The City is ruled by crime boss the Cardinal. Al "Algiers" Jeery works for the head mobster as a personal guard at Party Central. When Al’s new girlfriend Nic Hornyak is murdered in a hotel owned by the Cardinal, the fuming mob chief orders his loyal but stunned subordinate to investigate.

Al makes inquiries, which proves he knows nothing about Nic as her friends are weird and not in a nice eccentric way. He soon finds himself the target of blind Incan priests and the mysterious killing machine Paucar Wami, who assassinates without impunity as nobody dares go after him. Al fears he is a walking dead man with no escape as he believes he is next on the ultimate hit man’s list.

This reprint (under the name of Darren O'Shaughnessy in 2000) is a terrific parallel thriller to Procession of the Dead urban fantasy. Although there are major similarities between the stars of both tales especially their relationship to their respective “mentors”, fans will enjoy this twisting entry particularly the perfect killer Wami as Al learns the City is filled with all types of deadly snakes.