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, 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 is unfit to care for them. Despite the wintry weather and icy roads, Rees and Lydia set out for New York. There's nothing they can do for Mouse legally, though, and they reluctantly set out for home. But before they've travelled very far, they receive more startling news: Maggie Whitney has been found murdered, and Mouse is the prime suspect.