In a heat-cracked southern border town, the bodies of nine women, killed execution-style, are unearthed in a shallow grave. One teenager might even have been buried alive. They had been serving as drug mules for the terrifyingly powerful crime boss Hugo Cistranos. To help with the slayings, Cistranos hired a damaged young Iraq War vet named Pete Flores. But Flores bolted in fear, and now he and his girlfriend, Vikki, are running for their lives. To solve the case, Sheriff Hackberry Holland must contend with suspicious, intruding federal agents, as well as Preacher Jack Collins, a God-fearing serial killer for hire. Holland quickly finds himself caught up in a frantic race for survival—for Pete, Vikki, and himself.

“Burke spins a tale replete with colorful prose and epic confrontations in his second novel to feature small-town Texas sheriff Hackberry Holland . . . [and a] full roster of sharply drawn lowlifes. The battle of wills and wits between Holland and Collins delivers everything Burke’s fans expect.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Nearly every scene builds to a fine crescendo of tension.”
—Kirkus Reviews