Vicente and Elena spend Sunday at their country house on the outside of Alicante. Vicente has bought a new canary because a cat that roams the area ate one of his canaries. Elena does not like birds in cages, but they are Vicente’s favorite pastime and they keep him company. Now they have to teach the new canary to sing.

At noon on July 30, 2009, a bomb explodes in a Civil Guard car near the port of the island of Mallorca, killing two agents. The police activate the so-called "Operation Cage": no means of transport can enter or leave the island, including private vessels.