Maya Delaney's paw-print birthmark is the mark of what she truly is --- a skin-walker. She can run faster, climb higher, and see better than nearly everyone else. It’s a good thing too, for when a forest fire lands them lost in the Vancouver Island wilderness, Maya and her friends have nothing but their extraordinary abilities to help them get back home.

Strange things are happening in Maya's tiny Vancouver Island town. First, her friend Serena, the captain of the swim team, drowns mysteriously in the middle of a calm lake. Then, one year later, mountain lions are spotted rather frequently around Maya's home --- and her reactions to them are somewhat . . . unexpected.