a back seat to simply keeping himself alive.Thomas Brennan shares a house on the English coast with his wife Sylvia and many cats.