Twelve-year-old Sam lives alone with his mom and their dog in the idyllic seaside town of Santa Bonita. His father died when Sam was young, but his best friend Marco has been helping recreate his dad's old photos as part of a memorial project. One particularly warm October day, however, Sam smells something faint from far away. It's the scent of smoke.

An unexpected southern California wildfire is whipping ferociously toward town. Sam, Marco, and the whole neighborhood must urgently evacuate with little warning. Sam is distraught. If his house burns, all his memories of his father will go with it.

Even worse, Sam's dog disappears during the emergency, sending the boy into a panic. When he should be leaving the city with Marco and his family, Sam instead turns back, a decision that will plunge him right into the path of a deadly fire.