Eve and Jack Kenning have desperately longed for a child, but when Jack goes off to fight in the war, the prospect seems even more remote. So the news that Eve's flighty, fun-loving lodger Sally is to have a baby out of wedlock seems particularly cruel. Eve cares for Sally's unwanted baby as if it were her own, even begging Sally to let her adopt the child. When Sally is killed during an air raid, Eve is racked with guilt -- and happier than she feels she has the right to be. Determined that Carol will grow up clever and accomplished, Eve nurtures her natural talents. But Carol wants a career as an actress and a life with the man she loves -- and her desperate bid for independence is now threatened by a dark secret from the past...