The 7th Victim by Alan Jacobson

The provided excerpts detail a gripping crime thriller centered on FBI profiler Karen Vail as she hunts a serial killer dubbed the "Dead Eyes killer," who ritually mutilates his victims, often stabbing them in the eyes and leaving disturbing blood murals. Vail is deeply involved in the case, even as she deals with intense personal drama, including a strained relationship with her estranged ex-husband, Deacon, who assaulted her and landed her in legal trouble. The narrative follows the task force's investigation, profiling the killer's organized yet brutal methods, culminating in the shocking revelation that Senator Eleanor Linwood, Vail's biological mother, is the killer's seventh victim. The climax reveals the killer is Patrick Farwell, Vail's biological father, who was acting on long-suppressed, abusive fantasies stemming from a traumatic past and potentially influenced by a dissociative identity, leading to his eventual suicide and the unexpected capture of Vail's biological sister, Samantha, who was comp