Rob, a surgeon, and June, a graduate student, are thrown together on an archeology dig in Belize. A frightening experience welds them in a romantic bond, which neither seems quite prepared for. They become friends with Phoebe, a beautiful and brainy archeology professor. She will play an unsuspected role in their lives. In a mysterious cave, the pair discovers a strange Mayan vase. Within it is hidden a rare Mayan codex. When George Avakian, a brilliant but out-of-luck and out-of-work professor translates the codex, he finds it answers much about the collapse of the ancient Mayan civilization. He then makes use of the codex in an ingenious but problematic manner. Phoebe reenters Rob's life and complicates both his and June's future. The book explains in a concise manner certain aspects of science and history while striving to resolve the problems of its characters.