Victory Ro

They were best friends, four talented and charismatic young men who lived charmed lives among the evergreens of Washington state: Kevin, the artist; Steve, the sculptor; Scott, the nature lover and unabashed ladies' man; and Mark, the musician and poet. With their stunning good looks, whip-sharp minds, athletic bodies - and no lack of women who adored them - none of them seemed slated for disaster. But few knew the reality behind the leafy screen that surrounded Seven Cedars, Scott's woodland dream home....

I'm a 64-year-old retired lawyer and former Assistant Attorney General with an unusual story to tell. Every word of it is true. It happened in a state park known as Devil's Den. For fear of losing my job and damaging my reputation in the legal community, I never spoke about the incident. If it hadn't happened to me, I'd be skeptical too. In 1977, I was an active duty NCO in the USAF. A friend and I planned a two-night camping trip to explore the wilderness. We drove deep into the forest until we came to a high plateau. There on the horizon sat a perfect triangle of three very bright stars....

Find the missing. Fear the found. Three months have passed since the aliens' arrival, but little has changed in the skies. Motherships still hover, impervious to attack and communication. Spherical shuttles ferry about with unclear intentions. But the abductions of select humans have ended, and most of those taken have been returned - dazed, incoherent, and prophesying glory or doom, but home where they belong. Still, nine seemingly unconnected people remain missing.