On a stormy night, the Kingston family's car plunges into a raging river. Scarlett, their five-year-old daughter, displays calm far beyond her years—shattering the car window and clinging to a piece of driftwood, she survives the treacherous currents on her own. Severe head trauma erases most of her childhood memories, and she is completely separated from her family. Only two things remain to prove her identity: an old burn scar from hot cocoa, stretching from her left wrist to her forearm, and half of a detachable family crest. Alone and unknown, she is sent to the Lighthouse Home for Children in Maine, where she begins over a decade of lonely life as an orphan.
At the orphanage, Scarlett is quiet, self-disciplined, hardworking, and never speaks of her shattered past. A fellow orphan, Sophia, pretends to be warm and kind, gradually winning Scarlett's full trust. Taking advantage of Scarlett's youth and innocence, Sophia sweet-talks her into stealing the half-crest. At the time, Scarlett has no idea that this token will become the key for Sophia to steal her entire identity—and her life.
