Shot by illegal poachers, Patrick "Pud" Davies finds himself alone and severely injured in the middle of the woods. He''s discovered by Billie Crowne, an agent with the EPA, who takes him to her campsite where she tends to his wounds.

As the days pass, Pud finally allows himself to open up for the first time. With Billie, he finds he''s able to talk about the horrors of his past, and begins to purge the blackness that has haunted him ever since his tour of duty, and his time as a POW, ended. Because of her, he becomes stronger emotionally and physically. And before he can comprehend his growing feelings for this woman, he realizes she''s managed to break through the protective emotional shell he had erected around himself.

Once he''s finally able to contact the others of his team at Bag It and Tag It Excursions, together they try to find the people responsible for attacking him. What they discover will force Pud to make a heartbreaking decision. Because of what he is, he will have to walk away from the only woman who has ever touched his heart.