Perched amid the leaves of the Osage orange tree in her stepfather's backyard, Beryl Fonteyn observes the life around her - Mama's desperate attempts to gain Jack's approval by writing her novel, which he mercilessly critiques; her brother Stevie's unhealthy fascination with acting out events from the Bible; and Jack's obsession with his bees - all the while imagining that her runaway father will one day return. But as Beryl's adolescent turmoil collides with the confines of Jack's eccentric home, a shattering secret will divide their loyalties - and in one irrevocable moment the home that Beryl's family has found, their shelter in the storm, will be torn apart forever. . . .