Is Any Place Really Safe These Days?

In the current state of worldly affairs, is it possible for any of us to find a perfect sanctuary these days?

The dictionary defines the word "sanctuary" as a "safe haven from being hunted by animals or human beings".  That definition fits my new novel perfectly. In my novel, someone is killing empaths. And Empath Sonny Blake senses she's next on the madman's list. At the same time, Meta Corps Agent Logan Reed is assigned to use Sonny's incredible empathic skills to locate the madman and bring him to justice. Their odyssey starts out with a shared empathic vision, and soon turns into a nightmare of secrets, lies, and an unexpected murder. Sound familiar?

I placed the action in the story at a spiritual retreat, but rather than being a safe haven, I made the retreat the perfect hunting ground for a madman. Now that the novel is finished and about to be published, I've had a lot of time to consider why I would choose a spiritual retreat as the backdrop for a story centering around death and madness. I think it's because the world is in such a maddened state right now, that I don't believe there's such a thing as a safe haven anymore. Witness the immigration of tens of thousands of families leaving Syria and Africa to seek a safe haven in Europe. Watching the videos of their struggle to find a better life than one dictated by madmen, I feel sad and discouraged. And more than anything I wish I had a gazillion dollars and access to a huge spot of land that could house a million people. I'd love to be part of the solution rather than the problem.

So I ask again. Is any place really safe these days? If you watch the nightly news--the killings, the hatred--you'll agree with me and say "not anymore". Off the soapbox now.