Darien, the Keeper and Hobbes head south of the border to Santa Ruego to convince the Prime Minister to vote against installing the Biox chemical weapon system. How? By having Fawkes pretend to be a ghost and persuade the superstitious Minister to vote against the system's installation. Unfortunately, another ""spirit"" is haunting the Minister: ""La Llarona,"" a ghost who can drown men with a kiss. She confronts Darien and it is revealed she is a member of a shadowy organization that bio-engineered her with the ability to breathe water and exhale it under pressure. In the battle over the Prime Minister's vote, Darien eventually manages to drive her off and get the vote, despite the mutual attraction the two ""freaks"" share.

Kate Easton (The Value of Secrets) is on the run from Allianora. Easton is grabbed before Darien can get her to safety and put into cyrogenic suspension by Allianora's (as yet unidentified) employers. The people Allianora work for are collecting scientists for future use under their control. The Agency manages to capture Allianora, but she proves impossible to crack. So Darien secretly cuts her a deal: he'll betray the Agency and help her escape if she'll betray her bosses and help him rescue Kate. Both of them end up double-crossing each other, and Darien ends up in a cyrogenic tube when Allianora scrambles his tracking signal. He manages to escape using his invisibility and rescue Kate. However, when he returns with the Agency, the warehouse and the remaining scientists are gone.