The Prince de Garance was an indulgent father, who paid his sons' debts without querying them, and never interfered with their choice of friends. But in matters affecting the family, he expected them to do his pleasure. He was able to force his elder son, the Marquis de Beaucourt, to marry his ward, Lucienne. But he could not force him to love her. The Marquis abandoned his wife on the wedding night, and sailed on a secret mission to Jamaica, where he was caught in the earthquake of 1692. On his return, two years later, a wiser man, he found a totally unexpected situation, which seemed to separate him irrevocably from his wife. The struggle between the Prince and Lucienne, on one side, and the Marquis and his younger brother, on the other, led both the Marquis and Lucienne into danger of death, before the unmasking of a villain allowed them to find happiness.