Retired history professor Abe Aronson is a cranky, solitary man living out his autumn years on Gardner Island, a ferry ride away from the hustle and bustle of nearby Seattle. One rainy February night, while dining at a favorite local haunt, Abe and his girlfriend Joanna meet waitress Lioness Lazos, new in town and without a place of her own. Fascinated and moved by the girl's plight, Joanna invites Lioness to stay in Abe's garage. It seems everyone falls for the charming and invigorating Lioness, she is much more than she appears, and an ancient covenant made millennia ago threatens to disrupt the spring and alter the lives of Abe, Joanna and those around them forever...