Close Tolerance

The Story

In Ashford Falls, Ohio, the machines at Meridian Wire Systems never stop. Donovan Parker keeps them running. He checks every part against the dial twice. He outlines every tool on his pegboard in black marker so he’ll know the moment one goes missing.

Then a woman two towns over is found strangled with a black cable tie, the tail trimmed flush against the lock.

Donovan has seen that detail before. It filled the last years of his father’s life and twelve file boxes that now sit in Donovan’s garage. His father never caught the Cable Tie Strangler. He left behind one final note that no one can explain.

Now the killer is back. A silent new hire is asking for a job in the tool room. A patient detective is asking questions. Every tie found at a crime scene leads back to the plant where Donovan has spent the last ten years.

He has always trusted the numbers. This time, they are pointing at him.