Vicente Ortiz finds himself in the Maricopa Jail charged with an assault he did not commit. Back in Mexico Vicente’s fiancée Rosa María, knowing that he in incapable of such a crime, decides that she will attempt to cross the border to find him. In the hands of a pollero, she is raped and left for dead in the New Mexico desert. The humiliation of a beating by prison guards, exacerbated by one of the infamous forced marches around the exterior of the jail wearing only pink underwear, pushes Vicente to the depths of despair. This novel touches on many topical issues in the United States: immigration, racial prejudice, and the abuse of federal funds. These subjects are intertwined in a tale of love and perseverance.