A man arrives at a bar in Forthaven with a load of diamonds and stories of "bodies" outside the compound. He claims that he lives by Carpathia's ocean which seems to be impossible as it's known as a radiation hotspot. After a fight breaks out and Cass and Fleur are called in and they end up following the man.

When missing expeditionary Josie Hunter walks back into the settlement, unharmed, the jubilant air quickly takes a darker tone. Josie is different, her children cannot communicate with her, and reports of her violent behaviour circulate. Tate and Stella must find out what is behind this changed Josie, and begin to come to terms with what is really at work on the planet.