After the death of her mother, a woman learns that she and her brother are the only grandchildren of a famous silent-film star who does not know of their existence. Elizabeth is shocked, particularly in light of her own history which includes walking away from a promising stage career a decade ago. The time is the 1970’s, and her grandmother, Victoria Kingsley, resides at Golden Green, an elaborate estate in Beverly Hills. Elizabeth determines to meet her, but does not feel comfortable arriving as an unknown heir, so she secures an interview and ultimately the position of maid at the estate.

To her great surprise, Elizabeth then discovers that her younger brother who disappeared some years ago has been living at Golden Green for the last few years. He certainly didn’t tell his grandmother that he has a half-sister, so he agrees not to betray Elizabeth’s “masquerade”. Also at the estate are several servants; as well as Victoria’s vapid and childish brother, Hugh; and Victoria’s tragic twin, Maggie. Maggie is a painfully shy and eccentric old woman who has spent much of her life in mental institutions.

Surmounting the obstacles to meeting her grandmother, a woman very few people actually see, Elizabeth becomes her personal maid. She lavishes great care on Miss Kingsley who becomes quite dependent and demanding of her. But Elizabeth is disappointed in the character of the tyrannical old woman and laden with guilt at her own duplicity. She finally decides to quit her position. The night before her resignation, however, Miss Kingsley is murdered. Most of the individuals at the estate are legitimately suspect; Elizabeth in particular, when the police investigation uncovers her true identity.

Even more surprising to the police captain is another identity charade; the murdered Miss Kingsley was actually Maggie Kingsley, the “mad” sister, and the woman living on the grounds as Maggie is actually Victoria, the silent film star – who made the audacious and successful switch with her sister some years ago. Victoria, a strong and perceptive woman, has engineered an existence safe from the specter of her fame.

A creative method is devised by the police which reveals the killer to be the butler, who thinks he killed Victoria Kingsley. His love for her belonged more to her Image than to her self.

At the end, Elizabeth and Victoria meet, no longer presenting themselves to each other as the maid and the mad sister. Elizabeth begs her grandmother to take her rightful place again, to not run away from herself – as Elizabeth has spent so much of her own life doing. Reluctantly, then resignedly, and finally with joy in this granddaughter, Victoria agrees.

© 2003, Darlene Bridge Lofgren