On a sweltering summer night, Cliffie Stotts slumps moodily in his yard, unprepared for the onslaught of events awaiting him. His sleepy little town will be disrupted by the imperatives of revenge, jealousy, and religious fervor.

The evening's activities include abduction, assault, arson, and-maybe-redemption. The proceedings draw in Cliffie's brother Curtis, their ailing father Wade, and a mysterious woman checked into the motor court on the town's border. Other participants include an odd recluse, a spurned girlfriend, the town drunk, a wavering evangelical, plus a loyal and kind-hearted dog.

What began as another dull evening on the edge of nowhere becomes an epicenter as turbulent as the thunderstorm that arrives to break, but not dispel, the stifling heat.