Laura Bourbon is a woman born to a life of privilege, yet marries a man of lesser standing. It is for the very fact that he defies her father's attempts to better their lives that Laura's heart is bound up with that of her husband. Robert Colborne becomes a career diplomat, a stalwart for the least public responsibilities in Foreign Affairs. His assignments open Laura to a world lived in the mysterious regions of the Caribbean and in coastal regions of East Africa. Their marriage produces a beautiful daughter. When the little girl disappears from the streets of Mogobana, the family is bereft. Yet it is the discovery, some years later, that their daughter may be alive, which energizes Laura and leads to her examination of the past and her search for the truth. Laura will have to examine her role as daughter, wife, mother, and individual before she will understand that which is precious.