Estlin Hume was living off-grid on 12 acres outside of Twin Butte, Alberta when he got snagged into being translator for first contact. Home again, he wakes to find himself surrounded by aliens, affectionate squirrels, government representatives, and military personnel. That’s nothing new. But he hadn’t planned on hosting one thousand three hundred and sixty-one cuttlefish in a massive saltwater tank suspended above his house! Stuck at the center of the alien contact crisis, Estlin is challenged by ill-advised directives from government officials, trenchant military interference, and random acts of violence from unknown nefarious agents—all of whom are determined to find out for themselves what the aliens really want. No matter the cost! No matter the outcome!