Ivy Aniram can't afford to make stupid mistakes. A scavenger in a post-apocalyptic America where long-distance travel can be deadly to the few who attempt it, Ivy is a rare commodity--fertile woman untouched by the epidemic "Empty Cradle." When she's ambushed and nearly killed thanks to an offer of trust she shouldn't have extended, the villagers who save her demand a hefty price in return-a baby born of her womb. She may have tumbled out of the frying pan and into the fire. Corey Sanderson, a farmboy who's eager to escape his bleak rural existence at all costs, proves to be Ivy's salvation....