As a child, physically disabled, isolated and hopelessly alone, he lived through his music and books; now, as a doctor and musician, Charley has finally managed to achieve a semblance of adult life, and many of the things he had dreamed of, to become a happy man. With the help of his former enemy and rival, he even wins the hand of the woman he loves. He scarcely suspects that far greater obstacles lie in his future, and that he will have to call on every resource to come through them. At the peak of his happiness, Charley is the victim of a violent crime that takes away the abilities of which he was most proud. Worst of all, the suspicion that his own father is responsible forces Charley to give up his lifelong secrets. In a way that no one could have suspected, the truth sets Charley free from the chains that had bound him since childhood. Finally, he must face the last and greatest challenge.