Francis Melville, a retired district attorney, calls defense lawyer Robin Lockwood to a meeting at Black Oaks, a castle he owns in the Oregon mountains. The manor has a fascinating past; it was first constructed in England in 1628, and a terrible mythology and curse are associated with the building. Melville, on the other hand, needs Lockwood's assistance in court to overturn a mistaken conviction from his time as a district attorney. Jose Alvarez, a young man, was found guilty of killing his fiancée, but years later, when Melville was in private practice, he convinced one of his clients to confess to the crime and to framing the person Melville had found guilty. Melville needs Lockwood's assistance in getting that conviction reversed after being unable to disclose what he knew owing to attorney client confidence.