In the darkness they wait, patient, hungry…

They are found huddled together in a frontier mineshaft. Three mummified corpses sitting near a vein of gold so rich it would have made them wealthy. Yet they never tried to leave. Instead, they sat down and starved to death rather than walk out.

When Robyn Miller inherits her father's share of an old ghost town in Nevada that has been in the family for generations, she decides to pack up and make a new life by creating a one-of-a-kind wedding venue and tourist attraction.

Eager to put her plans into action, she hires a trio of geologists to survey the crumbling gold mine so that she can start offering tours. But only one of them makes it out alive, and he brings with him a tale of mummified corpses and seams of gold.

He also tells of a creature deep in the tunnels. A beast with glowing red eyes that attacked them, killing his companions and almost murdering him.

The local police, unable to find answers, call in the FBI, who in turn ask CUSP for help. When John Decker arrives in the remote mining town he finds a terrifying adversary that dates all the way back to the Gold Rush, and an ancient legend come to life.

This is book seven in the John Decker series, but it can be read as a standalone novel.