Sara Linton, a forensic pathologist in the small town of Heartsdale, is called to a suspected suicide on the campus of the local college. The mutilated body provides few clues, and the college authorities are eager to avoid a scandal, but for Sara and Police Chief Jeffrey Tolliver, the picture remains unclear.

Two more suspicious suicides follow, and a young woman is brutally attacked. The violence hits too close to home for Sara. As Jeffrey pursues the sadistic killer, he discovers that former police detective Lena Adams, who now works as a security officer on campus, may have crucial information. However, injured and angry about her dismissal from the police force, Lena seems barely able to protect herself, let alone save the next victim.