Leandra lives a quiet, reclusive existence in a small town in North Carolina. Her solitude is broken when her sister's husband, Wim, appears on her doorstep - a man she hasn't seen or heard from in over ten years, since a time that was steeped in tragedy. Now Wim has returned to Leandra - his last wish - because he is dying.

Their story is rendered from both perspectives, a melody and countermelody of Wim's New England eloquence and Leandra's delicate Southern drawl. We gradually learn about their first meeting, when a young Leandra was summoned to New England to take care of her older sister, Pamela, bedridden from a complicated pregnancy and severely depressed.

The tensions in Pamela and Win's passionate but troubled marriage contrast with the growing solace that Wim and Leandra find in each other, trapped in a house filled with anger, distrust, and sadness. Eventually, this triangle of relations shifts the foundations of the home so much that the walls come crashing down, and Wim and Leandra are left to ponder the debris for the rest of their lives.