Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of gun violence, homicide, and alcohol addiction.

For as long as 19-year-old Inez Olivera can remember, her parents, Cayo and Lourdes, have spent several months in Egypt every year. They forbid her from accompanying them on these dangerous journeys and leave her with her aunt Lorena and her cousins, Elvira and Amaranta, in a beautiful manor in Buenos Aires. One day, Inez hides from her relatives while she waits for a letter from her parents. To pass the time, she practices drawing Egyptian hieroglyphics and plays with a magic-touched golden ring her father sent her. When she first touched the ring, she tasted roses and had a vision of a regal woman. In ancient times, people cast spells using “rare plants and hard-to-find ingredients” (4), and some objects and places still carry traces of magic even though the old practices are long forgotten. Tía Lorena wishes that Inez would act more ladylike and disapproves of her brother and sister-in-law’s expeditions, which include searching for Cleopatra’s tomb. Elvira, who adores Inez, informs her that a letter from Cairo has arrived for her.