Father Mark Barnett was a talented priest, doing extraordinary work for the Archdiocese of New York. Through his ministry, he touched the lives of scores of people, from politicians and financiers to common laborers and the homeless. Some called him a saint and a great friend, while others held him in contempt. Now, he's dead. The priest is brutally murdered, in the early morning, on a dark Manhattan street. Why was he there, what did he do, what did he know, and what might he have had that someone wanted bad enough to kill for or have him killed? The investigation into his death is seen as critical enough to be given the highest priority by the New York Police Department, the district attorney, and the Cardinal Archbishop of New York. As the clues in the case are brought to light, the detectives assigned to it find that a terrible mistake took place in the recent past. They begin to unravel the mystery that has almost everyone who ever dealt with the priest, in recent years, waiting for the outcome and whether the finger of guilt might be pointed at one of them.