Thomas Buckley is one of the first of his kind. In the year 1651, he is a private investigator. He has gained a reputation for impartiality that has spread throughout the New Hampshire settlement of Portsmouth. He is called there to investigate a strange series of murders. Witchcraft is suspected, but cannot be proven. There must be another cause, yet he cannot find one.

While at Portsmouth, he discovers a strange priest who lives alone in a solitary church. He finds a grieving family who hasn't yet recovered from the loss of their son. A witch who lives in the forest seems to be at the center of it all. Yet, what the people believe happened and what is actually true are two different things.

Buckley can sense that he is running out of time. For if he cannot discover who is behind the murders, a woman will be burned alive...