In early 20thcentury Sicily, Mimi Inglese, a talented painter, aspires to defy societal norms by attending the Palermo Art Academy. But when she contracts tuberculosis, her dreams come to an end. She and her family move to New York City, where she is sucked into the underbelly of City life and becomes involved in her father's money laundering scheme. When her father goes to prison, Mimi begins counterfeiting 5 bills to save her family from starvation and maybe save enough to make art again. But tragedy strikes when her sister dies. Overwhelmed by guilt and grief, Mimi finally abandons her artistic ambitions to care for her sister's child, Sebu. Escalating Gangland violence pervades their lives until a devastating tenement fire forces her to a crossroad. Does she have the courage to flee westward with Sebu and finally carve out a life of her own making? A gritty story of a woman learning to survive in a man’s brutal world.