In Forever Valley, an abandoned hamlet in the mountains, the rectory and the dancehall face each other, but they turn their backs to each other. A young girl of 16, illiterate, lives alone in the rectory with the father. The father, who is becoming paralyzed, decides to send her to Massi, the owner of the dancehall, to complete her education. Massi gives her an organdy dress with flounces and patent leather high-heeled shoes, and teaches her all that should be done on Saturday nights with the customs officers, her prefered customers. During the week, encouraged by the father, the young girl carries out her personal project: she searches for the dead in the garden of the rectory.