Since leaving his criminal investigators position, CJ Hand has become a thriving community college instructor in northwest Iowa. Finally, he can settle down with his fiancée Dee and have a peaceful future. But all this tranquility rapidly fades.

The sudden failure of an outstanding student, his fiancée's new job opportunities, and a personnel action weigh heavily on CJ Hand. To add to his troubles, his daughter calls with news about his former wife, and a painful past leads him back to Lincoln, Nebraska, to confront these new demons. At the semester's end, on an icy and snowy day, his life would change once again.