The body of a young woman is found in a ditch in the woods of the small California coastal town of San Benito. Cassie Mayweather, the seasoned homicide detective and tenacious crime scene specialist is assigned to the case with her new partner Sam Kennedy. The two detectives make their way through microscopic hints of evidence, which seem to indicate a random act of violence, but cassie has a gut feeling that there is more to this murder than meets the eye. Something about this case reminds her of her past exactly at a time when she is asked to appear at a parole hearing on an old police matter. These events force Cassie to revisit the past. Cassie pours her heart into solving the mystery; her new partner Sam is smart and eager. Together, they soon discover a trail of shrewdly concealed evidence that links two brilliant young men, Richard and Justin, to the murder. As different as justin, the shy one, and Richard, the charming one appear--underneath they have a lot in common. Both displaying opoosing sides of anti-social behavior, they found each other and formed a secret friendship--bound to a dare of committing the perfect murder. Through the investigation, the detective discovers dark secrets in the teenagers' past that explain how the two could be capable of such cold calculated crimes.