“The body was bruised in several places. Dry blood and saliva were evident over parts of his face and near the mouth. Joe knelt down and read the piece of paper: ‘mcgrath this here you last warnin. you and that black basterd rucker git outta town or you gonna be next.’"

Joe and Sam attempt to find the murderers of Joe’s father twenty-five years ago. Alabama 1948, and the two face corrupt judges and law enforcement officials, and a secret fraternity of men determined to maintain the Southern way of life and an illegal liquor business called ‘the operation.’ All this occurs against a backdrop of a seemingly bucolic small town, Montevallo, home to a college for women.