Sam Brodie (Tom Skerritt) is the sheriff of a small town called China Lake, where a series of violent murders has shocked the local population. During his investigation, Brodie comes across Officer Donnelly (Michael Parks), a highway patrolman on vacation who offers to help. Brodie invites him over to his house, and the two men become good friends. But as more facts come to light, and the murders continue, Brodie starts to doubt the man he thought he knew.