On Valentine's Day 1998, a woman approached the front desk of a St Michaels, MD resort to report a fire in her hotel room. Pulling a charred body from the smoke, investigators braced themselves for a holiday to remember.

In Oakland, California, journalist Chauncey Bailey was gunned down in broad daylight by a masked man. Evidence soon surfaced that indicated it was the culmination of a deadly conspiracy at the heart of one of Oakland's most beloved institutions.