The story opens on a July afternoon in 1960 in the small village of Valle de Sole in the Italian Apennine Mountains. The narrator, Vittorio Innocente, describes how the town is quiet and the men are working in the fields. He lives with his mother, Cristina, and his grandfather, the town mayor. His father left for America four years ago. Earlier that July day, his mother received a letter. After his grandfather left for Di Lucci’s bar following lunch, Cristina told Vittorio that she was going out but wouldn’t tell him where.

Vittorio is sitting on the stoop of his grandfather’s house trying to study. He falls asleep. He wakes up when he hears a shout near the stable. He runs toward the stable and sees a green snake. Then, someone jumps out of the stable, startling Vittorio. He goes into the stable where he sees his mother. He tells her he heard a man yelling. His mother “stare[s] at [him] hard a moment,” and Vittorio eventually says he “didn’t see anything” (7). His mother kisses him approvingly. Vittorio sees blood on her ankle, and they realize she has been bitten by the snake. She tells him to run to Di Lucci’s, because Di Lucci has a car.