Ruby and her younger brother Rhett's parents, Grace and Dave Baker, are killed in a car crash. Thereafter, their parents' best friends, Erin and Terry Glass become their guardians, as per Grace and Dave's will. Ruby and Rhett are promised a world of opulence and California fun--all they have to do is move into the Glasses' gated house in picturesque Malibu. Before long, Ruby suspects that Erin and Terry may not be the ideal guardians. It soon becomes apparent to her that the surrogate care-givers are more than superficially interested in the huge sum of money left to them for the children's upkeep. Then their involvement in the fatal crash is questioned. But are Ruby's suspicions justified or merely the perceptions of a rebellious teenager with a fertile imagination?