The illegitimate daughter of wealthy Lord Galter, Amelia and her mother must live in poverty until Amelia receives her trust fund on reaching eighteen. With her father dead, and unable to protect them, her half-brother becomes increasingly violent. The small cottage her father built for them is no longer a safe haven, and surviving to inherit her trust fund hangs on a knife edge. Late one night, Amelia is forced to take a desperate step. Can she escape the hangman's noose?