Damita DeSalvedo, the spoiled daughter of plantation owner Alfredo DeSalvedo, purchases a beautiful slave girl, Charissa, to be her personal maid. Damita's harsh treatment of Rissa reveals Damita's prejudice and further hardens Rissa's heart. When Damita leaves on a voyage to Savannah, a storm causes the ship to wreck. She is rescued by Yancy Devereaux, a handsome Kaintuck she once rebuffed because of his race. In a moment of weakness, Damita is drawn to him physically, but Yancy's noble resistance embarrasses her and injures her pride. Financial hardships force the DeSalvedos to consolidate, and Rissa is sold to Dr. Jefferson Whitman. Rissa learns she is the daughter of a wealthy and faithful Christian doctor and the sister of Jefferson, an adopted brother. Jefferson has continued to correspond with Damita and decides to relocate to New Orleans after his father dies. Because of her growing love for Jefferson, Rissa reluctantly goes with him. Now the tables are turned: Rissa is a wealthy, free woman, while Damita's family struggle to keep the plantation. Jefferson, Damita, Rissa, and Yancy each struggle to find their way in the midst of personal struggle. Will they find the love and faith they each so desperately need?
