All Berisan wants is a place to hide. The insignificant village of Opshar seems like a perfect haven. Disguised as a beggar, he can lie low and evade the brutal hunter-guards. But Berisan isn't the only one with secrets. Widowed and pregnant, Yamaya struggles to hold the farm she and her husband built, but she can't escape her sordid past. In desperation, she hires the one person who hasn't taken a side in Opshar's murky politics — the beggar, Sand. Common sense tells Berisan to walk away, but his code as a minstrel compels him to help Yamaya if he can. Soon he faces a decision that challenges every principle he holds. Will he give up the safety of his secrets, or allow another to suffer in his place?