After injuring herself on the job as a Los Angeles cop, Mel O'Rourke leaves the force battered both physically and mentally. Looking for a fresh start, she moves to a quiet mountain town and opens the Babbling Brook Inn. Excited for her new life, Mel decides to participate in the town's holiday cookie contest, but her newfound joy crashes when one of her guests turns up dead in her lobby.

Mel is tempted to attribute the death to natural causes, but when another guest dies, her cop sense kicks in. The local Sheriff tells her to stand down, but with her own life in danger, Mel won't back off. With everything on the line, she has to push through her own fears to catch the killer before more bodies drop, perhaps even her own.