“Thou dost frighten mewith dreams and terrify meby visions.” Job 7:14

Frank travels to Weber County, Utah, where he meets with Prosecutor Calvin Smith, Assistant County Prosecutor, Charles Horvath, and Didi Higgens, Assistant Pathologist to the County Medical Examiner. The District Attorney’s office convicted Sheriff William Garry of murdering his wife and three children. Garry had confessed to the crime, and his fingerprints were found on the murder weapon, a tool used for carving wood. Now all that remains is for the jury to decide if Garry should receive the death penalty. Smith hopes Frank can develop a psychological profile that will leave no doubt in the jury’s mind that Garry is a cold, calculating murderer.

Assisted by William Garry’s close friend, Deputy Kevin Reilly, Frank inspects the conservative, middle-American home where the killings took place. He notices a series of numbers, “1, 28, 15,” written in blood on a kitchen window. Reilly explains that those involved in the investigation were never able to decipher their meaning. As Frank continues his tour of the Garry home, he listens to a tape recording of William’s confession, in which he describes the details of how he murdered his family, one by one.

The next morning, Frank meets with Michael Slattery, William Garry’s attorney. Slattery freely admits he has no intention of letting Frank interview his client. But Frank insists his recommendation to the jury will be non-biased. Slattery changes his mind and allows Frank to conduct the interview. Garry claims to have fantasized about committing the murders for some time, driven by money problems and hatred of his wife. Frank finds it difficult to believe that Garry carved a wooden cherub as a birthday present for his wife, then proceeded to murder his entire family using the same carving tool.

Frank discovers flaws in the conclusions drawn by investigators. He tells Didi that someone other than Garry committed the killings. Garry agrees to take a lie detector test. Based on the results, the polygraph technician concludes that Garry did, in fact, murder his family. But Frank believes Garry feels so guilty (about something not yet known) that he has convinced himself he is responsible for the killings. Dismayed by Frank’s conclusions, Smith decides his services are no longer necessary.

A psychiatrist tells Frank that Mrs. Garry was faithful to her husband