An experiment into the sources of the human brain through the mind of a young woman has gone horribly wrong. She has seen the great God Pan and will die giving birth to a daughter, Helen Vaughan. Helen Vaughan becomes the source of much fevered speculation when, twenty years later, she is feted as a social hostess of great charm. Many men are infatuated with her beauty, but beauty has a price - sometimes you have to pay with the only thing you have left...