Eleven years after his mother's suicide, Leone Glembay returns from abroad to his family home in Zagreb. He is haunted by depressing memories, particularly by thoughts of his deceased mother, his sister who committed suicide, and the Baroness Castelli, his father's second wife. The only member of his family that Leone respects is Beatrice, his brother Ivan's widow. She became a nun, taking the new name of Angelika. He is a witness to omnipresent hypocrisy and is repulsed by the criminal means by which his family became rich. Ultimately, Leone confronts his father and the baroness.