A local family ask Kinsey to help them. The authorities have no records of their father, the fighter pilot Johnny Lee, on file. Then Johnny Lee's apartment is burgled and a hidden safe is discovered. Inside the safe is a mysterious key labelled 'Lawless'.

Kinsey Millhorne is asked to help a local family achieve military recognition for their recently deceased father. But the authorities have no records of the fighter pilot Johnny Lee on file. Then Johnny Lee's apartment is burgled and a hidden safe is discovered. Inside the safe is a mysterious key labelled 'Lawless'. Kinsey sets out to solve the mystery, but she is not the only one interested in Johnny Lee's past and soon finds herself many miles from home with no money - and her life in peril.