Joe has been running for months, trying unsuccessfully to escape the nightmares of his past. On a sleepless summer morning, the wandering loner becomes reluctantly entangled in the lives of Molly, a young woman whose childhood dreams of golden beaches and the deep blue ocean have become nothing more than murky reflections in a muddy creek, and Eli, an old man who scans the obituaries merely to confirm that his own photo isn't smiling back from the pages. A violent confrontation in those early hours with Jeb, Molly's cruel ex-boyfriend, explodes in events that will change all four lives. Even in this small, rural town, Joe can't escape the twisted nightmares that haunt him. When they erupt in violence, they threaten his newfound relationship with Molly, his life, and the lives of those who have befriended him. In the end, Eli, Molly, and Joe wrestle with their own sleepless dreams and the realization that escaping the black night haunts of the past requires running toward the dim, uncertain sliver of light on the horizon, promising a new day.