Dante has been courting his victim in cyberspace for weeks before meeting her in person. A few sips of wine and a few hours later, she was dead. The murder weapon: a rare, usually undetectable date-rape drug with the street value of a quarter of a million dollars.

Lieutenant Eve Dallas is playing and replaying the clues in her mind. The candlelight, the music, the rose petals strewn across the bed -- a seduction meant for his benefit, not hers. He hadn't intended to kill her. But now that he has, he is left with only two choices: He can either hole up in fear and guilt, or he can start hunting again...