The novel is dedicated to the Soviet intelligence officer, Colonel Lev Efimovich Manevich (Etienne), who in 1965 was posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. In 1936, Etienne lived in Italy under the name of the Austrian businessman Konrad Kertner. He obtained secret information about the military industry of Nazi Germany. After being arrested during the investigation, then in prison and concentration camps, the Soviet intelligence officer remains courageous to the end. Already seriously ill, he finds the strength to help fellow prisoners.