Christine Terry is rescued after spending 19 days in the Caribbean on a life raft, then mysteriously escapes from the hospital before she can be questioned about the wreck and disappearance of the yacht she was on—and its owners. Cynical but likable reporter Dan Stark is suspicious but obsessed, and soon finds that she is absolutely nothing that she pretends to be. He agrees to help her retrieve a fortune in stolen emeralds from the sunken boat, but when she abandons him on an empty atoll, he vows revenge. Soon, like Chantal (her real name), he learns to change himself and his appearance to fit the situations he meets in pursuit of her. After more than one dangerous engagement with her over the next several years, he discovers a much more personal reason for tracking her down to a final confrontation. . . .