Varka, a 13-year-old babysitter, sits all night long by the cradle trying desperately not to fall asleep for she knows she'd be severely beaten by her masters for that. Once she nods off, and gets it in the neck. The sleepless night by a screaming baby draws on and on, as the girl, eyes half-open, recalls horrors of her past: father dying of hernia, mother begging for food by the road... Another sleepless night behind, there comes the day full of dirty little jobs and ceaseless errands. After that, another night by the screaming baby. Now almost delirious, the girl starts to recognize the true root of evil in her wretched life...