A bullet through a windowpane brings Robicheaux back in contact with the Sonnier family, childhood friends whose morality is scarred by a history of abuse. Welton, once a pilot for the CIA-backed Air America; Lyle, a television evangelist; and Drew, a girl-woman with a bitter past, form an extraordinarily close-knit family whose guarded secrets make it impossible for Robicheaux to protect them.