Plot

The War on Terror grinds slowly forward. Gavin Wallace does his part, serving with his National Guard unit; performing his tedious, dangerous duty in the hot gritty deserts and dirty streets of Iraq. The daily exposure to physical and psychological hazards so far from home takes its toll - even in the company of brothers in arms. Finally Gavin received his orders for discharge and heads stateside for clearing. Looking forward to his well-deserved transition to civilian life at his home near the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. There, his wife, family, and friends plan a marvelous welcome home party. At last Gavin can breathe deep, relax, and let the strain of the past year drain away, like calm flood waters receding in the sunny days after the storm. Security, nothing like it. Among people who love you, whom you love, doing things you've done all your life. Nothing like it - but something was wrong. Maybe the months of searching for the nervous twitch in the crowded streets of Baghdad that gives away the suicide bomber, the unoccupied Mercedes parked exactly in front of the glass doors of a market or the empty box lying the in road that could hold an improvised explosive device causes a man to distrust everything and everyone. Maybe a year of trying to sense an enemy where your eyes and ears tell you that every thing is normal and familiar has trained Gavin to perceive a threat where none exists. Maybe. Gavin's father-in-law Ray and his brother-in-law Doug have planned a hunting trip down the Tishomingo River. As luck would have it, Gavin returns just in time for the opening day of hunting season. At last, true relaxation. In familiar territory, surrounded by forest, birds, river, and family - what could happen now? Plenty. The trio has unwittingly fallen into a swirling conflict among a ruthless band of bear poachers, local law enforcement, and a rogue bear. Once again, danger lurks in the normal, in the familiar. The question becomes - will Gavin and his comrades be able to navigate the hostile forest, the white water river? Already, this is an opening day no one will forget - that is, if they survive.—Tim Card