Book is in French 1915. Since the sinking of the Lusitania, torpedoed off the Irish coast by a German submarine, Lady Marguerite has been devastated. From her hotel room in Queenstown, the survivor, bedridden and in pain, worries about her younger daughters who were also traveling on board the liner and of whom she still has no news. She can nevertheless count on the support of her husband and her two eldest children, Hugh and Martha, during this trying period. Brutally caught up in the fiery situation prevailing in Europe, the Allans have no intention of returning to Canada: now more than ever, they want to participate in the war effort. Guided by impulse, members of the clan will take different paths. Some will end up in England, others in France. But whatever the destination, their journey will prove arduous.