When the body of a young, raven-haired beauty is found brutalized in Adams County, Ala., levelheaded sheriff Bernie Granger and her new chief deputy, divorced former Memphis detective Jim Norton, work overtime to prevent the killer from striking again. When a nearly identical crime is committed, the peaceful county goes into a tailspin. As Jim and Bernie work longer hours together, their feelings for each other deepen, especially as Bernie becomes involved in the life of Jim's son, Kevin. When a third local woman is killed, Bernie and Jim pull out all the stops to find the killer"before he gets bold enough to target them.