The story centers on Ruth Jefferson, an experienced African American labor and delivery nurse at a Connecticut hospital. During a routine checkup, Ruth is reassigned from a newborn baby after the parents, who are white supremacists, request that no African American nurse care for their child. The following day, the baby goes into cardiac distress while Ruth is alone in the nursery. Faced with a moral dilemma, Ruth hesitates before performing CPR, leading to the baby's death. She is subsequently charged with a serious crime.