Marinella is liked by most of the townsfolk; notably by Archetti — “the village idiot”. She is a young woman with a kind heart — ready to help her friends and neighbors; but she is also a prostitute, even if discreet about her trade and respectful of others. One day, the carabinieri show up at the pensione (guest house) where Marinella rents a room. Severino, the local cobbler and a good friend of Marinella, learns of her death from Corporal Pellegrini. Apparently, Marinella fell to her death from the ancient, fortified walls of Borgo Vecchio in the old quarter of Termoli. The carabinieri consider it a suicide. Severino, shocked and unwilling to accept Marinella’s tragic death as a suicide, sets out with his close friend Donanto to investigate the matter.
