Twelve-year-old Sierva Maria is bitten by a rabid dog in the slave market of a tropical Colombian seaport. Her father, the Marquis, is distraught and seeks the advice of the church. They intcarcerate the girl in the convent of Santa Clara where she is put in the care of Cayetano Delaura, a young priest sent to exorcize the virulent demon of her sickness. But Cayetano falls in love with this beautiful and eccentric girl and comes to realize that it is not Sierva Maria who is in need of healing ...