Behind the whispered name lies Melba Eliose Merrydew: an unconventional, beautiful, determined single mother and the only woman who has ever managed to sweep Ed Vincent off his feet. Mel Merrydew met Vincent the last time the assassin came after him - and despite his obsessive secrecy, she knows just enough to unmask the killer before his third, perhaps fatal attempt. But the assassin has seen Mel - and is closer than she thinks. As Mel and Marco journey from New York to Tennessee and South Carolina in search of Ed Vincent's hidden past, the danger follows them, leading to near-tragedy in California and finally, an explosive confrontation in New York.