1949. Aloysius Archer, fresh on parole, arrive in town... and becomes suspect number one when a local businessman is brutaly murdered. Yet, after his wartime experiences in Italy and a prison sentence for a crime he didn't commit, all he wants is a honest work and a peaceful life. Thus, when Archer's new employer ends up dead, he realizes that this town is bloodier than he bargained for. Archer and his new girlfriend Jackie both stand to lose everything...

Melvin Mars awaits his fate on death row. He was one of America's most promising football star until, aged twenty, he was convicted for the murder of his parents. Just before his execution, Melvin was saved because someone else confessed the killing. The FBI special agent Amos Decker decides to investigate the Mars murders to find out what really happened...

When Amos Decker returns to Burlington, Ohio, he is tracked down by his first homicide arrest, Meryl Hawkins, who still maintains his innocence. With Hawkins recently released from his life sentence, Decker finds himself questioning what had once seemed waterlight evidence. Is the real killer still out there ? As the body count rises in a new crime spree, Decker and his former partner Mary Lancaster have to dig deeper and reopen the old case...