Myron Bolitar is a sports agent, but he also investigates crimes. He usually enlists the help of his friend Win, a slick and violent agent with a history of secret government work. When he's called on to investigate the kidnapping of Chad and Linda Coldren's son, though, Myron finds himself on his own. He feels out of his depth without Win's help, and he only seems to regain his balance when his assistant Esperanza comes out to help him.
During the story, Myron takes on some of Win's roles. Not only does he follow people and get into fights, but Myron also resorts to torture and intimidation to get information from criminals. Myron is beginning to have misgivings about the tactics he's using, and he feels that he's starting to look at the world in a different way. Perhaps he is becoming more detached and colder on some level, like his friend Win.
Myron is in a relationship with his girlfriend Jessica, but he is afraid of being hurt. He explains his attraction to Linda Coldren because of his fear of his committed relationship with Jessica. Myron is self-deprecating and uses humor as a defense mechanism. This gets him into trouble sometimes, including when he makes jokes while he is being held by Reginald Squires, a rich and loony criminal. Ultimately, though, Myron is an intelligent investigator. He finds out information and figures out the truth of what happened, even though he cannot reveal everything to the police.
Linda Coldren is a successful professional golfer, far more successful than her husband Jack is. As important as Linda's golf career is to her, her son is more important. Linda could not have a child of her own, and her son Chad was born to a surrogate. Linda is afraid to leave her husband because she is not Chad's biological mother, and she does not want to lose custody of him.
Linda has complete faith in her son. Even though she has not seen him for two days before the kidnapping, she cannot believe that he is involved in any way. She continuously tells Myron that the kidnapping cannot be a hoax. She also insists that they cannot take any chances and bring in the police or the FBI. She doesn't want to harm her son.
When Linda learns that the kidnappers want Jack to lose the tournament, she realizes that Jack won't be able to throw the game. She ultimately shoots her husband to save her son. Long ago, she has lost any feelings she had for Jack, and she's been unfaithful to him. After the murder, Linda retreats behind her family's high-powered attorney, who will not give any information to the police. Linda's money and position will keep her safe, no matter what she's done.
Jack Coldren is a professional golfer. Twenty-three years ago, Jack lost the U.S. Open. It was at the beginning of his career, and Jack had a commanding lead. However, in the sixteenth hold, Jack landed in a hazard. He choked, lost his lead, and lost the U.S. Open. His promising career suddenly ended. Jack never became a big name in golf and often did not make the qualifiers to play professionally.
Jack is gay and stays married to his wife Linda, because it helps him stay in the closet. He is bitterly disappointed. At the beginning of the novel, Jack is back in the U.S. Open at his home golf course, Merion, the same place where he choked years ago. Jack again has a commanding lead, and after years of mediocrity, the drive to win has awakened in him with a vengeance. He cannot let anything stop him.
When Jack learns that his son has been kidnapped, he still wants to win the U.S. Open and regain something of what he lost at the beginning of his career. When the kidnappers demand that Jack throw the championship, Jack cannot bring himself to obey. Jack's whole life has been building up to replaying the events of twenty-three years ago, and he grasps at the idea that the kidnapping could be a hoax. Even after the kidnappers cut off his son's finger, Jack cannot force himself to lose. Finally, he tries to shoot himself, and Linda claims that in the end, he wants her to kill him.
Chad Coldren is Jack and Linda Coldren's son. He is sixteen-years-old, and he's been seduced by Esme Fong. He doesn't realize that he's being used by Esme for her own purposes and brags about his catch to his friend Matt. Chad goes to a motel with Esme, where he is kidnapped. He is held captive by Tito, and his finger is cut off. Chad is finally released after his father is murdered.
Win is Myron's good friend and business associate. A financial planner, Win handles the money for all of Myron's sports clients. Myron and Win are staying at a guesthouse on Win's family's estate. Win is wealthy, and the Philadelphia elite are his home territory. However, Win refuses to help Myron with the investigation. Linda is Win's cousin on his mother's side, and Win remains estranged from his mother, refusing to have anything to do with her.
Win has not spoken to his mother since he was eight, when he walked in on her having sex with his riding instructor. The person who arranged for Win's mother to get caught was Jack Coldren, another reason why Win won't have anything to do with the case. Win is a distant and possibly deeply scarred person. He has unmarked cars that he uses to troll bad neighbourhoods for criminals, who he brings to vigilante justice.
Esperanza is Myron's assistant, a former professional wrestler whose stage name was "Little Pocahontas." She has just graduated from NYU Law School. When she learns that Win refuses to help on the case, she comes out to Philadelphia to help Myron. Now that she has a law degree, Esperanza wants to become a partner in Myron's firm.
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