Norah is an impulsive journalist with a strong sense of justice. In her early 30s, she leaves Berlin and ventures to start a new life in summery Vienna. No sooner has she arrived than a beggar woman predicts that six weeks later, she will shoot a man named Arthur Grimm. But the name means nothing to Norah—besides, she doesn’t believe in such nonsense as prophecy.

But then strange things start happening, causing Norah to grow increasingly doubtful and unsettled. She eventually sets out to find out who Arthur Grimm is. The subject becomes something of an obsession for her—especially when she learns that Grimm is a wife-beater and that there is a connection between him and her own past: Apparently, Grimm knew Norah’s childhood friend Valerie. Her death has traumatized Norah to this day.

As Norah becomes increasingly entangled in her research on Arthur Grimm, she must simultaneously prove herself in her new job. The journalist is tasked with writing a profile on the terminally ill performance artist Wolfgang Balder. While she initially despises his sadism, narcissism, and his understanding of artistic freedom, he soon becomes a confidant. Before long, the increasingly isolated and paranoid Norah must ask herself whether she is truly capable of picking up a gun.