Devolution

"Flynn's voice would never leave him; it was a permanent tattoo, scented in rot and dripping with venom."

Nobody dies like Marco Ryan, the only teenager his kidnapper has kept alive for more than a month. Flynn can't get enough of Marco's death performances and wants to train him as a protégé, a partner in crime. Flynn would have kept him longer--if Marco hadn't rammed him through with a butcher knife.

Now homeless, Marco can't shake the voices that torment him or the presence of a ghostly boy who wants him as dead as he is.

Ty Jackson, a helpful police detective, and Dr. Gary Snyder, Marco's physician uncle, rescue him, but Marco won't reveal the identity of the serial killer or the details of his captivity.

Annie, Marco's beautiful, quirky girlfriend, has always loved him from afar, but the closer they become, the more she feels unnerved and confused. Marco's uncle grows uneasy at the teen's propensity for violence. Their support may not be enough to keep Marco alive.

A resurrected Flynn and Mike, his idiot-savant henchman, are desperately searching for the boy who broke Flynn's heart. And, they'll keep killing until Flynn's fantasy is complete.