Chris Landrum and his friend Barbara Deanelli's search for shark teeth abruptly changes directions when they discover a woman at water's edge clinging to a surfboard. How she got there was a mystery—a mystery compounded when she doesn't remember her name, her past, or who abducted her and nearly sent her to her death in the mid-December waters off the coast of Folly Beach, South Carolina.
Chris and a cadre of his quirky pals are determined to learn the woman's identity and what happened. Their search is interrupted when they, along with most everyone else on the small barrier island, halt their pre-Christmas plans to search for Pluto, Dude Sloan's beloved Australian terrier, that was nowhere to be found.
Will Chris and his pals catch whoever initiated the attempt on the mystery woman's life before another try is made, and will Dude's beloved pet reappear in time for Christmas? Whoever said that retirement was to be a time of peace and relaxation never spent time with Chris and his friends.