I believe in the existence of evil. Oh, there’s good, but you have to work at it just a bit to find it. Evil finds you, even when you’re not looking for it, or as the result of some action, whether it be careless cruelty or a deliberate act. It ripples, forward and outward, and where it stops... Sometimes it doesn’t.

I have been preoccupied with this after reading THE WATCHER IN THE WALL, the fifth installment in Owen Laukkanen’s series starring Kirk Stevens and Carla Windermere. An aside here: The series is relatively new, so if it has escaped your worthy notice, you need to jump on now. You can read this latest addition as a newbie, but please set aside time for the previous four books, which are all worth your time and money. Laukkanen is the real deal.

"Laukkanen presents a frightening picture here, one that will make you by turns wary of your fellow human beings and grateful for the members of law enforcement who stand ready against those who will do us harm."

Stevens is an officer with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and Windermere is an FBI agent. They have worked together on previous cases, and as THE WATCHER IN THE WALL begins, their partnership has been made official as they join forces with the FBI’s Minneapolis office. Stevens is a nose to the grindstone guy, driven but not obsessed. Windermere is hard as nails, definitely not girlfriend material despite the best efforts of fellow FBI agent Derek Mathers.

THE WATCHER IN THE WALL gets rolling when Stevens’ daughter comes to him following a tragedy at her school. One of her fellow students, a target of hazing, has committed suicide. It initially appears that there is little that law enforcement can do, but Windermere, for reasons unknown to Stevens (but revealed to the reader), insists on investigating the matter. A close review of the victim’s computer reveals that he had been visiting a suicide chat room in the weeks leading up to that fateful day, and that someone on the site had been grooming and encouraging him to end his life. Further investigation reveals a shocking truth: that same individual has successfully encouraged others to do the same and may have more potential victims under his spell.

Randall Gruber is the person doing this, and over the course of the book, readers will come to know him and his history all too well. As Laukkanen alternates points of view in short chapters that propel the story effortlessly forward, Stevens and Windermere crisscross the country as they pursue leads generated electronically and in person, trying to run the elusive Gruber to ground. Although a presence on the web, he is adept at hiding his location and true identity.

Meanwhile, Gruber grows ever closer to convincing other victims to take the final, tragic step toward the solution to all of their problems. As the reader slowly learns why he is doing this, the urgency to find him becomes all the more clear, even as it becomes more difficult. You will never log into a chat room again without thinking about Gruber --- and your children --- after reading this book.

Laukkanen presents a frightening picture here, one that will make you by turns wary of your fellow human beings and grateful for the members of law enforcement who stand ready against those who will do us harm. Don’t expect the hair on the back of your neck to relax any time soon after you finish THE WATCHER IN THE WALL. That title, by the way, has more than one meaning.