Colonel Aleksandr Talanov is married to a woman he wishes he could love. But he can't, and it's an ugly consequence of his former training with the KGB. Even so, no one should have to experience what Talanov experiences: the brutal murder of his wife in front of his eyes. Wracked with guilt, Talanov spirals downward on a path of self-destruction. He should have been killed, not her. He was the one whose violent past would not leave them alone...