Angelo gets handcuffed to the bed by Alba who won't let him go. A womanizer rediscovers fear, doubts and desire.

Viper is the nickname Leone, a blacksmith in a small Sicilian village, gave to his wife, who ran off with another man. The war ends: the fascists disguise themselves first as communists and then as Christian Democrats, and the poor survive by dancing and drinking. Leone's daughter Rosetta becomes pregnant; Leone dies, and the newborn (named Fortunato) is taken from his very young mother, who ends up in an institution. When Rosetta comes of age, she is reunited with her "witch" mother and her son.

A man is working for the mafia to hunt killers. He also meets Margot, who lives in a nearby villa, and begins to seek her attention.