The box was made of a metal like aluminum and sealed with heavy tape. In sunlight it had a pearlescent quality that reminded her of an abalone shell. Below the tape were fine markings that almost looked like words but not in any language that she recognized.

When her grandfather dies, 19-year-old Lauren Ferguson, a college student and a gifted violinist, comes into possession of a sealed box that belonged to her mother, who died when she was born. Matt Malone, the rookie cop she meets after her apartment is broken into, thinks the box may be connected to the murder of Mr. Malinsky, her grandfather’s friend who turns up dead the day after the funeral.

A letter left by Lauren’s grandfather warns her not to open the box, but she wonders if the box may contain information about the mother she never knew. As she debates whether to open it, her feelings for Matt grow and she begins to fear she will have to choose between him and her dream of becoming a violin virtuoso. Meanwhile, a killer may be stalking her.

In her search for answers, Lauren travels to Sedona, Arizona, the red rock country where her parents met and fell in love, and where a revelation waits that will change everything she thought she knew.