The novel begins with Dostoyevsky arriving in Saint Petersburg to collect the belongings of his recently deceased stepson Pavel. Arriving at the flat where Pavel lodged with a widow named Anna Sergeyevna Kolenkina and her young daughter, Matryona, Dostoyevsky discovers that his stepson's personal belongings have been confiscated by the police. Informed by the police that his stepson was an associate of the notorious political agitator Sergey Nechayev, Dostoyevsky finds himself under secret police surveillance.
The novel commences with Dostoyevsky reaching Saint Petersburg to retrieve his late stepson Pavel's possessions. Upon arriving at the flat where Pavel lived with a widow named Anna Sergeyevna Kolenkina and her young daughter, Matryona, Dostoyevsky learns that his stepson's belongings have been seized by the police. The police inform him that Pavel was an associate of the infamous political agitator Sergey Nechayev, leading Dostoyevsky to be under secret surveillance.