Jillian Tolivar's parents are murdered and her marriage to her abusive husband, Noah, is falling apart. While dealing with the knowledge that the fire which killed her mother and father was deliberate, her husband becomes irate when he learns the estate will go to the daughters he shares with Jill. Jill survives an attack from Noah and sets out, building a life for herself and her children. Jill is a talented gaming programmer and one of the games she wrote, Battle Cry, is a wild success, as are subsequent expansion packs for the original game. Wealthy in her own right, Jill decides to purchase the house on Ransom Road. With the abundance of out buildings and land purchased with it, she sets out to build a horse breeding business, following in her father's footsteps... and plans to offer therapy horse camps for children and adults. To that end, she contacts her father's foreman, Ben Lightfoot, and asks him to join her in the enterprise. Jillian also meets Mary Lee, the real estate agent through whom she purchases the house... and the two women become fast friends. Mary Lee's husband, Zach, will do the necessary construction, and is best friends with Jake Logan, Molton county's sheriff. After moving in, Jill is plagued with strange happenings. The smell of cigarette smoke and the girls' report of a strange man in their room, asking for his birdie. The house on Ransom Road is not only beautiful, it's haunted. Jill must now fight not only for happiness and a good life for herself and her daughters, she must also fight for their very lives.