Book excerpt: An FBI analyst hunts for a sadistic serial killer in Washington, DC, in this “dark and mesmerizing” thriller—“equal parts Kathy Reichs and Thomas Harris” (Lisa Gardner). FBI neuroscientist Sayer Altair hunts for evil in the deepest recesses of the human mind. Still reeling from the death of her fiancé, she wants nothing more than to focus on her research into the brains of serial killers. But when the Washington, DC, police stumble upon a gruesome murder involving a girl who was starved to death while held in a cage, Sayer is called in to lead the investigation. Then the victim is identified as the daughter of a high profile senator—and Sayer is thrust into the spotlight. As public pressure mounts, she discovers that another girl has been taken and is teetering on the brink of death. With evidence unraveling around her, Sayer realizes that they are hunting a killer with a dangerous obsession . . . a killer who is closer than she thought.