In the summer of 1964, three innocent men are brutally murdered for trying to help Black Mississippians secure the right to vote. Against this backdrop, 21-year-old Violet Richards finds herself in more trouble than she’s ever been in her life. Suffering a brutal attack of her own, she kills the man responsible. But with the color of Violet’s skin, there is no way she can escape Jim Crow justice in Jackson, Mississippi. With the help of her white beau, she escapes. Back in Jackson, Violet’s older sister, Marigold, has dreams of attending law school, but she’s pregnant and unmarried. After news of the murder brings the police to her door, Marigold heads North seeking the promise of a better life and no more segregation. But has she made a terrible choice that threatens her life and that of her unborn child?

Ellice Littlejohn seemingly has it all: an Ivy League law degree, a well-paying job as a corporate attorney in midtown Atlanta, great friends, and a “for fun” relationship with a rich, charming executive who just happens to be her white boss. But everything changes one cold January morning when Ellice arrives in the executive suite and finds him dead with a gunshot to his head. And then she walks away like nothing has happened. Instead of grieving this tragedy, people are gossiping, the police are getting suspicious, and Ellice, the company’s lone Black attorney, is promoted to replace her boss. When she uncovers shady dealings inside the company, Ellice is trapped in an impossible ethical and moral dilemma.