A pharmaceutical giant has teamed up with the Pitt County, North Carolina public health department to test a drug that could help millions improve their health. But someone is sabotaging the research. Healthcare researcher Jeannie Johal is sent to Greenville, NC on special assignment to find out why. Little does she know that even before she begins, plans are underway to persuade her to leave the project.

On her first day, her new boss is murdered. The beautiful Arboretum, next door, contains many poisonous plants and at least one master gardener who threatened her boss. The nearby correctional facility harbors dangerous criminals who will trade invaluable information for a price.

Plunged into the close-knit community of Greenville and the larger Pitt County, Jeannie must decide who she can trust, and decode what people say and what they mean before she herself falls victim.

Can she find out who’s tampering with the data? And can she fix the problems before more people die?