Zoe and Tod have been married for several years and have successful careers, but something is missing. Zoe has a dream that they should take a trip and that this will help them bring a child into their life. On a fisher boat they experience the Chesapeake with a crabber, and complications ensue. They discover a lost child, Tod becomes captive and Zoe becomes severely ill, but their real battle is with a ghost on the bay. The story ends with an unexpected resolution to their problem.