"The truth is I was glad he was dead... I wanted to celebrate his death."

Her father's death proves the trigger for Francesca Tomasi, the first-born daughter of a Sicilian immigrant family living in Australia, to relive the events she never should have witnessed. At the tender age of twelve, Francesca is brought face to face with an ugly reality that forces her to bury secrets and wrestle with choices that no one should ever have to make. Her struggle becomes one of survival as she defies attempts to silence her.

Trapped in a psychological web of fear, jealousy and deceit, Francesca learns that what she needs most is also her greatest threat.