Content Warning: This section of the guide references gun violence, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, animal torture, forced confinement, and pregnancy loss.

The novel begins in September 2022 in the Frank Church Wilderness, Ohio. Miley hides behind a tree at dusk, waiting for the men she intends to shoot. Her life and the lives of others depend on it. Controlling her breathing, she hides the clouds of her breath by exhaling into the neck of her stiff, old-fashioned dress. When a man named Hamish appears, shouting “Ruthie Sue,” Miley steps out from behind the tree.

The narrative skips to three months earlier. Miley is focused on reaching peak physical fitness for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics. She hopes to win a medal in the biathlon—a sport that involves repetitive cycles of cross-country skiing alternating with rifle shooting. She takes a seasonal job at the Hidden Springs Resort so she can train in the Frank Church Wilderness, which spans over 2 million acres.

On a training run, Miley works on slowing her breathing and pushes through the pain in her shoulder. Although her joint has healed from a car accident years earlier, she experiences phantom pain in this area.