In drought-stricken Warragulla, where record-breaking heat has pushed the landscape and its people to breaking point, Sydney detective Maya Thorne returns when local mechanic Frank Miller is found dead in his workshop during the worst heatwave in decades.

What begins as a suspected heat-related accident soon reveals something far darker lurking beneath the surface of this isolated community. When evidence shows Frank's cooling system was deliberately sabotaged, Maya must navigate both the oppressive heat and the closed ranks of locals harbouring generations of secrets.

As temperatures soar and an apocalyptic dust storm approaches, Maya uncovers connections between Frank's meticulous record-keeping and a decades-old environmental conspiracy involving the town's most powerful families. With time running out before the storm hits, each step closer to the truth tests Maya's complicated relationship with her hometown and her estranged family.

The harsh reality of outback life has shaped these people, creating a pressure cooker of rivalry and desperation where water and silence are the most valuable commodities. But in a place where dust buries secrets and heat exposes lies, some truths refuse to stay hidden.

Maya must rely on her growing understanding of Warragulla to expose the killer before the gathering storm obliterates all evidence, all while the indifferent landscape continues its relentless assault on a town built on deception.

In this land where nature remains the ultimate power, the silence breaks only when the dust finally settles.