Lewis Vickers, a young American languishing in South America because he is "wanted" for a crime that was the result of an accident, comes across another American--Hobart Lee who greatly resembles him. That man dies and Vickers, to get back to the United States, decides to impersonate him. He is taken to the family group upon his arrival in New York City and soon finds himself embroiled in a situation he cannot just walk away from--no matter how badly he wants to. Who was this "Bob" Lee and why does his cousin seem to hate him so?