Early one morning Juan is pulling a bill-switching scheme in an all-night deli when Marcos, an apparently innocent bystander, pretends to whisk him off to the police. But Marcos is a con-artist, just helping out a new recruit, and he enlists Juan in a plot that he claims will set them up for early retirement. Juan is skeptical at first, but agrees to work with Marcos after he impresses him with a few sophisticated cons. A once-in-a-lifetime scheme then seemingly falls in their laps--an old time con-man enlists Juan and Marcos to sell a forged set of extremely valuable rare stamps--The Nine Queens. The tricky negotiations that ensue bring into the picture a cast of suspicious characters including Marcos' beautiful sister Valeria, their innocent younger brother, Frederico who idolizes Marcus--as well as a slew of thieves, conmen and pickpockets. As the action moves from humble barrios to luxury hotels, it soon appears that the city itself is part of an elaborate plot.