 In Montreal, on the same day that a policeman shot twenty-one children, killing eleven, without any reason, the successful writer Thomas Roy amputates his fingers and tries to commit suicide. Completely catatonic, he is treated by Dr. Paul Lacasse and his big fan, the pregnant Dr. Jeanne Marcoux, in a psychiatric hospital. When the journalist Charles Monette, who is writing a book about Thomas, schedules a meeting with Dr. Paul, he shows pieces of newspaper showing that Thomas was present to the last thirty-seven tragedies in Canada. Dr. Paul reads the notes and decides to investigate further the life of Thomas Roy, disclosing dark secrets about his past.