Young American socialite Hugh is haunted by recurring dreams of a silent Victorian house, a place he has never seen in his waking life. As these nocturnal visions grow increasingly vivid, he shares his distress with his close friends, particularly Vladimir, a wealthy acquaintance who has just returned to their Midwestern American city after years away. Struggling with a profound sense of虚无 (emptiness) as a third-generation Russian exile with no homeland, Vladimir senses an ominous quality in Hugh’s condition, noting that Hugh’s breathing and heartbeat stop entirely while he sleeps.

The conflict escalates when a young girl named Liddell materializes within the dream house, addressing Hugh as a ghost and expressing that she has been waiting for him. Convinced that both the girl and the house are real, Hugh becomes obsessed with locating them. Despite Vladimir’s growing fears for his friend’s sanity and very existence, he agrees to join Hugh’s search. Their investigation leads them to an antique shop where Hugh discovers a photograph of a girl identical to Liddell, followed by a fateful discovery of the actual Victorian mansion from his dreams.

The story delves into multiple narrative arcs. The early arc establishes Hugh’s disturbing dreams and the concern of his friends, including Vi, a fashion designer who harbors complex feelings for Hugh. A middle investigation arc sees the group employing a detective and encountering a circle of mystics intrigued by Hugh as a person who transcends the limits of his species. The final arc resolves when they meet the mansion’s current owner, who reveals that his family has been expecting them for over a century. The narrative suggests that Liddell is a real girl living in a different, ghost-like time frame. After moving into the house, Hugh gradually fades from Vladimir’s reality, disappearing entirely to join Liddell in her vanished era, leaving Vladimir to continue his eternal search for a place called home.