Book excerpt: From the author of The Last Trip of the Magi, comes a perplexing mystery featuring colorful and unusual characters trapped in a maze of surprises and dead ends. "Woe unto those who do not heed my warning." The newscaster prepares his viewers for the ferocious blizzard surging toward them. Most listen. A few do not. "Only daredevils, fools, and the naïve come out in weather like this." The restaurant manager describes the fourteen unwary travelers forced to seek overnight refuge in his establishment. He will soon add murderers to his list. "Someone call 9-1-1. Please. Call 9-1-1." The young lady pleads for help after stumbling over the body of the secretive loner who had been spying on the restaurant's guests. "Oh, how I hate this job." The aging deputy battles through the blizzard to his first homicide scene ever. His inexperience with major crimes is only one of the reasons he can't curb the violence or identify the culprit. "We are being held hostage by the blizzard and a murderer." The frustrations of the patrons and staff of the restaurant boil over. Fear and tension build. Tempers flare. Rumors spread. Suspicion shifts from person to person. "All is not going to end well." A stranded woman makes an ominous prediction. She is right. All does not end well.