In Kansas, fleeing killers kidnap a bus with deaf girls and hole up in a slaughterhouse. They kill one girl and threaten to kill the rest if their demands are not met. The 12-hour siege by the FBI becomes a media circus, exploited by politicians and competing police departments. By the author of Playing for Sleep.

"Ellen Lark is on the verge of marriage when she and her fianc�e receive an unexpected visit from Alexander Graham Bell. Ellen is deaf and for a time she was Bell's student learning visible speech. During their lessons, Bell also confided in her about his dream of producing a device that would transmit the human voice along a wire: the telephone. Now, on the cusp of wealth and renown, Bell wants Ellen to speak up in support of his claim to the patent...