Told in a series of haunting flashbacks, the story unfolds as a determined police detective (Keitel) questions New Jersey housewife, Cynthia Kellogg (Moore), about the death of her best friend's abusive husband (Willis). Reluctant to incriminate her friend, Cynthia weaves a net of lies that eventually threatens her own family. Pitted against each other in scenes of mounting tension, the two desperate women are reluctantly pushed toward the shocking, violent climax.