On March 13, 1905, Mata Hari launches her famous career to great acclaim, although her origins remain a mystery. Except to Wim Brink, a Dutchman who is appalled by her performance, but more horrified to discover she is the same girl he adored as a youth in Leeuwarden.

To his dismay, the charms that bewitched him fifteen years before captivate Europe. Everyone seems obsessed with Mata Hari, particularly the people closest to him. To Wim, Mata Hari becomes the symbol of Europe's moral decline. He wants nothing to do with her. Taking advantage of the ambiguity of her background, he decides not to let on she is the girl he knew.

But his efforts to conceal this connection inadvertently create friction with his wife and in-laws, and begin to isolate him from society. Matters escalate in Paris where an encounter with Mata Hari reveals for Wim a solution to his inner conflict, albeit at great cost to him and his family.