Vélocia is the last surviving factory in the heart of a small valley in the Vosges. Martel works there and is a member of the trade union. And then there is Rita, a labour inspector who throws herself into lost causes.

Things get increasingly complicated for Martel. He is called in to help organise the redundancy plan, and has to deal with the managers who want to close down quickly and his colleagues who don't trust him.

Under the Benbareks' orders, Bruce and Martel kidnap a girl in Strasbourg. However, the abduction is a fiasco and the young woman manages to escape. As she runs along the road, she is picked up by Rita.

Martel learns that the Benbareks have paid a visit to his mother. Meanwhile, Vélocia decides to sue Rita and the media take an interest in the case.

Rita has been attacked at her home and Jimmy, Tokarev's henchman, has got his hands on Victoria. Things are no better for Martel. The Benbareks are increasingly threatening and his powerlessness against the management is driving him mad.

Rita is living with Martel but is asking herself more and more questions about the personality of this man who she realises she knows little about. When she finds a compromising photo in a drawer she decides to move out.