John Mariner's day was uneventful until he attended a political gathering being held in the Old Blanco County Court House at the behest of his friend, a state legislator. As the lieutenant governor began to speak, he collapsed and died. The death set off a string of events and more deaths before Mariner and his retired FBI friend, Hal Shaw, could sort out who was responsible for the killing. Along the way, Mariner and his family feared that they might be next. Eventually the team of state troopers, police and John Mariner and his friends untangled the complicated reasons for the murders.