Jesse Stone is an ex LA cop who has taken the job of police chief in Paradise, Massachusetts but his drinking and his damaged relationship with his wife Jenn define him as much as his supreme skill at policing his patch.

When Crow, an Apache hitman, turns up in Jesse Stone's office, the Chief is intrigued but very much on his guard. Ten years earlier, Crow had been part of a gang that had taken a woman in the town hostage when a bank raid went wrong. The hostages were released unharmed, thanks to Crow's moral view that you didn't kill women, but he also got away with enough money not to have to work again.

So why is Crow back in town? Why has he come to see Jesse? Is it true he has taken the job of kidnapping a young girl and her mother?