When a dead newborn is found, wrapped in bloody sheets, in the bedroom wastebasket of a young novice, psychiatrist Martha Livingston is called in to determine if the seemingly innocent novice, who knows nothing of sex or birth, is competent enough to stand trial for the murder of the baby.

Fred is a psychotic entrepreneur who hopes to convince his wife Janet to invest in a shady land deal. The wife refuses, and the couple continue their heated argument while driving through the Ontario backwoods. When their car crashes, Janet is seriously injured, but Fred leaves the scene, hoping that his wife won't last the night.