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In an instant they were gone...

Four years apart, two boys vanished without a trace in a picturesque community in Maine. For Sheriff Virgil Milche, the disappearances are a black mark on a fine career. For the mother of one of the victims, the mystery is a dark journey through grief, hope, and madness.

Audrey Bock is certain her son is still alive. She believes that in the silence of his absence she can hear him crying out to her. And now she suspects that somewhere in her own past lies the key to her son's disappearance. To find her son, Audrey must confront the maze of her memory. To unravel an agonizing case, Virgil must uncover the bizarre darkness lurking within his well-lit world. But as both move closer to the truth, they will face the most forbidding barrier of all: Someone out there knows exactly what happened to two little boys—and who must die next.

Publishers Weekly

Telepathy, telekinesis and the ability to communicate with the dead figure prominently in this unsettling and overwrought visit to small-town Maine. Arcos is the last place one would expect to find turmoil, but Sheriff Virgil Milche, whose wife is slowly dying from cancer, isn't surprised by much anymore. He is, however, obsessed with two unsolved kidnappings. The most recent is the snatching of Audrey and Richard Bock's nine-year-old son, Zach. Audrey insists Zach is alive and even claims that she can hear him calling out to her. But when she starts experiencing night terrors and visions, she begins to fear for her sanity. In order to find her son's kidnapper, Audrey must utilize her newfound "talents" and come to terms with some long-suppressed memories. Virgil, meanwhile, has to accept that there may be life beyond the physical world before he can solve the case. Like most fictional towns, Arcos is inhabited by quirky characters who harbor dark secrets, but it's the complexity of these personalities that make this such an engaging read. Though some of the story's paranormal aspects are hard to swallow and McGrew's (Cold Heart) villain lacks dimension (as well as a believable motive), fans of Kay Hooper and Linda Howard will readily dig into this fantastic tale. (Mar. 4) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.