Turtle Coast

On the lower Florida Gulf Coast in the late 1920s, run boat Captain Murdock, his engineer, and his deckhand Mullet Jim work their route delivering ice and supplies to numerous fish-houses to the south and picking up fish for shipment north on the return. Among these fish-houses is George's, where Sam, the run boat engineer's brother and a commercial fisherman when he is not moonshining, brings his fish.At the Pratt fish-house and home Amy and Charles await their fifth surviving child. Evan, their oldest at eleven, may soon be leaving for boarding school, where Amy's twin sister Emily teaches.Emily arrives via the run-boat to help her sister when she gives birth, and encounters the moody and intriguing captain. While the captain wrestles his personal demons and the Pratts prepare for the baby, life seems idyllic. Charles and Amy walk the night beach and encounter a loggerhead sea turtle laying her eggs. The children swim and play as the dry season ends.Several days of rain culminate in a fiery accident as Amy trips with an oil lamp. Badly burned, she holds on as her baby is born. Sam takes over Charles' work at the fish-house so that Charles can remain with his wife. Captain Murdock brings the doctor and Mullet Jim's mother Ida, who holds the family together. Amy's mother arrives unexpectedly to find the emergency in full flower. Shortly after giving birth, Amy dies. Evan insists on staying with his father while his aunt and grandmother take the younger children to Michigan at Charles's command. Evan finds a murdered turtle on the beach, with his father's knife near it. Charles, unable to deal with the family disaster, isolates himself and continues to decline over the summer.The captain's personal tragedy parallels Charles's loss of his wife. He attempts to help, and learns about himself in the process. Sam decides to hunt and hike in the Everglades, inviting the exhausted Evan. Red tide has so affected fishing that the industry temporarily shuts down. The captain tries to bring the unresponsive Charles to town with him, hoping to break through his depression.Evan and Sam wander the swamp, talking and exploring. The boy is refreshed and helped by the rough moonshiner. As they prepare to return to town, the run-boat stops to pick up Charles. The captain finds Pratt has killed himself and destroyed the house. After burying him, the captain returns to port to see a shining Evan back from his adventure.