Jason Keane and his wife Ann had retired to Arizona. Sadly, shortly after, Ann died. Jason, now longing for more of a family connection, decides to move back east to be near his son's family in Massachusetts. One July weekend, the Keane's go mountain climbing in the Adirondacks of New York. A mile up the trail, Jason stops and rests on a stump to take in the beautiful surroundings. When he starts back up, Jason stumbles. A branch breaks his fall, and he decides it would make for an excellent walking stick. Shortly after adopting the branch as his walking stick, Jason encounters bizarre incidents and unexplainable experiences that would change the Keane family forever, and the lives of others, beyond. The story combines paranormal activities with family dynamics, and internal conflict Boundaries of the traditional mystery novel where, not a person, but a branch from a downed stripped maple tree serves as the protagonist. The Keanes are a typical middle class American family, that happens to experience bizarre activities and behaviors and brought to emotional collapse, by a simple branch found on a mountain trail.