Anne Foster"s husband is in France. She has stayed behind in their small college town with her two young children -- whom she loves with an intensity that awes her -- to finish writing the catalogue for a major exhibition of the work of American Impressionist painter Caroline Watson. As she delves into Caroline"s life, Anne sees a side of "mother love" she"d never fathomed. Meanwhile, Anne"s live-in babysitter, Laura Post, is obsessed with a different kind of love. She sees herself as one of God"s chosen and believes she has been sent to "save" Anne and her children, whether they want it or not . . .