In a parallel world exactly like ours, except that magic works and mythic monsters abound, John flees the Cranstons and their multi-national companies with evidence of their crimes and with an ogre on his tail. Fleeing the wrath of her wicked witch sister, Mary encounters John when he saves her from the clutches of an attacker. Joining forces, they run into a good witch who says that Mary has great witchly powers and gives her a day of basic training before they must, again escape the ogre. The two of them meet up with John's friend, Stu, and his family in their private bus. Stu has more evidence against the Cranstons. The group, now sixteen strong, finds refuge on a native American Reservation in Arizona. When Mary is attacked by vicious slaths, the ogre saves her and she finds that he has been chasing them, not to harm them, but because he had discovered the wickedness of the Cranstons and left them in order to bring to John the information that the Cranstons plan to kill both the President and the Vice-President at Labor Day parades. During the next weeks the Cranstons organize several attempts to kill John, Stu and Mary and to stymie their efforts to get legal help against the Cranstons. However, Mary completes her training as a witch and the book culminates with the struggle between the good powers and the bad on Labor Day.