The story is narrated in first person by Porter Wren, a columnist and crime reporter for a New York City newspaper with a reputation as a good listener.

Simon was a successful movie producer obsessed with capturing authentic life, often disappearing at night to film random things.

Caroline invites Porter to her apartment where she shows him confidential police reports related to Simon's still-unsolved death.

He filmed his own life almost obsessively, sometimes with hidden cameras, and subjected Caroline to cruel pranks and mind games for the sake of capturing authentic reactions.

Simon, after beating her in a drinking game, dared her to have sex with a stranger and record the encounter with a hidden camera.

When Simon watched the video, something about it infuriated him and he hid the memory card; after his death, Hobbs began threatening her.

Porter discovers a video camera in a beside table, but the memory card in it only has footage of Simon visiting his father.

After attacking Hobbs' lawyer in revenge, Porter watches the nursing home video again and realizes Simon's father had regular visits from a lady named Mrs. Segal.

Questioned by Porter about the charges to the estate, Mrs. Segal reveals she was asked by Simon before his death to send copies of a memory card to Hobbs every month.

In a show of good faith, Hobbs gives him a key his men found when searching Caroline's apartment for the video.

In voiceover, Porter expresses guilt for all that happened, including his divorce, while admitting that the experience has both corrupted him and revealed an inner darkness that was always there.