A baby lies abandoned amongst the rubbish; her tiny face as white as alabaster, her body as stiff as a miniature doll. A young prostitute lies beaten, her figure lying like a mannequin on the frozen concrete, her blood spilt, her life ebbing away. As DC 'Charlie' Stafford and her boss DI Hunter struggle to identify the victim from the violator their hunt brings them to the crack houses of Lambeth, littered with damaged people, their lives scarred by tragedy and violence, most broken beyond repair. As further lives hang in the balance Charlie must empower the weak to speak out against those who seek to cause harm. But can a broken doll ever truly be mended; or will the wounds of the past, fashion the events of the future?
From the bestselling author of Mummy's Favourite and The Trophy Taker... DC 'Charlie' Stafford returns with a superb new, brutally gripping serial killer thriller, where the hunter becomes the hunted. A faithful dog lies wounded beside the mutilated body of its owner. A woman is discovered bound and gagged, dead in her own bed. Both are police officers. Both have a red rose at their side... Worryingly, more will follow. Lies and accusations abound but who is behind the murders and why are the victims being targeted? Charlie, Hunter and the team must find the killer targeting their own, before another body is found.
'This is the second novel I've read by this author and I'll be coming back for more.' Faith Hogan.
He keeps each one floating in formaldehyde to prevent rotting. Each finger denotes a victim, their heart ripped out and replaced by symbols of their treachery. He admires his trophies weekly; to him each one of them is guilty. DC 'Charlie' Stafford is already investigating a series of escalating racist attacks and it now seems she has a vicious serial killer on her patch. All the while he's watching, waiting... and counting.
Buried in a woodland grave are a mother and her child. One is alive. One is dead. DC 'Charlie' Stafford is assigned to assist with the missing persons investigation. As more pairs go missing, the pressure mounts. Leads are going cold. Suspects are identified but have they got the right person? Can Charlie stop the sadistic killer whose only wish is to punish those he deems to have committed a wrong, or will she herself unwittingly become a victim?
