Luke Ellis has loving parents, a gifted intelligence, and a minor touch of telekinesis—a perfect life in the suburbs of Minneapolis. In the middle of the night, a clandestine team swoops into his house, murders his parents, and kidnaps the boy.

When he awakes, Luke finds himself in The Institute with other kidnap victims of similar age and various psychic abilities. They are subjected to harsh medical experiments and a nagging fear of what happens next when they graduate from the “Front Half” of the complex to to the unknown “Back Half.” Resistance is met with a brutal response from the staff while compliance is rewarded with tokens to buy rewards from candy to cigarettes and alcohol for the pre- and early teens.

When a chance comes to escape The Institute and exact revenge on the Institute, Luke begins a harrowing journey to escape detection with the support of only a few. At the end, he and the other children at The Institute have to make decisions about what they are willing to sacrifice to achieve their goals.

On the other end, the people who run the Institute appear at first heartless and cruel, but layer by layer their purpose is revealed. They believe wholeheartedly that they are doing something beneficial. Is their accomplishment what it seems? And, if so, is it worth the price?