Twenty-two-year-old University of Orono law student Jimmy Bentley is pleasantly surprised when he receives a summons to attend the reading of his uncle's will. Jimmy wasn't aware that Orland Forster Gray had died a year earlier since he hadn't seen his uncle in many years. He's anxious to learn what old Orland has left him.

Jimmy's parents caution him not to accept anything from his uncle, as he had a reputation for shady dealings. A fortune teller has also warned Jimmy to stay away from anything related to Orland Gray. Jimmy is determined to accept the offering, which turns out to be a dilapidated cabin and its surrounding ten acres on Black Lake in northern Maine.

When Jimmy and his friends arrive at the cabin, they discover that it is already inhabited. The residents are ready to fight for the property, and they are willing to kill for it.