In October 2016 in Shelby County, 69-year-old Geneva Sweet visits the graves of her late husband and son, both named Joe. She brings blues albums and food as offerings and memorials for the dead. She talks to the graves sharing news from town but refrains from mentioning the recent murders of two people. Mitty, the groundskeeper, takes special interest in the fried pies Geneva has brought. Geneva leaves Mitty to eat her offerings and goes to Lark, the location of her shop Geneva Sweet’s Sweets. Her café is modest but beloved by all in town. Two regulars, Huxley and Tim, tell her the Sheriff is in town to investigate the bodies. Wendy, Geneva’s business partner, helps sort through canned vegetables. Wendy is a collector, and her car is full of junk she tries to sell around town. Geneva rents 50 feet of her space to a barber named Isaac Snow, a quiet man who Geneva helps by allowing him to eat all his meals in her café. Geneva has been serving customers since segregation required Black citizens to eat separately from white people. Her position near the highway has made it place a popular stop along the way to other destinations.