Eighteen months ago Dr. Brian Holbrook's life spun out of control. Addicted to painkillers since a college football injury, Brian was caught writing multiple prescriptions for himself. Overnight his license to practice medicine was suspended, and the best job this former chief of cardiology could find was in a car rental agency.

Now, after 18 frustrating months of insisting he is in full recovery, salvation comes in the form of a job offer at prestigious Boston Heart Institute. Brian's recovery will be carefully monitored but he will be part of a team of highflyers, treating patients and participating in tests of the revolutionary new drug Vasclear, which promises to reverse the effects of arteriosclerosis.

Then, on his very first day at BHI, Brian receives disturbing advice from a fellow doctor and recovering addict: Get out while you can. Dazzled by the medical miracles being practiced around him, desperate to hold onto his job, Brian has yet another reason for wanting to discount the warning: he is determined to get his own father into the Vasclear test. The new drug may be the only way to save his life.

But as the days pass it is plain to Brian that BHI's state of the art labs and shining operating rooms hide a terrible secret. Patients who have made startling progress are suddenly dying. A respected doctor has disappeared. The Vasclear test may be a nightmare of corruption, of sanctioned murder. And if his fears are justified, Brian may have made his father the next victim.

• Previous
• 1
• Next