Gavin is now in the clutches of the man he's been chasing for almost four years. What do the Hickory Killer and his android have in store now that Gavin is at their mercy? And how far will they go to encourage his cooperation? Nines must learn to cope without Gavin and face that fact that time moves forward, and not everyone is as focused on his case as he is. He knows it's time to return to his hunting roots, but being a relentless RK900 is hard when thoughts of Gavin keep interrupting his progress.