With New Orleans as their destination, Cheney Duvall and her nurse, Shiloh Irons, leave behind the glittering lights of New York City and travel first to Charleston, South Carolina, intending to stay for only a short time. But the purpose of their stop immediately draws them into the plight of this war-torn Southern city, in the painful throes of Reconstruction and carpetbagger policies after the Civil War.

Cheney finds herself in conflict with the most respected doctor in Charleston, who is also the hospital administrator. She discovers that his old-school medical practices are not only questionable but are positively harmful. He refuses to acknowledge Cheney as a lady, much less an accredited physician.

Meanwhile, Shiloh finds strong evidence that one of the most powerful businessmen in Charleston is cheating Southern merchants and is likely stealing from Cheney's father, Richard Duvall.

As Cheney and Shiloh are embroiled in the political, social, and economic troubles that plague the city, they also are drawn into events related to the beginnings of the Knights of the White Rose, a fraternal order of white supremacists. Cheney and Rissy, her companion, find that they may not only be involved in social conflicts their very lives are in danger!