Ernest Toussaint, a renowned architect, lives for his work and - it could even be said - hides in it. He has a life companion, Victoire, in whom he only takes a distracted interest. One day, the bossy, haughty Ernest receives an unexpected call from the Swedish police, which will - although he does not know it yet - transform his life. Reluctantly enough first, Ernest decides to leave everything behind and to take the road to Kiruna, a small town in Swedish Lapland, where he has been asked to identify the body of ... his son. A son that he has never recognized and not even desired. On his way North he gives a lift to Magnus, a cool and sensitive young man about the same age as his late son...