In the midst of a blizzard fifteen year old Charles is brutally stabbed to death in front of his school. His sister Amber and her teacher Ms. Dawn witness the atrocity from a classroom window, but are unable to identify the murderer who was bundled up in winter clothing. While Ms. Dawn appears to move on beyond her grief, poor Amber remains tormented by the fact that whoever killed her brother is walking around free and unpunished. She begins to suspect her brother's jealous girlfriend, Brenda. Brenda has done terrible things, almost as bad as this, before. Already somewhat of a loner, Amber's attitude toward the popular Brenda pushes her even further away from the few friends she has. And she can't turn to her parents for comfort. Her father would rather drown his sorrows in beer at the corner tavern than pay attention to his daughter's mounting anguish, and her mother's already shaky mental state begins to deteriorate even further. Desperate and lonely Amber leans on Ms. Dawn, who does what she can to uplift the poor girl. Then, just as Amber begins to understand more about how love works and what it feels like to be around "normal" adults who care about you, the sky falls in again for Amber. Is there no one in the world she can trust? In a shocking conclusion, Amber is dealt the biggest challenge of her young life. Will she find the strength to catch the sky caving in on her and put it back up where it belongs, or will she wind up like her father, unforgiving, self-centered, and miserable, or like her mother who is clearly insane?