LAPD Lieutenant Peter Decker reluctantly agrees to do a big favor for an old friend, Teresa McLaughlin, but when she and her husband disappear, Decker's search is interrupted by the suspicious death of a young health care worker.

LAPD lieutenant detective Decker and his wife, Rina, have willingly welcomed fifteen-year-old Gabriel Whitman, the son of a troubled former friend, into their home. While the enigmatic teen seems to be adapting easily, Decker knows only too well the secrets adolescents keep--witnessed by the tragic suicide of another teen, Gregory Hesse, a student at Bell and Wakefield, one of the city's most exclusive prep schools. Gregory's mother, Wendy, refuses...

"Over the years, Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus have got through a lot together. They've faced more than their share of serial killers and psychopaths. But this time two very different cases may cause them to re-evaluate everything they hold dear. One case involves Gabe, the troubled boy they've taken into their home. The other is much stranger - a man is found dead in his apartment, apparently mauled by his pet tiger. There is more to each case than...