Smile of Deceit

When two teenage girls disappear exactly sixteen years apart, police are convinced that the cases must be connected. One suspect was present on both occasions and now he has checked out of his hotel early and cannot be found.

But nothing is straightforward and it becomes clear that police involved in the original investigation have secrets of their own. When the cold case is reopened new evidence about both girls is established quickly, and there is a strong suspicion that the police are being manipulated.

Ruby Delacourt, the partner of the main suspect, is convinced that he is innocent and she uses her skill as a reporter to do her own digging. But she helps to uncover a much darker side to his character and an unexpected link between the two cases.

This is the turning point and the race is on to catch the real killer - a race which begins in the mountains of the French Alps and ends in a ski lodge just north of Lake Bled.