The boys are back in town Frank Farrow is a natural-born killer. Roman Otis is a fine-looking crooner who does his killing on the side. On a hot D.C. afternoon Frank and Roman hit a pizza shop called May's. When the hit was over, four people were executed. A cop was shot. A boy was dead. And when the sirens stopped wailing and the killers vanished into the heat, dozens of lives were shattered forever. Now it's three years later, and Dimitri Karras, who lost a son, is starting to live again. But Dimitri's old acquaintance, a P.I. named Nick Stefanos, has just unburied the past--by discovering the killers' identity. Suddenly the second act of a crime story is about to be told. Because the May's pizza parlor killers are coming back into town: where they'll be greeted with open arms, broken hearts, and at least one loaded gun. "For some time George P. Pelecanos has been the best-kept secret in crime fiction -- maybe all fiction ... The word among writers and those in the know has long been 'Read Pelecanos.'" -- Michael Connelly, author of Void Moon "One of the best crime novelists alive, George Pelecanos is an American original." -- Dennis Lehane, author of Prayers for Rain "Tough and skillful...there are action scenes as fierce as any you will read and street talk that hits the ear as smart and accurate." -- San Francisco Chronicle Also by George P. Pelecanos: The Sweet Forever "Brilliant." -- The Dallas Morning News " The Sweet Forever is the bomb!" -- The Seattle Times King Suckerman " King Suckerman 's got jive, juice, and a whole lotta justice." -- Time Out "A great read ... stunning and forceful." -- Michael Connelly, author of Void Moon Available from Dell back in town Frank Farrow is a natural-born killer. Roman Otis is a fine-looking crooner who does his killing on the side. On a hot D.C. afternoon Frank and Roman hit a pizza shop called May's. When the hit was over, four people were executed. A cop was shot. A boy was dead. And when the sirens stopped wailing and the killers vanished into the heat, dozens of lives were shattered forever. Now it's three years later, and Dimitri Karras, who lost a son, is starting to live again. But Dimitri's old acquaintance, a P.I. named Nick Stefanos, has just unburied the past--by discovering the killers' identity. Suddenly the second act of a crime story is about to be told. Because the May's pizza parlor killers are coming back into town: where they'll be greeted with open arms, broken hearts, and at least one loaded gun. The boys are back in town Frank Farrow is a natural-born killer. Roman Otis is a fine-looking crooner who does his killing on the side. On a hot D.C. afternoon Frank and Roman hit a pizza shop called May's. When the hit was over, four people were executed. A cop was shot. A boy was dead. And when the sirens stopped wailing and the killers vanished into the heat, dozens of lives were shattered forever. Now it's three years later, and Dimitri Karras, who lost a son, is starting to live again. But Dimitri's old acquaintance, a P.I. named Nick Stefanos, has just unburied the past--by discovering the killers' identity. Suddenly the second act of a crime story is about to be told. Because the May's pizza parlor killers are coming back into town: where they'll be greeted with open arms, broken hearts, and at least one loaded gun. George P. Pelecanos is the author of seven other novels: The Sweet Forever , King Suckerman , The Big Blowdown , Down by the River Where the Dead Men Go , Shoedog , Nick's Trip , and A Firing Offense . He lives in Washington, D.C. The car was a boxy late-model Ford sedan, white over black, innocuous bordering on invisible, and very fast. It had been a sheriff's vehicle originally, bought at auction in Tennessee, and further modified for speed. The car rolled north on Wisconsin beneath a blazing white sun. The men inside wore long-sleeved shirts, tails out. Their shirtfronts were spotted with sweat and their backs were slick with it. The black vinyl on which they sat was hot to the touch. From the passenger seat, Frank Farrow studied the street. The sidewalks were empty. Foreign-made automobiles moved along quietly, their occupants cool and cocooned. Heat mirage shimmered up off asphalt. The city was narcotized -- it was that kind of summer day. "Quebec," said Richard Farrow, his gloved hands clutching the wheel. He pushed his aviator shades back up over the bridge of his nose, and as they neared the next cross street he said, "Upton." "You've got Thirty-ninth up ahead," said Frank. "You want to take that shoot-off, just past Van Ness." "I know it," said Richard. "You don't have to tell me again because I know." "Take it easy, Richard." "All right." In the backseat, Roman Otis softly sang the first verse to "One in a Million You," raising his voice just a little to put the full Larry Graham inflection into the chorus. He had heard the single on WHUR earlier that morning,