Children's author Olivia Lake attends a lavish party, during which she notices handsome bartender Joel and offers him a place to live. Wealthy financier Michael O'Connor enlists a conman to convince Olivia to sell her picturesque property.

Olivia criticises Joel for not telling her about his girlfriend. Olivia finds herself drawn to Eric, who suggests they meet with Michael and Tom. Olivia vanishes on New Year's Day, and Eric becomes the prime suspect in her disappearance.

Eric's sister, Petra, heads to Louisiana to find Joel, who reluctantly agrees to return to Summit and ends up scouring the local bars in search of a mysterious stranger.

Joel's whereabouts on New Year's Eve come under scrutiny when his alibi falls apart. A visit to a partygoer clears up one issue, but the timing of another issue remains unclear.

Nate suspects the wrong man is in prison, but has trouble getting a subpoena. Eric is followed by allegations stemming from another mysterious death. An increasingly paranoid Joel weighs his options as evidence mounts.

Petra turns up the heat on JC, Alan and Tom. Petra probes the mining history of several connected properties in Summit and finds herself on dangerous ground as she gets closer to the truth.