Synopsis
Jack Johnson and his brother Todd own a successful, high-end video gaming & technology company that has recently developed a process that will revolutionize computer gaming. This new technology allows for the recording and transferable playback of basic human emotion and feeling. Video gaming meets adrenalin junky. It is, with no equal, the ultimate in virtual reality.
As the research progresses from simple adrenalin based memories such as skydiving and bungee jumping, to more complex and sometimes violent interpersonal interactions, Jack and his brother begin to examine the idea of residual after effects. Do these memories have any lasting effects and if so, to what degree? (And what about the liability issues?)
Jack is of the opinion that you cannot alter one’s internal moral compass—an opinion that Todd does not share. A bet between brothers is wagered for a single dollar. There is, of course much more than that at stake, but over the years the single dollar bet had become a symbol to them; mainly because of the simply clarity of defining a winner and a loser.
Eager to prove his brother wrong, Jack opts to do some testing on his own. His plan is to push the edge of the moral envelope and return unscathed. But he rushes too quickly to make his point and fails to question where the memories came from.
What Jack ends up experiencing are the sociopathic sessions from a sexually deviant serial killer. The resulting imagery and emotion are so fervid and intense that even after the simulation ends, Jack is left incapable of separating his feelings from those of the killer.
With the Lipstick Killer once again in the news and on the loose, a new string of grisly murders are under investigation. To Jack’s horror, each murder has occurred during one of his, now all too frequent, blackouts. Desperate for answers and with nowhere else to turn, Jack tracks down the person responsible for the original recordings—a woman that Jack will ultimately fall in love with. A woman already stalked and marked for murder by the Lipstick Killer.
To save his newfound love, Jack is forced to make an unthinkable decision, the decision to face his worst fears by experiencing another dose of the killer’s memories. It's the only way he can save her, but at what ultimate consequence?
Traces of Terror takes us on a terrifying journey to the edge of self-control and drops us face to face with the killer inside of all of us. The story is a technological thriller that contains strong language, sexual content and violence. Traces of Terror is suspense, adventure, mystery and science fiction.
Join Jack on this mental merry-go-round with a crazed serial killer and experience his horror from the safety of a cozy reading chair.