In drought-ridden New Zealand, Detective Ashley North finds herself in a race against time when she investigates an unexplained death in a small rural town. The corpse's internal organs have been ravaged and a new virus is suspected. To avoid panic, the decision is made to keep the news of the virus from the public, but investigative journalist Mike Donovan has other ideas. Ashley's workload increases and things go from bad to worse as more victims are discovered. To find the source before New Zealand's population is decimated she and Donovan must join forces.