John Ottway works in Alaska as a marksman for an undisclosed oil company, killing grey wolves that threaten the drillers. On his last day on the job, he sees a driller being pursued by a wolf and shoots it. He then watches and listens as the wolf takes a final breath ending in a long deep exhale. That evening, Ottway writes a letter "without purpose" to his wife, Ana, explaining his plans to commit suicide. He hears a distant wolf howl and doesn't follow through.