When scarecrows appear in the cliffs above Montana's Smith River and a girl reports being chased by one, state investigator Harold Little Feather is brought in to find the culprit. Following Cold Hearted River, Harold's 7th investigation takes an ominous turn when a decapitated body is found. Meanwhile Sean Stranahan launches his raft upriver to guide a floating party that includes Clint McCaine, the manager of a copper mine, and Bart Trueblood, head of a grassroots organization devoted to stopping the project. More than a difference of opinion is involved, and Stranahan's long-time love Sheriff Martha Ettinger will enter the fray as the boats hurtle toward a date with danger at a place called Table Rock.