Overview
The summer of 1935 has barely begun in Logansport, Indiana. Johnny Dawson, fifteen years of age, is anticipating a summer of swimming, riding bicycles, playing baseball and just being with his friends. In other words, he's expecting it to be a normal summer. Unfortunately, that's not going to happen. The beginning of this summer is going to be a nightmare for Johnny and his Aunt Estelle and Uncle Fred (his legal guardians). The nightmare has a name: Cecil Polson. A vicious bully, Cecil Polson has been brought to Logansport to serve as its new Police Chief. The sole reason he has been appointed to the position is to stop the Rail Yard workers from voting to unionize; a union represented by Johnny's Uncle Fred. Barely a week passes when Johnny witnesses the new Police Chief commit a brutal, cold-blooded murder. Although he has evidence of what Polson has done, Johnny knows that sharing his secret with anyone would place them in mortal danger. Then when he finally does think of the perfect person to tell, that person is left in a coma following a suspicious accident. Once again, Johnny is left alone with the burden of his secret. Only now, Cecil Polson reveals that he suspects Johnny of knowing something that he shouldn't know. There is also someone else who seems to know something. It's the very peculiar Mrs. Lillian Forsyth. An elderly lady, who is a close friend of his Aunt Estelle, Mrs. Forsyth has long been rumored to be a witch.