In 1981, Laura Fitzgerald, a young archaeologist, arrives on the Central Coast of British Columbia, Canada, Indigenous Reserve called Waglisla, Bella Bella or the Passage by local people. With only an academic understanding of these people, she learns that Waglisla is a dynamic culture and that the people who live in the village are not the stereotype she previously had. Laura is taken under the wing of Chief Charlie Hunt and begins the process of acceptance. Along with two young people from the village, she explores the remains of wooden surface artifacts in the region. She learns about the fascinating history of the Heiltsuk culture, whose traditional territories once covered thousands of square kilometres on the Coast. Laura falls in love with a Heiltsuk man, Daniel, who is the nephew of Chief Charlie Hunt. This leads to romantic suspense and a struggle between cultures as the two try to find common ground to form a basis for a relationship. Laura discovers through a Heiltsuk Elder, Maggie, about the dark past of the colonial era. This past is marred by population decimation and residential schools that nearly destroyed the Heiltsuk peoples. This darkness spills over into the lives of the current residents. Laura has recurring and prophetic dreams where she is visited by the famous anthropologist, Franz Boas. Through the eyes of Jenn, Chief Charlie's young granddaughter, she comes to believe that the Heiltsuk will recover and flourish.