Bump in the Night

Martha Tierney is awakened from a routine hangover by a call revealing her young son's disappearance, and she battles to find him and rescue herself from alcoholism.

The nightmare begins on November 12 when Martha Tierney faces what every mother dreads: her son Jonathan is missing. With a raging hangover, unable even to remember what day it is, Martha must pull herself together and face a crisis of terrifying proportions. Devastated by her losing battle with the bottle, Martha is now determined to face the heartbreak of uncertainty without the crutch of alcohol.

The logical prime suspect is Martha's ex-husband Patrick, who is preparing to fight her for custody of Jonathan. But he is sitting in a doughnut ship, nervously drinking cup after cup of watery doffee, waiting for Jonathan; waiting for his son, who will not arrive at their secret meeting place. Waiting. And panicking.

But Jonathan is at the zoo with a man who somehow reminds him of his father, who tells him Ptrick sent him, who seems quite pleasant. Jonathan has a vague feeling it's not a good idea to let this man become too friendly. He has been warned about the dangers of talking to strangers.

The drama intensifies. A puzzling photo appears. Jonathan's classmates recall tiny details. A friend sketches the face of a strange man she's seen lurking around the neighborhood. The drawing looks vaguely familiar - a local eccentric...