On December 19, 2001, the body of a little boy is found floating in an inlet off a small seaside town in Oregon. When a local resident recognizes him Zachery Longo, the middle child of Christian and MaryJane Longo, police rush to find them. But two days later this tragedy becomes a horror show. MaryJane, and her two daughters, Madison and Sadie, are also found dead, drowned and stuffed in suitcases. The only person the police can't seem to find is their father - Christian Longo.
Christian and Mary Jane Longo were a beautiful young couple. Christian was handsome and athletic; Mary Jane, dark and delicate. They married, had three beautiful children and were deeply involved in their Jehovah's Witness church community. It seemed perfect. Except for one thing: Christian Longo was an unstoppable, epic liar and when under financial pressure, a thief. It started with Christian pilfering money from work to pay for MaryJane's engagement ring and escalated to hundreds of thousands of dollars in check fraud and stolen industrial equipment sales. But Christian Longo always told his wife they were fine. And Mary Jane always believed him. Her trust never wavered, even as they fled their hometown of Ypsilanti, MI on a manic road trip through cheap motels and apple-pie American tourist destinations, dragging their children and few remaining possessions (most stolen) along with them.
In Oregon, Christian's lies finally catch up with him - the rent on the condo is due and his job at the local coffee shop isn't going to cover it. MaryJane confronts him about everything and he realizes the elaborate house of cards he had constructed is crumbling and the fresh-faced sociopath jettisons what he now considers dead weight dragging him down. He kills them all and goes on the run, changing his identity.
The FBI tracks Longo across the west coast until he is spotted in Mexico, impersonating a New York Times reporter. He is apprehended and brought back to Oregon to answer for his terrible crimes.