a suspenseful story of three women who, in search of freedom from the lies that bind them, experience personal growth, discovery, and forgiveness. ten years ago, stuart carpenter was killed in a single-car accident after retrieving his daughter, reese, from college. the first responders to the accident saw no evidence of her, and she's been neither seen nor heard from since. a decade later, reese's mother, eva, struggling to make it through her days, holds out hope her daughter is still alive. maggie, on the rebound after the breakup of a long-term relationship, rushes into marriage with a man she knows little about. on the surface eric is a stable man and a good provider, but when his job takes them from oregon to virginia, his dark side begins to show. eric is ready to start a family. maggie is more interested in pursuing a career as an investigative journalist. eric will do whatever it takes to get his way. on a snowy sunday in early march, maggie befriends her across-the-street neighbor, eva, who confides in maggie about her missing daughter. the story intrigues maggie, and she can't stop thinking about reese. when eric's controlling behavior turns abusive, maggie uses the investigation of reese's disappearance as an opportunity to go undercover. maggie travels from virginia to ohio to washington dc, unraveling the secrets of the dysfunctional family that drove a young woman to a desperate act of survival.