 After Vietnam, Crystal Wyatt meets a returning soldier, Spencer Hill and although she is young they are drawn together and find they have a lot in common. Spencer s visit is fleeting and although he leaves, Crystal still thinks of him often. Crystal s father dies and her mother, who has never really loved Crystal, begins to mistreat her and use her as a skivvy. After years of this, Crystal is attacked and raped by her brother-in-law. When Crystal gets her father s shotgun to kill her brother-in law, her brother-in-law accidentally shoots her brother, and Crystal runs away from the farm to San Francisco where she becomes quite well known as a singer. Menawhile, Spencer has embarked upon a socially beneficial, yet ill-advised marriage, when he meets Crystal again in San Francisco. They embark on a hurtful affair, but the path does not run smooth for them. As intertwined as their lives are, it takes Spencer time to act like a decent man and do what is right.