Orchid

Why is lawyer Richard L. Anderson teaming up with his lover Sarah Octavia da Silva researching heirs to John Sutter, the magnate whose vast estates on the Sacramento were trampled underfoot in the Gold Rush of 1849? Does he want to sue the US government for damages, for doing nothing to help? A plausible idea, given American lawsuits over historical injustices like slavery and the treatment of the Indians. But what is Sarah's shocking secret, which will be revealed step by step along the way of this quest? Will Sarah find out? Can she bear to know?