September, 1941. In a turn of events, young lovebirds Kostya and Nastya find themselves on board a barge that will evacuate people from the sieged Leningrad. At night the barge gets into the storm. When it starts sinking, enemy planes — but not rescuers — were the first to arrive at the scene.
Respected police detective Gradov reluctantly turns to crime to find the money to pay for his terminally ill wife’s urgent medical treatment. During an investigation into a string of crimes Gradov begins to fall under suspicion, his colleague Osokin becomes convinced of his guilt and determined to expose him. But Gradov has already sacrificed his integrity and knows that he will stop at nothing to save his wife.
