Confederate Colonel H. Clay King tries to help the widow of his commanding officer when she and her family lose everything by inviting them to move onto his Arkansas plantation. But Mary Eliza Pillow has more in mind than gratitude. The beautiful young widow seduces the married colonel, chases his wife off the property by alleging an affair between Mrs. King and a farm worker, and persuades the colonel to give her the deed to his property. When Colonel King reconsiders that decision, she reminds him of his darkest secret from the War--would his beautiful lover betray him in order to take his property? Refusing to divorce his wife, Colonel King is both relieved and miserable when Mrs. Pillow is persuaded by her family to leave his home. But the ever-determined widow records her deed as she leaves Arkansas, infuriating Colonel King and beginning a path of destruction that ends in murder.
Based on a true story, "A Serpent Cherished" recounts the tangled tale of a nineteenth century woman determined to use any means--lies, scandal, lawsuits--to get what she wants and a vulnerable man driven to do anything to protect his honor.