Raised under the protective custody of Manhattan crime boss Roman DeLuca following her parents' tragic sacrifice, college senior Mara sends him an impulsive confession during a psychology class assignment. Petrified of his own forbidden feelings, Roman retaliates with freezing cruelty, disconnecting her private phone line, revoking her security access, and expelling her from his life for six agonizing months.
Just as Mara resolves to accept his brutal rejection, a neurological specialist reveals an inoperable brain tumor rapidly eating away at her cognitive and memory centers. Hiding her deteriorating condition as speech and recollections begin to slip away, Mara prepares for a final farewell, unaware that Roman's stoic facade is crumbling under the weight of agonizing underworld guilt.
