Paul Rice is asked by his friend, Police Chief Clive Thayer, to look into the disappearance of his sister's grandson. Paul is reluctant to say "yes" because he is not a trained investigator, but Thayer's strong feelings that there is more involved than the boy's disappearance persuade him to make the trip up to northern Wisconsin. There, he finds a large town growing into a small city and a female police chief who resents his involvement. His search leads him to a cult of baby murderers and straight to an encounter with an ancient power that is not benign.