A teenage boy is travelling home to Provo from Washington DC, staying in hobo camps as he goes. At one of the camps, three men make him feel welcome and then accost him, torturing him and planning to kill him. He manages to escape and is taken in by a family who takes care of him until his memory returns and he is able to go home to his family. The trauma of the event makes it difficult for him to function in his day-to-day life once he gets home.