The large retainer offered by a client who asks for complete anonymity is not the only thing that intrigues Barbara Holloway. The defendant, Carol Fredricks, is a gifted young pianist charged with killing the manager of a piano bar. But Carol is as much of a mystery as the details of the murder for which she is accused. She can't remember anything about her life before the age of eight, and she has been having haunting nightmares about a woman she cannot identify.

Before long Barbara becomes convinced that her client is not only innocent, but is being framed by an enemy who will stop at nothing to keep the past buried. And as she unravels the stunning trail of deception, hatred and a remarkable abiding love that holds the key to the mystery of Carol Fredricks, Barbara discovers that the unbidden truth may just damn them both.