Candice is a young woman setting out on her first visit to the traditional land of her Aboriginal grandmother. When she arrives at the 'place where the two rivers meet', the twentieth century falls away and the story of Candice's family comes to life. Here in 1918, her grandmother Garibooli was taken from her family.

Garibooli is sent to work as a housemaid, but marriage soon offers escape from the terror of the master's nighttime visits. Her displacement carries into the lives of her seven children—their stories witness to the impact of orphanage life and the consequences of having dark skin in postwar Australia.

Vividly rekindled, the lives of her family point the direction home for Candice.