I moved to Fernandina Beach in late May after my father's tragic death while diving in the Gulf of Mexico off Cedar Key. My fiance', Mike Roberson, and I will be married soon. But for the next two weeks, Mike is out of town at a business training class in Connecticut. While he's gone, I'm looking in on his long-time, invalid neighbor, Elizabeth Courtland.
Recently, a series of gruesome and bizarre murders have plagued the area. The killer's calling card? The face of each victim is colored half-red. Police have no leads.
The serial killings have me a bit unnerved, but as a reporter, my curiosity is pushing me to discover the killer's identity and the truth behind the half-red faces. At the same time, I'm trying to reconcile my father's death. For years, he sought a legendary treasure nearly ignoring his family. Now, all that's left of the man is his cigar box underneath my bed that contains the research and artifacts that drove his obsession. I have mixed feeling toward the man and have been unable to bring myself to look inside, frightened of the painful and bitter memories that may surface.
