It's the turn of the century, and wealthy industrialist James Marshall brings home to his wife Lillian twin infants. The children are accepted as his deceased sister's offspring, when in fact they are his own, conceived with his Negro mistress Tilly, who died giving birth. Three generations of mixed blood make it possible to believe they are descendants of an English mother and French father. The twin's natural grandmother Dorie accompanies them as their nanny.and begins her diary. Lillian Marshall immediately changes their names from Roosevelt and Hattie to Aaron and Allison, names more acceptable in their white community. Within a year Lillian, thought to be infertile, gives birth to Jonathan and the three siblings are nurtured in the wealth of the Twenties. The fall of the stock market October 28, 1929, changes their lives forever, creating a family struggle to survive. On a foggy night the lives of Marshall, Lillian and Dorie are lost in an automobile accident. With very little left of the Marshall estate, Aaron, Allison and Jonathan are forced to sell most of their possessions. In the process of gathering Dorie's belongings, her diary is found-and the true secret of Roosevelt and Hattie is revealed.