Harlan Parker is a clueless reporter about to receive an education in Chicago's red light district. He gains the trust of the son of a prominent local judge and learns of Oota's fate. His bumbling rescue attempt brings he and Oota together. There is an old saying; "Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while." This saying held true for Harlan when a young escapee from the Levee District runs into him. He bumbles his way through saving her. In the process and finds an unlikely ally that leads to him writing an expose on White Slavery in Chicago, a story that never gets to print.Fast-forward to 1985. Gwen Parker, Harlan's granddaughter is a smart successful Chicago real estate financier. Her life takes a turn when Harlan, in a deathbed act, hands a safe deposit key to her. With the loss of her beloved grandfather Gwen had a sheaf of unanswered questions and the strange bequeath from Harlan. Lost and in despair she finds herself in her car on the property of her latest downtown high-rise development project.A canal dredging operation exhumes two sets of bones. The Chicago Police call in a forensic archeologist, Francis Moreau, Ph.D.. Francis, who goes by the name Mike exhumes and examines the remains. Francis Moreau, Ph.D. gets the call. The past reaches forward to draw Gwen and Moreau together and place them on a path to complete the story Harlan started. As well as unravel the mystery of Gwen's past.As with pieces of a puzzle Gwen and Francis seek to put together a mystery 65-years by working through Harlan's notes. They find that parts of the puzzle are missing. Harlan's notes reflect his work with another reporter, one who was his mentor. They find how Harlan exposed a local judge as a leader of a White Slavery ring. This exposure leads, not only to the death of the judge but to his son as well. This puts Harlan in the sights of a murderous doctor bent on protecting his financial empire. Harlan, forced to flee the city went to Atrament, a little town two-hours south of Chicago. Harlan's first encounter with this town brought him very close to death. A town that lived up to its name, a place of inky darkness. In Atrament, Harlan finds himself digging into another mystery. He finds, once again that he had wore out his welcome in another town.In this story, Oota remains the mystery. Harlan knows her and does his blundering best to help her. But, his notes have no information about her. Who was this strange girl that wandered the night, lived with nuns and had angered a gangster hit-man? This would require Gwen and Francis to dig deeper.