In the dark recesses of Hale County, Tennessee, madness abounds. Dr. Evan Michaels is obsessed with finding a cure for the fractured psyche of the human mind. The Hale County Mental Institute was an old prison turned into an asylum for the criminally insane, as well as a home for the psychologically unwell. But in the lower recesses of the former prison, far removed from its unsuspecting staff, dark experiments are being performed, turning madmen into monsters. Amanda Richardson, an investigative reporter from Nashville, is determined to find the truth about the goings on in the asylum. Tipped by a former inmate of the mental institute, she barrels head long into the darkness. Standing in her way: the no-nonsense Sheriff, a corrupt Mayor, and unseen forces; lurking in every shadow of the cursed county. But something far more evil has returned to the county after a century, centered on the new science professor at the community college. Jason Locke possesses the key to an unmarked grave that could save the ill-begotten county, or push it inevitably into everlasting darkness.