Lt. Joe Leaphorn and Sgt. Jim Chee search for a runaway boarding school student; Manuelito considers returning to the NTP; a menacing killer comes to the reservation in search of a target close to the investigation.

Leaphorn tracks the killer and discovers that he's the object of her dangerous obsession; Chee contemplates his future with Manuelito and the NTP while they investigate new leads; Billie faces an uncertain future.