When an abandoned pickup truck complete with suicide note leads a search party to find human remains that have clearly served as a snack for a bear, case closed - suicide by Alaska. But things get complicated when the dead man stumbles out of the wilderness and onto Kate's homestead weeks later. Kate and Trooper Jim Chopin must unravel the story of the man and the body, whoever he is, which is wrapped up in the politics of the Suulutaq Mine, a gold mine near Niniltna that is proving to be a breeding ground for trouble.