Arnau, Switzerland

Pilgrim's husband, Tom, decides the location where he wants to buy land, settle down, and build their dream house as the small, Swiss village of Arnau. He asks Pilgrim to stay in Arnau and become a member of the community while taking German lessons. Shortly after renting an apartment from a woman named Mrs. Gassner, Tom leaves Pilgrim and reveals that his mistress is pregnant with his child. Tom leaves Pilgrim in Arnau, and she has no one and nothing keeping her there.

Pilgrim gets into a serious car accident while driving to her German lesson. Pilgrim's car strikes a bus stop and kills three children from Arnau. The people in the small community turn against her, calling her a child killer and wishing her a painful death. Ernst Koppler's daughter, Sophie, is one of the children who died in the accident. He recently lost his wife...