In December 1939, the worst train disaster ever to occur on German soil takes place in front of the train station in Genthin. Two trains collide, resulting in numerous fatalities. Among the passengers is Carla, who survives but is severely injured. She is engaged to Richard, a Jew from Neuss, but he is not her companion; instead, it is the Italian Giuseppe Buonomo, who dies in the crash. Lisa, a shop assistant at the Magnus department store, is tasked with bringing clothes to the injured woman, who has lost everything in the accident. However, Carla is already posing as Mrs. Buonomo. What is she trying to hide?

Many years later, Lisa's son Thomas Vandersee learns about this mysterious incident, as his mother recounts her own love and tragedy story. Can he uncover Carla's secret? Could it possibly be connected to his own family?

Set against the backdrop of a historical catastrophe, novelist Gert Loschütz tells a profound and moving story of love and betrayal.