When Spenser’s closet ally, Hawk, is brutally injured and left for deceased while protecting booking Luther Gillespie, Spenser embarks with an epic trip to rehabilitate his friend in body and spirit. Hawk, always very pleased, has never been dependent on anyone. Today he is pressured to make cable connections: to the medical technology that may make certain his physical recovery, and to reinforce the tenuous emotional ties he has to those around him.

Spenser quickly learns that the Ukrainian mob is in charge of the strike, but finding a means into their tightly knit circle isn’t nearly so simple. Their total control of the city of Marshport, through the bodegas to the police force to the mayor’s office, isn’t just an indicator of rampant corruption–it’s a form of arrogance that just serves to ignite Hawk’s wish to get even. As the body count number rises, Spenser is forced to employ some questionable techniques and even more questionable hired weapons while redefining his a friendly relationship with Hawk in the name of vengeance.