When twelve-year-old Sam Rivera starts at Pinecrest Middle School in April, he expects the usual challenges of being a new kid. What he doesn't expect is to discover that students have been vanishing from the school every twelve years always four at a time, always in April, always without a trace.Aaron Mitchell, the robotics club president, is already gone. Sofia Alvarez, a talented artist, disappeared next. Now Caleb Johnson and Lily Robertson have vanished, too, following a sinister pattern that stretches back decades.Sam's father, an archaeologist, disappeared eight months ago while researching ancient rituals in Ecuador. But when Sam finds hidden evidence linking his father's research to Pinecrest's dark history, he realizes the disappearances are no longer random. They're sacrifices part of a ritual performed by a secret society that believes they're protecting the city from an ancient evil.With the help of three unexpected friends and a trail of clues his father left behind, Sam has just three days to uncover the truth before the ritual is completed. But the deeper he delves into Pinecrest's secrets, the more perilous his investigation becomes, with danger lurking at every turn.Some mysteries are meant to be buried for a reason. And some people will kill to keep them that way.As time runs out, Sam realizes that he may be the only one who can break the twelve-year cycle of terror. The responsibility weighs heavily on his young shoulders, and he must summon all his courage and wits to survive long enough to try.