Thomas and Jill, a married couple with two children, live a blissful life in Santa Barbara, California. Jill has no idea that Thomas had a dark past that involved a terrible series of murders. She knows him as a loving father and husband, but things grow tense when Jill decides to run for Mayor. She wants to protect a beautiful shoreline area, where she and Thomas fell in live, from development. It is considered sacred by the local Chumash Tribe. 

Thomas, a real estate agent, is immediately placed in a pressurized situation as both his company and a group of mobster investors want to develop the land. He is threatened several times but refuses to act against Jill’s campaign. 

Their children, Taylor, 15 and Charlie, 11, love their parents and their uncle Liam. Charlie, though, stutters and is bullied at school. Liam, in some light-hearted moments, helps him overcome his fears. At night, though, something dark and sinister begins to dominate the nightly news. A serial killer is at work in a nearby city. Thomas is mesmerized. It begins a series of flashbacks indicating that the killings has something to do with him. 

The tension hits home when Taylor is terrorized by a stalker walking home from school. Thomas rages out of the house into the darkness, looking unsuccessfully to kill whoever threatened his daughter. Over the next few days, pressure on Thomas mounts. His job, and his family are threatened. His relationship with Jill grows icy. He begins to break down. He has flashbacks involving a serial killer in his past. The question is, what part did he play in these murders?

Jill, knowing something is wrong, meets with her childhood friend, Sybil, who is now a criminal psychologist with state law enforcement. They talk about Thomas. Sybil explains that if Thomas does have unresolved psychological trauma in his background, he may be repressing it, yet it may be making its way out and when it does, anything is possible. Sybil begins an investigation into Thomas’ background.

The serial killer continues his work, his victim count goes to five. Jill is greatly concerned that on the night of each killing, Thomas is away on a work assignment. Jill teeters on the edge. Does she trust her husband? Does she even know him? Or is her love strong enough to see all of this through?

Thomas is struggling. He now knows there is a dark, fearful secret inside him that he has kept even from himself. He finally snaps at work, punching Vic, the shady investor several times, then racing away in his car. A cop sees him and contacts Sybil. At that moment, she is looking at some pictures dug up by an investigator. They show Thomas, as a young boy, peering into a grave at his mother. She had been murdered by a serial killer and her grave was being dug up by police. Thomas wasn’t supposed to be there, but he was. His traumatized father never spoke about the murder, and died of a heart attack a few months later. Young Thomas suppressed the memory of his mother entirely.

Sybil quickly calls Jill and they race up to the sacred area where Jill believes Thomas has gone. A storm is coming and it is dark when they arrive. But when lightning begins to light up the sky, they can see Thomas struggling on the edge of the 300-foot cliff. Thomas believes he is fighting the serial killer. They watch horrified as he slides off the edge. Jill shouts that she loves him. Her voice reaches him and allows him to battle back his past and realize where he is. Then he falls. When Jill and Sy rush to the edge, they see Thomas grasping the root of a sacred tree. “I heard you,” he said smiling at Jill. They pull him to safety. He and Jill hold each other for a long time.

The films ends on a powerful high note as Thomas has help dealing with his trauma, Jill wins the election, and Charlie overcomes his stuttering issues. Thomas knows Jill trusts him and their love remains intact. Without it, Thomas didn’t stand a chance.