What do long-ago murder and intrigue have to do with Terry Hartree, reporter for the Vancouver Tribune? Nothing, he would have said, until a call from a self-confessed serial killer sends him in pursuit of his greatest story ever. Terry's nightmare begins on an ordinary day of handing out assignments to his two cub reporters. A reluctant mentor, he is not happy about overseeing Grant's training and is especially disgruntled at having to drag "Lois Lane" around with him, too. But then the phone rings and changes everything. A woman calling herself Dallas, has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and wants to confess her crimes before she dies. A crusty old woman who likes to quote Shakespeare, Dallas is prepared to tell all about the murders. She also reveals that an organized group of cells--a kind of fifth column--was behind these and other deaths. And orchestrating everything was a power known by the code name Mr. Smith. Most startling of all, Mr. Smith is presently in Vancouver--and still destroying people's lives.