Quinn Colson is unemployed—voted out of his position as sheriff of Tibbehah County, Mississippi. He has offers in bigger and better places, but before he goes, Colson’s got one more job to do—bring down county kingpin Johnny Stagg’s criminal operations for good. At least that's the plan. But in the middle of the long, hot summer, somebody smashes through the house of a wealthy mill owner, making off with a safe full of money and shooting a deputy. As Deputy Lillie Virgil hunts the criminals and draws Colson in, other people join the chase, too, but with a much more personal motive. For that safe contained more than just money—it held secrets. And as Colson well knows, some secrets can kill.