Writing from his prison cell, Pascual keeps a running memoir addressed to a pharmacist in his local village in Spain, Estremadura. The papers were found and transcribed by an unknown individual who delivered them to the pharmacist, presumably a relative of the Count whom Pascual murdered. Because Pascual writes from memory over the course of several years, his narrative is disjointed and somewhat repetitive, but his life story can be extrapolated as follows:
Born in 1882, Pascual grew up on a rural farm outside of Almendralejo. His parents were not particularly trustworthy or amicable, his father being a Portuguese smuggler with a raucous temper, and his mother being a somewhat sociopathic Spaniard with no maternal instinct. Pascual was the oldest, but he grew close to his sister Rosario, five years his junior. They relied upon one another during their parents' bitter quarrels. Although the work was difficult, the Duarte family prospered thanks to Pascual and his father. Eventually, however, she runs away and becomes a prostitute, working for a man named Stretch. Unwilling to trade his loyalty to Rosario for the newcomer, Pascual remains aloof and largely indifferent to his younger brother, Mario's, abuse by their parents. Born crippled and mentally challenged, Mario was beaten and ignored by both of his parents until he falls into an oil vat at nine-years-old and dies.
After the funeral, Pascual lingers and encounters a young woman named Lola. She insults him by accusing him of being gay for not having sex with her right then and there, so he rapes her. Afterwards Lola professes her love for him, and they begin marriage plans. Returning on horseback from their honeymoon, Pascual allows Lola to continue the journey alone while he stops at a bar with friends. He gets into a fight, but nothing comes of it. Upon returning home he learns that Lola had been thrown by the horse and miscarried their baby. Pascual drinks himself crazy and stabs the mare to death. The birth of their second child began a happy period for the couple, but it comes to a tragic end when the baby unexpectedly dies of illness before his first birthday. Unable to process his pain, Pascual begins to blame his mother for his misfortunes, resenting her silent judgement on his life. When he feels the same judgement from his dog, Chispa, Pascual shoots her.
Pascual runs from his responsibilities, deciding to go to America. He works in Madrid for a few weeks before boring of the people there. In La Coruña he learns that he doesn't have sufficient funds to sail to America, so he works as muscle for a local brothel for 18 months until he finally abandons home of reaching America. He returns home to a very angry mother and a resentful wife, both of whom struggled to survive in his absence. Lola had begun to work as a prostitute for Stretch, but now she's pregnant with his child. Enraged, Pascual confronts her, and she dies of fright. He searches for Stretch, but Rosario explains that he fled for fear of Pascual. At this point Rosario returns home, and the reunited family enjoys a peaceful season until Stretch returns and tries to take Rosario back. Pascual fights him, breaking his shoulder, but Stretch continues to insult and mock his opponent for not caring for his women better until Pascual finally kills him.
After three years in jail, Pascual marries a childhood friend, Esperanza. They lived with his mom, however, and his period of absence made Pascual painfully aware of her destructive influence in his life. He becomes so disturbed by her that he stabs her in the neck while she sleeps one night in 1922. Although he deliberates for some time before committing the act, afterward he describes only relief and no regret. The details of Pascual's self-narrative become fuzzy at this point, but he appears not to have been arrested immediately for his mother's murder because he goes on to murder the Count of Torre-mejia, the wealthy aristocrat for whom his family farmed. He is finally imprisoned and remains there for nearly fifteen years until being freed by a local rebellion.
