Michael, a hardened petty criminal, has made a hot score with two accomplices. On a hectic escape through the streets of Prague, he notices a young woman who is about to throw herself off a bridge into the Vltava. Quick-witted, he jumps in after her and saves Klara's life - and his own. For Michael, it is a moment of enlightenment that leads him back to his fatherly friend Father Christoph. The priest prays hard for him and hides his protégé in a monastery, where Michael enters the seminary and develops his talent as a restorer. Six years later, Michael returns to Prague and meets Klara again by chance. He has never forgotten her, but she does not recognize her former rescuer.