Ukraine, our days. In the late autumn, 42-year-old Marat is bought out of captivity by Aleksandrovych, an influential man from his past and a sports club mentor. So Marat returns to his hometown, where he has not been for many years. And he loses his freedom.

Marat is lonely, withdrawn, and focused. He rents a room, works at a school as a guard and a stoker.

One day, at a bus stop, a stranger stops Marat with a clear, distinctive gesture: Aleksandrovych offers Marat a job that will not be difficult for him, the commander of a reconnaissance company… Marat is forced to accept — and asks that the payment be handed over to his parents.

At the railway station, on the train, Marat meets his old school sweetheart, Marta. Long ago, he left for the big city, and she was waiting for him, but he never called her back. In a few hours of night travel, Marat imagines a family, a house, and a quiet, happy life. And when he says goodbye on the platform, he dictates to Marta a phone number that does not exist.

The outskirts of the city, the square, is where a pre-election rally and concert are planned. Marat looks around at the police cordon, fences and plainclothes men. He is taken to an apartment in a neighboring building, where a table is set in the kitchen. There is a cellar under the room, a basement beyond, a corridor, and a narrow shelf by the window. A sniper rifle is ready on the shelf.

The rally is about to begin.

With his finger on the trigger, Marat decides to miss…