Vietnam vet, Andy Flanagan is to be turfed off his leaky boat from an LA marina. Flanagan finds Le Van Minh, the marina's owner, dead and is promptly accused of the murder. The public defender thinks Flanagan is innocent and hires Dave Brandstetter to prove it. Dave soon discovers that other prominent Vietnamese have met violent deaths recently and he finds himself on the unseen border where American and Asian cultures clash and where ancient truths clash with contemporary greed and corruption.