The second Macduff Brooks mystery/adventure set in Paradise Valley, Montana, and St. Augustine and Gainesville, Florida. Brooks finds a body nailed to a cross tied to his boat trailer at the end of a day's float. The murder might have been done by a disgruntled Mexican drug cartel head, or a member of PARA (People Against Recreational Angling), or persons wanting to dam Paradise Valley for agricultural and mining water supply. Brooks continues to evade Juan Pablo Herzog and Abdul Khaliq Isfahani, who attempt to discover Brooks' identity and location.