Newly married to a man of wealth and reputation who's willing to be stepfather to her daughter Abigail, Sara Bonniface would seem to have all she's ever wanted for Abby: a beautiful home, a man to be there for her, and the assurance of a top education for the bright if headstrong child. But twelve-year-old Abby has other ideas, embarking on a crusade to learn more about her birth father. Relentless and computer-savvy, Abby manages to track down and then drag Ben McElwyn, ex-cop and now a P.I., back into Sara's life.
It's the last thing that Sara needs. She's already under assault from a series of mystifying events that have her dreading the possibility that she's suffering from schizophrenia, the affliction that destroyed her own mother.
It's the last thing that Ben needs. He's a lone wolf and determined to stay that way. Him —the father of a twelve-year-old daughter? He refuses to believe it.
It's the last thing that Rodger Bonniface, Abby's stepfather, needs. Headmaster of a prestigious prep school in Massachusetts, Rodger's reputation is pristine. Rich, controlling, and cooly charming, Rodger has surprised everyone by marrying a woman with neither his background nor his sophistication. Still, Sara has great beauty, so they understand. And before her marriage she was a respectable widow, a sympathetic figure— everyone, including Rodger, believed.
Until twelve-year-old Abby lobs that hand grenade into the elegant quarters of the house called Tidewater.