Dale Hardy thought he had seen the face of evil. But that was before the virus, before the cartel. Now, with his home and family in danger, Dale must look real evil in the eyes. He must choose between sanctuary and defiance and he must unite a house divided.

A month has passed since a deadly virus swept the country killing millions and leaving chaos in its wake.Dale Hardy has managed to weather the storm by hunkering down on his homestead in Arizona. He grows his own crops, generates his own power and draws fresh water from his own deep aquifer.But when a nearby town's water supply dwindles in the searing Arizona heat, Dale's peaceful existence is threatened. The new mayor and sheriff want what he has and they're willing to do whatever it takes to get it.With a crooked local government conspiring against him, Dale will need to stand in defiance or risk losing everything.

Tormented by a past he can't forget, Mayor John Mack is about to face the toughest fight of his life. The tiny town of Oneida, still reeling from the Chairman's violent overthrow, stands in the crosshairs of the foreign armies threatening at any moment to push across the Mississippi river. With the country fragmented and on the brink of military collapse, John will need to dig deeper than ever in order to help defend his loved ones and the town he swore to protect.