1796: When traveling weaver and former soldier Will Rees learns that his son David has run away, he immediately sets out after him. After tracking him down at a Shaker settlement near Durham, Maine, Will unexpectedly finds himself heading a murder investigation. As he adapts to the ways of the Shakers he begins to discover that some members of the community may hold clues to solving the case, but uncovering those clues will also reveal dark secrets...

Will Rees is adjusting to life on his Maine farm in 1797, but he's already hungering for the freedom of the road, and his chance to travel comes sooner than he expects. Lydia has just received a letter from her old friend Mouse, a soft-spoken and gentle woman who now lives in the Shaker community in Mount Unity, New York. To Lydia and Rees's astonishment, she's in trouble with the law. She's kidnapped five children, claiming that their mother, Maggie...

"Will Rees is back home on his farm in 1796 Maine with his teenage son, his pregnant wife, their five adopted children, and endless farm work under the blistering summer sun. But for all that, Rees is happy to have returned to Dugard, Maine, the town where he was born and raised, and where he's always felt at home. Until now. When a man is found dead - murdered - after getting into a public dispute with Rees. Rees starts to realize someone is intentionally...

1790s, Maine. In the depths of winter Hortense, a midwife, disappears after attending a birth in the woodlands. During the search Will Rees finds her struggling through the snow and woods without shoes or a coat. After two young men begin stalking the community in search of her - including targeting Rees's own family - she is questioned further and claims she was kidnapped . . . but Rees and his wife Lydia are suspicious. It is agreed Hortense's presence...

"September, 1800, Maine. Will Rees is beseeched by Tobias, an old friend abducted by slave catchers years before, to travel south to Virginia to help transport his pregnant wife, Ruth, back north. Though he's reluctant, Will's wife Lydia convinces him to go...on the condition that she accompanies them. Upon arriving in a small community of absconded slaves hiding within the Great Dismal Swamp, Will and Lydia are met and distrust. Tensions are high...

"January, 1801. When Lydia's estranged father is accused of murder, Will Rees escorts her to Boston to uncover the truth. Marcus Farrell is believed to have murdered one of his workers, a boy from Jamaica where he owns a plantation. Marcus swears he's innocent. However, a scandal has been aroused by his refusal to answer questions and accusations he bribed officials. As Will and Lydia investigate, Marcus's brother, Julian, is shot and killed. This...