Departing in the night her journey home takes four years, blending into the underclass of France, hiding in plain sight. Anna finds security in the arms of the enemy and for a time, love. When this is lost she survives a cat and mouse existence deteriorating into destitution, prostitution and eventually murder for revenge.

Joining the Resistance in desperation, she is recruited by British and American Special Operations, returning to France for an assassination mission of a key German commander on D-Day. Competing priorities have the Allies working against each other, one side trying to stop Anna, the other supporting her mission. Anna, the gray survivor, must thread the needle in one pass, with little hope for escape.