John Grant is returning to Sydney after a year teaching at a one-classroom school in the Outback. Shortly after hitting the road, he collides with a kangaroo, and finds himself marooned in a small mining town, awaiting repairs on his car. With little to do but drink beer, John is seduced into a raucous, illegal game of two-up. After a short, exhilarating winning streak, he loses everything, which triggers a dangerous series of events that render John a broken and desperate man.

Two planes almost collide after a blinding flash of light paralyzes air traffic controller Dylan Branson for a few seconds. Suspended from his job, Dylan starts to notice an ominous pattern of sounds and events that repeats itself in exactly the same manner every day, ending precisely at 2:22 p.m. Also drawn into a complex relationship with a woman, Dylan must figure out a way to break the power of the past and take control of time itself.