David Larimore is a man who withdraws from normal life into a world of isolation. A failed marriage to his combative high school girlfriend, Lani Kincaid, and trauma suffered during active service in Vietnam, lead him to conclude that life has little to offer. The one exception to his sequestration is his older sister, Sarah, a well-meaning woman who inadvertently creates an atmosphere of tension and hostility around her. David’s solitary life begins to change when his two nieces, Courtney Blaine and Donna Butler, come to live with him. A series of chance meetings involving Courtney and other troubled girls from the bizarre and unlikely high school that David once attended draws more residents to David’s uniquely sprawling house. The girls Courtney befriends are all seeking to escape the abuse they suffer at home. Courtney suffers physical abuse by her stepfather, and Donna seeks a place of order free of the simmering hostile environment at home. A young guitar player named Kerry Cooper becomes Courtney’s best friend. Kerry seeks a place free of the threats posed by the criminals with whom her drug-addicted mother associates. Lindsey Larson suffers neglect by parents who have no interest in her. She also suffers the loss of her brother, the only one who treated her as a special person. Nikki Marlowe suffers cruel emotional torture at the hands of her mentally unstable mother. A shared interest in rock music, one of the few joys left in David’s life, results in the formation of an all-female hard rock band featuring Courtney as vocalist, Kerry as guitarist, Lindsey as bassist, and Nikki as drummer. Tammy Hedrick, a talented hard-edged guitar player, and former girlfriend of Lindsey’s brother Randy, rounds out the band. She is a stark contrast to the others in that she has a stable, caring home life. The band quickly ascends to the top of the rock music industry, only to burn out at the height of their career due to conflict among the members of the band, especially that between Kerry and Nikki, who had a long running and violent feud while in high school that started when Kerry threatened Karen Marlowe, Nikki’s sickly younger sister. The background of David’s family is explored, along with the relationships he had with the girls he knew in high school, including Mickey Mason; Stephanie Stanton; Barbara Michaels; Lorraine Lockhart; Jean Marlowe; Virginia Cooper and Kayla Swann. Returning home involves the nexus of the story, “the gap in the fence.” A wooden fence separates David’s property from that of the high school. It becomes the means through which the girls go to school and return home, much like David and Sarah in their youth. But the gap in the fence promises so much more: it symbolizes the gateway through which the people in his life pass from the threatening, dangerous world to the place of safety represented by David’s home. The key to David’s story is his unique personal philosophy and concept of God, which result from a spiritual exploration free of traditional dogma and institutional constraints. David forms a unique and lasting relationship with the girls in the band, providing advice and the means to acquire the equipment needed for success. The story of David’s role in their lives is developed slowly through the book until the cause of the subconscious impulse that gently moves David to form these relationships is revealed. As each girl discovers what she needs most out of life, the compelling connection each has with David slowly transforms his view of his own life. David now quietly moves toward completion until he finally obtains what he needs most, his own personal epiphany.