Modoc: A Murder Ballad

Marcus Farner is a 25-year-old office worker living in Oakland, CA. Unbeknownst to most of his acquaintances, he comes from an abusive, impoverished rural upbringing which he tries his best to conceal. He and his long-time best friend, James “Jamie” Galvez, share a terrible secret: the murder of Amber Fiedler, a girl they had known all their lives, at the hands of their high school classmate Dominic Roberts. Neither the girl’s body nor the murder weapon (most likely Dominic’s shotgun) were ever found, and for that matter, the murderer himself seems to have disappeared into the wilderness. But now, however improbably, Dominic has resurfaced in a nearly unrecognizable guise, with little apparent memory of his crimes. Marcus, Jamie, and Jamie’s girlfriend Erica Hoffmann – who until now has been kept in the dark regarding the two men’s tragic past – must each navigate a treacherous psychological terrain of their own – which for Marcus, may mean committing an act just as irrevocable as Dominic’s.