"The fifty eight floors of this building are to all intents and purposes my world. I will never leave it. I was born here, I will marry here, I will have my children here and I will die here -- my life from beginning to end will have no impact on any one outside: to them I might never have existed." Deeta Richards lives in a harsh world, one in which you must be strong to survive. In this world of so many dangers she is protected by her tribe, but even they cannot shield her from the Andak. Deeta knows that when the Andak want something they get it, but why do they want Dec, he's just a child? The only one who can answer her question is Tom. However Tom is facing his own troubles -- fighting against his shadowed past and present fears, Tom is the only one who can save Dec, but only he knows how much it will cost him.