A posh， upper East Side Episcopal church throws a garden party， and the dismembered body of an unknown teenaged girl is found in a long-buried hamper. Called in to investigate， Lieutenant Vince Cardozo discovers a "communion killer" on the loose in New York City. Preying on homeless teenagers， the elusive killer leaves as his trademark a communion wafer in the mouth of each victim. Cardozo s suspicions focus on three priests: Father Chuck Romero， a Catholic struggling against his attraction toward young people; Father Joe Montgomery， a flamboyant Episcopalian， confessorand companion tothe city s moneyed and powerful; and Reverend Bonnie Ruskay， a beautiful and dedicated young mother trying to breach the walls that divide rich from poor， good from evil， and herself from her own children. Searching， Cardozo finds only riddles: Why does the D.A. deny church involvement? Why have four identical murders been investigated as unrelated homicides? Why have the media blacked out the killings? Why -- when the case is finally solved and the killer jailed -- do the communion killings begin again? Racing the clock， disobeying his superiors command to back off， fighting a cover-up at the highest level of city and church politics， Cardozo must uncover the grisly truth before another child is killed.From the Paperback edition.