In Mike's presence, Nikki is run down in a vehicular hit-and-run. After the doctor does his initial examination at the hospital, he cannot determine the severity of her injuries, the prognosis which only further examination and time will tell. Mike cannot get over the feeling of guilt for making Nikki make the sacrifices in her life that he believes her decisions for him have been, that feeling which manifests itself as anger to the world and everyone around him, and shutting himself off. Afraid that he will revert to the state he was in when he first became blind, Duke calls Mike's old friend and doctor at Oakhurst, Dan Stockton. By force and against Mike's will, Dan makes Mike now be the teacher to Russ Larsen, a young man at the Foundation for the Junior Blind who has given up on life following going blind. Dan realizes that he is taking a calculated risk as Mike and Russ, in their self pities, may, instead of picking each other up, pull each other down further than they already are. What happens to Nikki may end up being the deciding factor on what happens to Mike and by association Russ.
—Huggo