The Derbyshire mill town of Castle Maine is ruled by the ruthless industrialist Silas Bradshaw, a bitter man who lost both his sons in World War I. At the other end of the social scale lies the Bridges family and their daughter, Maggie. Longing to escape the drudgery of life in the cotton mill, Maggie defies her mother and seizes the chance of employment as nursery maid to Silas Bradshaw's grandson, John. Unknown to Maggie, shocking events bring family history to the surface with results that could blow apart both the Bridges and the Bradshaws.