After escaping prison, the notorious serial killer JOE CARROLL kills again, and the FBI calls back former agent RYAN HARDY as a consultant on the case. Although HARDY has been missing for many years, he was actually the person in charge of the CARROLL case nine years ago. At the time, CARROLL taught literature at Virginia College, during which time he murdered a total of 14 female students. Hardy once knew CARROLL well and they were evenly matched. But Hardy has long lost his charm. During the last pursuit of the murderer, Hardy was exhausted physically and mentally, which led to his retirement for many years. This investigation is also a kind of redemption for him, and he must take action. Unlike nine years ago, Hardy is no longer the person in charge of the case this time, but collaborates with the FBI team, whose members include JENNIFER MASON and MIKE WESTON. JENNIFER is an all-round and rigorous agent, while MIKE is young and energetic. They think Hardy is useless and regard him as a burden. But HARDY discovered that CARROLL was secretly keeping in touch with other killers outside through the Internet, thus proving his worth. It turns out that CARROLL's purpose is not just to escape from prison, and it is difficult to predict how many killers are involved. Through investigation, HARDY met CARROLL's ex-wife CLAIRE MATTHEWS and her 10-year-old son JOEY. In the case nine years ago, HARDY learned about CARROLL's movements through CLAIRE. CARROLL kidnapped the victim who survived nine years ago, and the confrontation intensified. HARDY realized that CARROLL wanted to continue the unfinished crime nine years ago, so he was more determined to end CARROLL's game. But now the situation faced by HARDY and the FBI team is even more serious. The killer army led by CARROLL is expanding, and he even plans to write a novel with HARDY as the protagonist. Can the re-energized HARDY catch CARROLL again?