In the spring of 1955, a distinguished professor plunges to his death from a Cathedral tower, seemingly the victim of a suicide.


Dr. Alex Gerlach's research assistant and former student, Jamie Schmidt, is no stranger to death as a Korean War Veteran and Purple Heart recipient. When he stumbles upon Dr. Gerlach's body on the sidewalk and a crime scene that appears closed before a real investigation can begin, he refuses to believe that Dr. Gerlach has taken his own life. Jamie and his girlfriend Sara begin their own investigation and as soon as they discover an ashtray full of unfiltered cigarettes in Dr. Gerlach's office, they suspect a murder instead of a suicide. As one clue after another begins to surface, Jamie and Sara unknowingly uncover a national conspiracy surrounding the polio vaccine and a corrupt pharmaceutical industry, soon realizing that the answers to their quest for the truth lie within the pages of the professor's journal.


In a journey filled with unexpected twists and turns, Jamie is hunted by an FBI agent, a hired hit man, and a corrupt cop and must either expose the truth or die trying.