Journalist Natalie Seachrist sometimes experiences visions. After envisioning a child escaping by boat from Denmark in a murky predawn, she has no idea how scenes from a World War II movie will impact her twenty-first century life in Hawai'i. Soon, she and boyfriend, private investigator Keoni Hewitt, move into the Lanikai cottage she recently inherited. The warm welcome they receive from Miriam Didión, a widowed human rights activist, sets an ideal tone for life in the seaside neighborhood. Unfortunately, their expectations are soon shattered. By the time Natalie throws Keoni a birthday party, she has become close to Miriam and her housemates Joanne and Issy. Even Natalie's feline companion Miss Una embraces the women by keeping watch over their property at night.
Abruptly, everyone's life changes when a body is found at Miriam's home. Eerily, the murder parallels Natalie's vision of a scuba diver garroting a woman by moonlight. Again, she must reveal a murderous vision to Keoni's former partner, Honolulu Police Detective John Dias. Hoping her unusual gifts will prove useful, John asks Natalie to read the victim's journals. The commentary is fascinating, but Natalie finds no clues. Discovery of a nefarious suspect's body on Diamond Head Beach indicates resolution of the crime. Believing their lives are back on track, Natalie and her new friends schedule a tour of historic Kawai Nui Marsh. Too soon, the day of playing tourist devolves and Natalie and her friends are suddenly in the cross hairs of a dangerous adversary. Does resolution of the gruesome crime lie buried in the deceased's transnational past? Or does it lie in the visible present among innocuous seeming companions?