As a first generation college student, assault survivor, and aspiring environmental attorney, Leona grapples with a destructive inner monologue and a history of violence while trying to navigate through the unfamiliar territory of emotional wellness and social mobility. With her family life in disarray–her step-father, who is undocumented, goes missing and her mother sinks into depression–Leona comes face to face with a difficult question of what to do when you are confronted with your worst nightmare. 
 
Lucas’ story unfolds simultaneously as he moves fast and breaks things. Feeling lonely and undervalued, he taps into hyper masculinity and buys into the dogma that domination makes you strong.
 
Certain she is alone, Leona struggles to see herself thriving, but her deceased grandmother, Xochitl, does not. With the guiding hand of her ancestors and the energy of the family heirloom, a swallow’s head skeleton key, her history beckons her awakening.
 
Set in skid-row adjacent Los Angeles in 2016, Leona and Lucas' lives are interwoven in a way that none of us want to acknowledge but all of us know to be true. Over the course of a day Leona is confronted with a force that she cannot ignore and must decide how to deal with the cold harsh reality of what it means to be a woman. Basta is told alongside non-fiction excerpts of violence against women and their timeless struggle to be heard, seen, and valued in a society that ceases to do so.