After the end of the Civil War, hero Frederick Aiken comes home to pursue his career to be a lawyer. What appears to be a good opportunity to meet top politicians in a ball turns into an entirely different scene that will change his life forever. After the president was shot death on that fateful night, chaos ensued as the search for prime suspect John Wilkes Booth begins. Soon all attention turned to Mary Surratt, a Confederate sympathizer and mother of John. Later on Aiken would be pursuaded to act as defense lawyer for Mrs. Surratt.

Aiken must do all what he can to convince John to come out of hiding and ultimately save her mother from the gallows of death.