The cleanup of the Petro Star spill has barely started when, scanning the Atlantic with his binoculars, Cole spies a pollutant of a different nature: a body, relieved of its head and hands. He sets out to find who's responsible for the spill as well as the identity of the mutilated corpse. With his pal, mob rep Felix Tinios, Cole gets deeper into local action, including the theft of a trio of Winslow Homer paintings and a tangle with the underworld. Hidden currents swirl to the surface, and for Cole everything begins to connect. Another ugly murder convinces him he's on the right track...if he can prove his dangerous theory and live to enjoy the seacoast calm.