SummaryAll that stands between Lester Ray Barnes and the state of
Florida's death chamber is a judge's signature. He is
sentenced to die for the rape and murder of a young woman,
his conviction hinging on two pieces of evidence: DNA
testing and an eyewitness who placed him at the scene. But
when the story breaks that the DNA testimony at trial had
been fabricated and that the eyewitness was coerced by a
cop, all hell breaks loose. In the absence of credible
evidence to sustain the conviction, the court is forced to
set Lester Ray free. It's the sort of circus the media
adore—until it turns into the kind of Grimm's fairy
tale the media love even more.
Intrigued by the story of a young man railroaded by justice,
true-crime writer Regan Landry is drawn into Lester Ray's
camp like a moth to a flame. For Regan, writing is a way to
stay connected to her late literary-legend father, and her
knack for detective work makes her a natural when it comes
to uncovering new leads in even the murkiest mysteries.
Eager for the spotlight, Lester Ray willingly agrees to work
with Regan on a tell-all about his experience as an innocent
man on death row. But less than a week after leaving prison,
he vanishes from the Sunshine State. Soon after, darkness
descends on the outer banks of North Carolina as a string of
women are raped and murdered in a frenzied spree. Fearing
the worst, Regan and FBI Special Agent Mitch Peyton sweep in
to confront the unspeakable: the horrifying possibility that
they have helped to free a cunning monster with an
insatiable appetite for death—and a ruthless
determination never to be caged again.
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