Archaeologist Aideen Connor wants a shot at peace after witnessing her husband's violent death that widowed her at 34. But when she signs on as director at a remote Arizona dig, first her team excavates a "bone hash" human bones showing evidence of prehistoric cannibalism. Then a woman is brutally murdered on the nearby Hopi Reservation. Clues point to a connection between the murder and the bone hash with Aideen's dig at the center of the mystery. The prehistoric bones are subsequently stolen, and Aideen's good relationship with local Native Americans begins to shatter, leaving her to solve the murder with only her rescue dog, Dakota for company. Aideen's peace-of-mind is further stalled by her attraction to Frank Nakai, a federal police officer who tries to romance her while she's still grieving her husband's death.