In seconds, Morelli was up off his chair. His footfalls told me he was coming for the door. As he did so, I felt for the wire, gripping the thing by the handles. A loop, a twist, and a yank for all the firmness I could muster, and it would all be over.

VENGEANCE PACKS A POWERFUL INCENTIVE for hunting down a murderer of loved ones. Consumed by grief, Maxx Ott seeks the whereabouts of Malik Morelli whom he holds accountable for the hideous, unwarranted killings of his wife, Bea, their unborn child, and their good friend, Samnang.

Tethered only by the need to keep his business afloat, Maxx becomes a self-styled vigilante, utilizing his skills as a former Green Beret solider and current private investigator to root out the killer. In fervid pursuit of his quarry, he finds himself in places such as Niagara Falls, New York, a state prison in Illinois, a ranch in central Florida, the upper peninsula of Michigan, and farther north to Wisconsin. His lack of trust in the local authorities to do their due diligence carries him forth, regardless of what it may cost him.

Maxx relates to the reader in his own words how the torment of seeing revenge carried through weighs on his conscience, his soul, his commitment to others, and eventually his faith as a God-fearing Christian. He keeps it tightly wrapped, however, while the sage wisdom of others festers like a seed in the back of his mind. In the end, it all comes tragically apart for someone in a twist he'll take to his grave.

In seconds, Morelli was up off his chair. His footfalls told me he was coming for the door. As he did so, I felt for the wire, gripping the thing by the handles. A loop, a twist, and a yank for all the firmness I could muster, and it would all be over.