The author and heroine of The Redย ย Scream return in a novel so terrifying, soย ย filled with squirming suspense, it's bound for theย ย bestseller lists. When Kirkusย ย Reviews greeted Mary Willis Walker's last book,ย ย The Red Scream, with "welcomeย ย to the big time," they weren't kidding. Thatย ย novel established Walker as an author withย ย "the kind of clout that sets publishers' mouthsย ย watering" (The Philadelphiaย ย Inquirer). And now she has done it again, with anย ย unforgettable tale ripped from the headlines andย ย more terrifying than our worst nightmares. Kidnappedย ย by a cult of religious fanatics, an Austin schoolย ย bus driver and eleven of his young charges haveย ย been held underground at the group's highlyย ย fortified compound for forty-six days. While a team ofย ย federal negotiators begins to lose all hope ofย ย rescuing the hostages, crime reporter Molly Cates setsย ย outto discover everything she can about the cult'sย ย iron-willed leader, Samuel Mordecai. And asย ย the clock ticks inexorably, she takes the role ofย ย Clarisse Starling opposite Mordecai's Hannibal Lecter,ย ย engaging in a psychological confrontation asย ย harrowing as any in The Silence Ofย ย The Lambs. Tough, terrifying, and relentlesslyย ย heart-wrenching, this is a novel whose images no reader willย ย ever forget.