In 1931 Lebanon, Joseph Fried­mann is born to a fif­teen-year-old Jew­ish girl hasti­ly wed to a man thir­ty years her senior. After his par­ents divorce, Joseph is raised in a Catholic con­vent, where he expe­ri­ences betray­al, anti­semitism, and a trau­ma he can­not bring him­self to name. He sur­vives by lock­ing away his feel­ings. But falling in love with a nun-in-train­ing leads to new heart­break. She leaves the con­vent, tak­ing with her Joseph’s unborn child and his hopes of belong­ing in Lebanon. Joseph jour­neys on foot to Pales­tine, where he par­tic­i­pates in Israel’ 1948 War of Inde­pen­dence. He is final­ly home. But his unique set of skills leads Joseph back to Lebanon as an Israeli spy. Over time, the tools of his trade — dar­ing, vio­lence, deceit, and sup­pres­sion of self — exact an ever-increas­ing toll. After years under cov­er, he com­pletes one final oper­a­tion. Now he faces a choice: escape to Israel, or attempt to reclaim his future by con­fronting the past — the moth­er who for­sook him; the abbess who abused him; the lover who desert­ed him.