Ernst Kohl has spent nearly half his life in prison after being convicted of murder as a young man. Upon his release, with nowhere else to go, Kohl returns to his old family home on the outskirts of a small Michigan town, hoping for redemption, or at least understanding.

He finds a dog, a girlfriend, and a job in quick succession, and it seems as if he might finally be able to leave the past behind and make a quiet life for himself. But some of the locals, including the town's corrupt deputy sheriff, are less than thrilled to see him, and will stop at nothing to rid the town of its infamous resident.

As events hurtle to an inevitable conclusion, Kohl is left to decide: At what point might a man break, and at what cost to himself?