He thought he was tracking a poacher, but he found a predator far more dangerous than any bear.

DCNR Ranger Malachi James knows every inch of Worlds End State Park, but a blood trail in the snow leads him into a nightmare he thought he’d escaped long ago. When he investigates the slaughter of a sow and the theft of her young, he uncovers a wildlife trafficking ring run by Reece Mclean—a man the FBI knows as Maurice Moretti, a ruthless mafia hitman hiding behind the façade of a religious leader. But for Malachi, the threat is personal. Reece is leading Jade, the cult Malachi’s biological father founded, and his return brings Malachi face-to-face with the mother who abandoned him.

Wildlife biologist Cate Garrison is still healing from her traumatic run-in with the Continental Alliance, but she refuses to let fear keep her from saving the missing bear cubs. Teaming up with Malachi, she finds herself targeted by a killer determined to eliminate loose ends.

As a winter storm bears down on the Loyalsock State Forest, Malachi and Cate must navigate a deadly game of cat and mouse. With a hitman on their trail and Malachi’s past threatening to consume his future, they must expose the truth before they become the next victims buried in the woods.