THE SHIELD AND THE CIPHER : THE CASE OF THE RED ANGEL

In the rotting gut of the 12th District in Bargon City, a killer isn't just taking lives, but composing them in a pattern only he seems to understand.

When famed violinist Valerie French is found dead on the stage of the Saint Martha Concert Hall, she lies perfectly nude, resting on a bed of thousands of yellow carnations and cypress sprigs, with a single, thornless red rose folded in her hands. Just like local library archivist Clara Bercer.

For battle-worn Homicide Detective Damian King-running on cold coffee, cheap cigarettes, and twelve years of street grit-it's an impossible nightmare. The press calls him the "Red Angel." Damian calls him a lunatic playing with corpses.

Enter Sienna Calazet: a quiet woman of aristocratic background and his new partner. Armed with knowledge, observation and her intelect, Sienna sees patterns and facts where even the most seasoned detectives don't know to look.

Forced into an uneasy partnership, the cynical street cop and the sharp-eyed scholar must decipher the Red Angel's silent messages before he completes his masterpiece. Because the killer doesn't view his crimes as murder... he views them as an act of immortal love.

And he's already selecting his next canvas.