Nearly a decade ago， Ben Harvey was convicted of raping a high school classmate--a crime for which he has consistently maintained his innocence. After he s spent ten years in prison， DNA evidence conclusively proves that he is indeed innocent， his conviction is overturned， and he is released. But the dreams he once had for college and a career in law are now out of his reach， and the once well-liked， respectful young man has seemingly grown embittered. Meanwhile， shortly after his release， his accuser， Laura Shay， is found dead in her apartment--brutally and mysteriously murdered. Chicago Police Detective Jeremy Ransom draws the investigation of Laura Shay s murder and quickly finds himself mired in a case with too much publicity and too few clues. With the help of his friend Emily Charters， Jeremy begins to look into the decade-old rape charge that continues to cast its shadow over this case， for if he is to have any chance of solving Laura s murder， he must first uncover the long-buried truth of that long-ago night.