A ten year-old boy from Oklahoma is handed a precious relic by his mentor. Jonathan Quill discovers a shadowy network of powers seeking to alter history. Throughout his long life he is haunted by the revelations in the ancient document. With his archaeologist daughter-in-law Patricia and granddaughter Elma, they strive to stay one step ahead of the dark forces that seek to control the world. Nothing is as it seems, as his family is torn with conflict and dire moral choices that no one should have to face. Jonathan Quill is kidnapped by government agents seeking to thwart world powers during the Cold War and is thrust into making choices when torn from his family as a child. He comes to realize that his family extends over hundreds of years and consists of pirates, outlaws, inventors and scientists involved with real historical figures of their different eras. As he grows into adulthood he loses the trust of his son, who blames him for his mother's apparent death in his obsession with finding a long-lost treasure. His granddaughter, teenaged Elma, is the only one who believes his quest is the truth.