On the campus of the California College of Arts and Sciences, a prestigious private college, four female students have been murdered, shot with a small caliber round, their nude bodies found next to their cars, their clothes folded neatly nearby. Strange symbols are carved into each victim's chest. The police are investigating but not making much progress. When the college president asks crime consultant, Dr. Aaron Archer, to investigate, Aaron is drawn into a web of deceit and intrigue that calls into question the integrity of both the college faculty and the student body. As two more bodies are discovered, the investigation leads Aaron into unsavory and dangerous contexts where he finds himself not only investigating a series of unlikely suspects, but enlisting the aid of even more unlikely allies. In addition to investigating a series of gruesome campus murders that threaten to shut down a prestigious private college, Aaron must also help Alexis face the impending death of her mother, who has pancreatic cancer and only months to live.