A desperately poor, unemployed Cajun in a small Gulf coast town in Alabama snoops around a plant where a mysterious metal is processed. His best friend has promised him a big reward for information concerning this metal, but neither realizes the life threatening danger involved. Soon after, his partner-in-crime, Lucas, halfway around the world, makes a shocking discovery. His boss, Ellen Thornton, a young Biochemist has developed a unique mining technology using a marine invertebrate. This technology has allowed her to amass a fortune in her New Orleans firm. However, betrayal by a cunning employee threatens her empire. But, a former boyfriend, and a private detective are drawn into the mystery.