Noike's journey begins when the Einsatzgruppen, a Nazi death squad, descends upon his hometown of Maciejow, Poland in 1942, and murders his family and thousands of their neighbors. Noike escapes deep into the Polish forests and assumes the identity of an orphaned Polish Catholic boy. Although Noike wore a cross and attended church, he could never fully hide his past. His only hope was to outlast the war and outwit his enemies.