Forest fires are reducing chunks of the Boulder Valley to tinder and ash; Colorado clinical psychologist Alan Gregory's colleague and close friend, still recovering from a terrible trauma, appears to be approaching a psychological breakdown; and new evidence in an old case causes Alan to reexamine decisions he made in the past, putting his entire career at risk.

When his colleague dies under mysterious circumstances, psychologist Alan Gregory finds himself questioning the integrity of those closest to him, tracking an elusive patient, and looking for clues within the complex mind of a client.

Lauren Crowder, assistant district attorney in Boulder, Colorado, shoots at a stalker during a snow storm and police arrest her. But she is not about to go to jail without a fight. After all, what is a woman supposed to do, wait till she is raped?

Psychologist Alan Gregory is struggling to deal with both a newly adopted son and a shaky, though generally improving, marriage. But then his ex-wife, Merideth, reappears, seeking help locating the missing surrogate mother of her soon-to-be-born child, and Alan is pulled into a mystery that reaches back years--with ramifications that are disturbingly current.--From publisher description.