Twenty years ago San Diego was rocked by a horrific car bombing. Local technology researcher Adam Collins and his young son were killed, and his wife Anita horribly maimed. Although the bombing at first appeared to be the work of the anti-technology extremist "The Unabomber," he was eventually ruled out as the killer. The crime went unsolved. Now former SDPD detective Nevada James, with three months sobriety under her belt, is asked by Anita Collins to take another look at the case. Nevada doesn't believe she'll come up with anything after so much time has passed, but she finds Anita fascinating. Is she the kind, grandmotherly woman she appears to be, or is she something else entirely? Meanwhile, a copycat killer is loose on the streets of San Diego and Nevada's former protégé calls her in for advice. Posing his victims in much the same manner as the Laughing Man, the killer appears to be after little more than respect. Whether he wants it from Nevada or the Laughing Man himself remains to be seen, but the body count is growing. Can Nevada beat him at his own game without losing herself again in the process?