 Landowner Rodolfo Peñalver insists in bringing his pregnant wife Blanca to his hacienda. Blanca s pregnancy is high-risk since she s had previous miscarriages and is recovering from the measles. During a stormy night, Blanca goes into labor. When the local doctor can t be found, midwife Dominga is called and together with servant, Chana, they deliver a dead baby girl. Gazing at the unconscious Blanca, Dominga comments how unfair life is since she s just delivered a healthy baby boy to a poor widow who has died in childbirth. Chana comes up with the idea of passing the little orphan as Blanca s baby. After the deed is done, Chana gives Dominga Blanca s set of emerald earrings as payment for her silence. Although Rodolfo is ecstatic with his bouncing son, Chana can t help but tell her mistress the truth. Blanca is distraught to know her daughter is dead, but goes along with the pretense since she s grown fond of the new baby. It takes many years before the Peñalvers return to the hacienda. By that time, Juan Pablo has become a doctor and is Rodolfo s pride and joy. He comes to the hacienda in the company of his cousin and fiancée, Graciela. Strange things start happening to the Peñalvers. Blanca attempts to find her daughter s grave and can t find it in the local cemetery. Juan Pablo meets a wild raggedy girl that bites him on the hand. He becomes obsessed with the girl and starts neglecting Gracielita. It turns out that the girl, called Esmeralda, is blind and is Dominga s adopted daughter. When Chana sees Esmeralda wearing the emerald earrings, she begins to wonder if the baby really died.