When recently widowed Janie Ballard is found brutally murdered in her home, police suspect it's a home invasion gone wrong; when detectives learn that Janie's husband left her with a sizeable estate, their list of suspects turns personal.

In the dead of night, officers respond to a blazing housefire in the small town of Alpena, Michigan. When firefighters extinguish the flames and find a body with stab wounds, the fire scene investigation turns into a murder investigation.