A dark, morally uncompromising crime novel about overturned justice, institutional failure, and the price paid when the system looks away, perfect for fans of Chris Hammer’s Scrublands and Jane Harper’s The Dry. Justice is overturned. The consequences are just beginning. When the convictions of two men accused of rape are suddenly quashed, their return to Deception Bay is celebrated at a packed Australia Day cricket match. Before the day is done, dozens of people collapse with symptoms of poisoning – including the newly freed men themselves. Detective Antigone Pollard and her partner Wozza are thrown into a mass casualty crisis as emergency services are pushed to breaking point. With medical resources exhausted, Antigone’s mother, Dr Jilly Pollard, agrees to assess a sick child on a nearby farm. When she fails to return, Antigone retraces her journey – and walks straight into a siege. Negotiators take control. Protocol is enforced. Time is allowed to run out. With lives on the line and no good options left, Antigone makes a choice that will change everything. She goes in.