**From #1 bestselling authors Preston & Child comes a thrilling novel
following archaeologist Nora Kelly and FBI Agent Corrie Swanson as they
work together to solve a twisted crime that reaches far beyond any of
their worst fears.
** Following the acclaimed debut of Old Bones, this second "happily
anticipated" new thriller in Preston & Child's series features Nora
Kelly, archaeologist at the Santa Fe Archeological Institute, and rookie
FBI Agent Corrie Swanson, as they team up to solve a mystery that
quickly escalates into nightmare (Booklist).
A mummified corpse, over half a century old, is found in the cellar of
an abandoned building in a remote New Mexico ghost town. Corrie is
assigned what seems to her a throwaway case: to ID the body and
determine cause of death. She brings archaeologist Nora Kelly to
excavate the body and lend her expertise to the investigation, and
together they uncover something unexpected and shocking: the deceased
apparently died in agony, in a fetal position, skin coming off in
sheets, with a rictus of horror frozen on his face.
Hidden on the corpse lies a 16th century Spanish gold cross of immense
value.
When they at last identify the body -- and the bizarre cause of death --
Corrie and Nora open a door into a terrifying, secret world of ancient
treasure and modern obsession: a world centered on arguably the most
defining, frightening, and transformative moment in American history.
