At the urging of her daughter in law, eighty four year old Liesel Halston visits her hometown with the hope of finding closure from Nazi persecution and the pain of losing loved ones.

Sitting on a wooden bench, Liesel watches the water of the mighty Rheine-River rushing downstream. The bench dates back to her childhood and is an old, familiar friend. She traces the outline of the heart carved into the backrest. Her beloved grandfather had carved it a long, long time ago. The mesmerizing, rushing, water turns the clock back on Liesel and she remembers when tormenting fear replaced her sheltered childhood.

Nazi Storm troopers forced Liesel’s father to join the Nazi Party, they flee Germany, and escape the ruthless persecution of the SS. Barely staying a step ahead of the hangman’s noose turns Liesel’s life into a flight from hell. Pursued by the ruthless SS Sturmbannführer Heinrich, terrifying fear is their constant companion. With the help of the underground, they escape to the UK. But the horror of war follows them and they almost lose their lives during the air-raids on London.

When Liesel falls in love and marries Tom Halston, an American Army Captain, she and her family immigrates to the US. Yet it seems the loss of too many loved ones and now the uncertainty of her grandson missing in the desert of Iraq is about to break Liesel's will.