The boy / Tami Hoag.

In the sleepy Lousiana town of Bayou Breaux, the police arrive to find Genevieve Gauthier cradling her seven-year-old son in her arms as he bleeds to death. The scene is chaotic, but as Detective Nick Fourcade moves through the house, he sees no evidence of a robbery. Detective Annie Broussard sits with Genevieve, trying to make sense of her story. A mother herself, Annie understands the emotional devastation this woman is going through, but as a detective she's troubled by parts of Gauthier's story that make no sense. The next day, thirteen-year-old Nora Florette is reported missing. It is unclear if Nora has run away or if her disappearance is something more sinister. The town is up in arms, with parents fearing a maniac is preying on the children of Bayou Breaux, and wondering what the police are going to do about it. As Fourcade and Broussard dig into their case, they find something shocking about Genevieve Gauthier's past. She is both victim and the accused; a grieving mother and a woman with a deadly secret. Could she have something to do with the disappearance of Nora Florette? Is the key to these dark mysteries THE BOY?