Daniel Brasher finds an envelope in his department mailbox - one intended for someone else that was placed in his slot by accident. Inside it is an unsigned piece of paper, a note that says only "admit what you've done or you will bleed for it. you have 'til november 15 at midnite." The deadline has already passed and the person to whom the envelope was addressed was brutally murdered. But this first warning is only the beginning. Now, with the clock ticking, Daniel - with no clue what he's supposed to have done or to what action he must confess - must somehow appease, or outwit, a seemingly unstoppable killer.