After the assault of a young woman in their seaside town, a security expert and his family get caught in a powerful riptide of secrets and lies.

Among the many odd jobs Matilda, a provincial girl, takes on to make ends meet is playing the role of a princess in historical costume reenactments. But when she finds herself pregnant, her boyfriend Pietro refuses to take any responsibility. Matilda then decides to have an abortion, with the help and support of her friend Anna, a fashionable painter who sees her as a reflection of herself. And thanks to Anna, she also comes into contact with Andrea, a wealthy young man whose family boasts noble origins. As if by fate, the role she plays in the reenactments begins to come in handy in a new, far more engaging fiction.

In a near future, due to the effects of an uncompromising law on the eco-sustainability of supports, paper has become a rare item, a luxury possession, controlled by the "Big Z": Zimurgh Corporation.