Claire Cooper is a suburban housewife and mother in rural Massachusetts who illustrates children's stories. Her husband, Paul, is an airline pilot, and is frequently away from home due to work, leaving Claire to care for their daughter, Rebecca. Claire begins experiencing bizarre, vague dreams involving an underwater city and the murder of a young girl. Shortly after, Rebecca goes missing during an outdoor school play, and is later found dead at the bottom of a lake. Claire is devastated and takes a while to recover.