When his trusted secretary, Phyllis, displays out-of-character behavior and suddenly disappears, Dismas Hardy. He learns that her convict brother--a man who had served twenty-five years in prison for armed robbery and attempted murder-- has just been released. Then Phyllis is arrested at work for allegedly being an accessory to the murder of Hector Valdez, a coyote who'd been smuggling women into this country from El Salvador and Mexico. If his cherished colleague has any chance of going free, Dismas needs to put all the pieces together-- and fast. -- adapted from back cover