Tory Bodeen grew up in a small, run-down house in South Carolina, where her father ruled with an iron fist and a leather belt -- and where her dreams had no room to flourish. But she had Hope, who lived in the big house just it short skip away, and whose friendship allowed Tory to be something she wasn't allowed to be at home: a child. But after young Hope's brutal and unsolved murder, Tory's life began to fall apart. And now, as she returns to her hometown with plans to settle in, she's determined to find a measure of peace and free herself from the haunting visions of the past.