Seasoned on every page by his real-life experience as a Sante Fe deputy sheriff, Michael McGarrity's early Kevin Kerney novels shimmer with "precise realism" (Booklist ), as they immerse readers in the "excitement, color, and character" (The Denver Post ) of life on the job for one of crime fiction's most unforgettable Southwestern lawmen.

A small-town cop killing remains unsolved, and Kevin Kerney pursues the case's only lead: a homeless man's ramblings about an uncharted place called Serpent Gate. Then an art theft at the governor's offices and the murder of a sexy young blonde lure him back to Sante Fe, then to Mexico, where a face off with an old nemesis awaits--and where Kerney must choose between vengeance, loyalty, and justice.