A continuation to the previous book Flowers in the Attic, the story starts off with Cathy, Chris, and Carrie using their stolen funds to escape by bus to Sarasota. Carrie, still weak from the effects of the poison that killed her twin, is taken ill on the journey. While her elder siblings panic over how to get her the medical attention she so desperately needs without revealing their identities or exhausting their limited funds, the children are discovered by Henrietta "Henny" Beech, the mute housekeeper of a local doctor, Paul Sheffield. Cathy tells Paul their story and he convinces them to stay with him.