Former law professor Tom McMurtrie has brought killers to justice, and taken on some of the most infamous cases in Alabama's history. Now he's tackling his greatest challenge.

McMurtrie's old nemesis, Jack Willistone, is found dead on the banks of the Black Warrior River. Willistone had his share of enemies, but all evidence points to a forgotten, broken woman as the killer. At the urging of the suspect's desperate fourteen-year-old daughter, McMurtrie agrees to take the case.

But as seasoned as McMurtrie is, even he isn't prepared for how personal and dangerous this case is going to get. With the trial drawing near and his sharp young partner, Rick Drake, dealing with a family tragedy, he recruits his best friend, Bocephus Haynes, to help investigate.

As key witnesses disappear and old demons return, time becomes McMurtrie's most fearsome opponent. Soon loyalties will be tested and the boundaries of law will be broken as McMurtrie fights to save his legacy and his client's life before the truth is buried forever in the muddy waters of the Black Warrior.