The Scorpion's Tail

#1 bestselling authors Preston & Child return with the next book in a series featuring archaeologist Nora Kelly and FBI Agent Corrie Swanson.
Following OLD BONES, the second "happily anticipated" new thriller in Preston & Child's new series will once again feature Nora Kelly, archaeologist at the Santa Fe Archeological Institute, and FBI Agent Corrie Swanson investigating a new case that requires both their skills (Booklist).
After a shoot-out Swanson is involved in leaves a senior FBI agent gravely wounded, Corrie finds herself under investigation. Her supervisor assures her she's not to blame and the black mark on her record will be cleared in short order. But Corrie finds herself shake her overwhelming guilt.
As a distraction, she takes on a new case involving a fifty-year-old, mummified corpse discovered in a hidden enclave at High Lonesome, a long-abandoned New Mexico ghost town. Quickly out of her depth, she quickly realizes she needs the help of her foe-turned-ally, archaeologist Nora Kelly, who soon uncovers a startling truth: the deceased had been poisoned, and died clutching a priceless artifact from outside High Lonesome.
"SINCE GRADUATING FROM the Academy eight months before, Special Agent Corrie Swanson had learned to expect almost anything. Nevertheless, she hadn’t expected to be serving warrants on bawling teenagers. As she rode back through the mountains with the rest of the FBI team, she felt relieved that a difficult day was almost over."