Joanne is married to Bradley, a cop who abuses her. One day she decides to run away and meets Sam, who has marital difficulties of his own. Bradley evetually tracks Joanne down, which leads to the death of Sam's wife.

A federal agent, Kate Parker arrives in a small rural town to extradite Claire Scott, a young woman suspected of murdering a government scientist. Kate is prevented from delivering her prisoner as the mysterious John Lawson, a rouge agent, now selling classified information on the black market, wants what Claire has - a deadly biological formula. Claire, unaware that she has it, proclaims her innocence, and together with Kate, must escape from Lawson and his two seasoned assassins Mr. and Mrs. Jones. Harry Eden, a CIA operative and Kate's former lover, is dropped into the equation to help Kate but ultimately might lead to her demise as a deadly game of cat-and-mouse is played to its extreme.

Using her girl-next-door looks to her advantage, Darcy Palmer is a calculating thief and murderer. After killing a young college student and taking her identity, Darcy enrolls in the victim's New England school in her place. At the university, Darcy gets to know her new roommate, Jeanelle, and her handsome father, Russell Polk, who soon play into her next scheme. When Darcy has to alter her plans, both Russell and Jeanelle become quite expendable.