Hilario, a frustrated 40-year-old writer whose novel has been rejected by every Spanish publisher, makes a living working in a bookstore and teaching an online writing workshop. When he meets a young woman he believes could be his long-awaited muse, he finally dares to break out of his routine and take risks he never dared before.

In 1819, an exhausted Francisco de Goya retreats to La Quinta del Sordo, seeking solitude and a final period of quiet work. But when he falls gravely ill, he is haunted by ghosts from his past. As his health declines, Goya paints the Black Paintings on the walls of his home in a desperate attempt to confront these visions—nearly losing his sanity and his life in the process.

Mario moves to a new house with his parents and his older brother, Carlos. One rainy afternoon, Mario witnesses his brother being kidnapped. After 19 days of agonizing waiting, Carlos returns as a different man and with no memories of the last days. Mario searches for the truth behind the kidnapping, but what he discovers will even make him doubt his own sanity.