Seventeen-year-old Cally was born into the idyll of commune life. Since she was five, however, Cally has been living on a houseboat with her father. She is a tomboy, he is sweet but out of touch, barely able to get by, trying just to hold onto Cally. Then Cally meets the older and exotic Sabine, a runaway who has been running for far too long. Cally is intoxicated with her vivacity, her intensity, and in Sabine, Cally sees something of herself. With the help of a mutual friend, Cally finds Sabine and pursues her. Eventually she's allowed into Sabine's life and becomes immersed in the drama she finds there. Clues to Sabine's mysterious past begin to surface. Cally follows the clues like a thread leading out of a maze, but finds it only takes her deeper in.