Wish-Ton-Wish is suddenly attacked, and after a desperate defense the settlement is consumed by fire, leaving the Heathcotes alive but devastated by the disappearance of young Ruth. Years later the rebuilt community has prospered, yet the family's grief remains, and the appearance of Whittal Ring raises new hope that the missing girl may have survived among the Native people. At the same time, Metacom's uprising develops into King Philip's War, and the growing involvement of the Narragansetts and their young chief Conanchet draws the settlement once again toward violence.
