As head of Winston Mail Order Inc, 74-year-old Andrea Winston, widow of the firm's founder, is determined that she will not retire. Still lively and energetic, she has ideas for revitalizing the company, and resists the increasingly frustrated calls from her three children that it is time to stand down. Besides, Andrea has her own ideas about a successor. Neither her son Leon, nor her two daughters seem suited to the role, and she has made secret plans to bring in a granddaughter none of them know about; Celeste's illegitimate child, who was adopted at birth. When Emily Mitchell arrives in the small town of Woodhaven to take up her position, she is full of trepidation. Will she like her newly-discovered grandmother? How will the Winston family react to her, and how will Andrea's employees feel about the stranger in their midst? But even her worst fears have not prepared Emily for the terrifying events that await her.