Four friends - young scientists - Oleg Ignatiev, Alexey Sorokin, Gennady Shagayev and Veronika come to rest in Crimea. The guys are passionate about diving, and Veronika, who has long been in love with Oleg, is keenly experiencing her lover's betrayal. After all, his bride Ksenia comes to visit Oleg. Ignatiev’s friends are also surprised - they were sure of the fortress of the union between Veronika and Oleg ... Two years later, Oleg’s friends and his wife Ksenia listen with horror to the court’s sentence: Ignatiev receives a sentence for robbing a jewelry store. Despite the efforts of Gennady, who hired a friend to a lawyer, Oleg refuses the possibility of parole. Friends still do not know about Oleg’s plans through his acquaintance felon to earn money on a “lightning rod” - to serve someone else’s term for an authority named Bars. In the chamber, Ignatiev meets the pinch thief Gavrilych. Upon learning of her husband’s decision to remain in prison, Ksenia filed for divorce.