This is the story of Carola Rossmann, a middle-aged widow who is left behind with her elderly mother and former housekeeper as others of her family leave. They promise her she will follow them as soon as needed documents can be obtained. With the onset of World War II, her situation changes. She is ultimately abandoned inside Germany to face her own fate. In this setting, Carola establishes a dangerous relationship with a gentile man that provides her respite, comfort, and even pleasure. The tortuous path she embarks on results in a corrosive conflict created by the paradox of her Aryan appearance and her Jewish soul. The relentless acts of dehumanization alternately raise and dash her hopes during her last years in the city. When Jewish life is finally brought to a halt, the entire community is trapped in place and deported. The SS robs them of their belongings and uses their own assets to exterminate them. With few exceptions all of this takes place while the citizenry stands by, unwilling to interfere with the atrocities they are witnessing.