Joe is young and idealistic, with a thirst for adventure and a desire to make a difference in the world. When given the opportunity to travel to East Timor as an aid worker, he jumps at the chance, with no inkling of the dangers and dilemmas that await him. He is plunged into a world of atrocities and mass graves, where confronting human cruelty becomes an everyday occurrence. Yet wounds closer to home begin to haunt him and Joe soon realizes that his biggest challenge is not dealing with the horrors of Timor but with a much more personal threat. Under mounting pressure, he must choose: to protect himself or protect another; to tell the truth or live a lie, to hide the scars or let them heal.