Ben Sheffield returns to his small hometown of Heatley Bay on the Canadian west coast as the new Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) officer. He and his mother - recently deceased - left the town when he was two years old after his father died. Ben or his mother had never returned to Heatley Bay until now. He is to work with existing Heatley Bay DFO officer Mary Leonard. Mary purports to be an old friend of his mother's, although his mother never mentioned Mary to him. Many in town knew of him and also knew his mother, including John Croat, who is known to the locals as Luther. Luther lives in the Sheffield home and just won't leave the house even after Ben arrives to assume possession. Kyle Jenkins also knows of Ben, Kyle's father who killed Ben's father in a drunken fight. A young man, Kyle mentally is no longer the man he once was after a work accident. Not provided with disability pay, Kyle survives by beach combing and conducting petty crimes, which the townsfolk tolerate.