Carly is 20 years old and leaves Illinois after her mother’s passing to find out what happened to her missing aunt, Viv, who worked at the Sun Down Motel. Her older brother, Graham, is displeased by her decision to take a vacation from business school. However, Carly decides it’s the best choice for her, as she wants to seek the truth about her family’s mystery and close a dark chapter in the past that her mother had grieved over.

When Carly arrives in Fell, New York, she quickly realizes that the town hasn’t changed much since her aunt lived there decades before. She quickly finds a friendship in Heather, who invites her to live in the same apartment her aunt had lived in. Heather doesn’t feel comfortable living alone and has insomnia, so when Carly gets the same shift her aunt had at the Sun Down Motel working nights, it is a perfect fit schedule-wise for Heather and Carly. Heather also assists in Carly’s research into what happened to Viv by utilizing her knowledge of Fell, New York, as she grew up there and her father knows many people around town.

Carly meets Johnny, a day-time shift worker at the motel, and Chris, the son of the original owners of the motel.