Martha is humble and unspoilt, despite living a life of utter luxury at Lottery Lodge with her (mostly absent) father and stepmother, Penelope. Mitch lives at the boys' orphanage, a dilapidated mansion run by Ariadne Scattypants. Neither child has any idea about the life the other is leading. Between Lottery Lodge and the orphanage is a dense wood and it is here that a band of wild boys live. Mitch finds himself at their mercy, but somehow manages to scrabble his way out of the woods, emerging at Martha's wonderful home. However, here, too, things are taking a sinister turn.