Urania is a highly successful lawyer for the World Bank who returns to the Dominican Republic in 1996 after a 35-year absence. Having left at age 14, she has remained strictly independent, throwing herself entirely into her studies and legal career while cutting off all contact with her relatives. She harbors a dark, unspoken secret regarding the true circumstances of her departure and spends her free time exhaustively researching the history of the Trujillo era.

Once a high-ranking and fiercely loyal official in Trujillo's government, Agustín is now an elderly, nonresponsive invalid dependent on nursing care. During his peak, he served as President of the Senate and adopted many of the dictator's rigid habits in a desperate bid to maintain favor. His blind loyalty to the regime and his intense political ambition ultimately fracture his relationship with his only daughter.

The 70-year-old dictator of the Dominican Republic, who has ruled with absolute brutality for over three decades. Obsessed with discipline and punctuality, he views himself as the ultimate masculine authority and the indispensable savior of his nation. He faces declining physical health, including incontinence and impotence, which directly threaten his highly cultivated image of absolute power and virility.

The icy and ruthlessly efficient head of the Servicio de Inteligencia Militar (SIM). Abbes performs Trujillo's most brutal tasks, including orchestrating overseas assassinations and domestic torture, without hesitation or apparent emotion. His lack of a conventional military background is offset by his terrifying reputation and unwavering focus on state security.

The puppet president of the Dominican Republic, officially installed by Trujillo to appease international critics. A quiet, unassuming intellectual and poet, Balaguer appears completely devoid of ambition or typical vices, making him seem harmless to the strongmen around him. Beneath his serene exterior, he possesses a sharp political mind and exercises intense strategic patience.

A former military adjutant and sawmill manager whose family initially fought against the dictatorship before being integrated into the regime. He harbors a fierce personal vendetta against the dictator following the state-sponsored murder of his brother Tavito. He represents the violent, honor-driven resistance to the regime.

A former governor of Puerto Plata who grew thoroughly disillusioned with the regime after the political imprisonment of his brother. Having previously plotted an unsuccessful bombing attempt against the dictator, he serves as a pragmatic and politically aware central figure in the highway ambush plot.

The head of the Armed Forces who is married into the Trujillo family. He is tasked with initiating a military takeover immediately following the assassination, but his crippling fear and indecision threaten the success of the post-assassination plan.

A highly capable but physically repulsive lawyer and constitutional scholar who provides legal justification for Trujillo's actions. Known as the "Constitutional Sot" due to his alcoholism, he manages to remain sharp and effective in his duties despite his heavy drinking.

A former model from New York who serves as an ambassador and personal advisor to Trujillo. He assists the dictator with matters of fashion, fine living, and arranging intimate encounters. He acts as a smooth, charming intermediary for those seeking to gain or regain the Chief's favor.

The oldest of the highway conspirators, a physically powerful man of Lebanese descent. A deeply religious Catholic, he joins the conspiracy only after receiving spiritual validation from church authorities that tyrannicide is acceptable in extreme cases.

A military adjutant for Trujillo whose close proximity to the dictator provides the assassins with crucial intelligence regarding his daily schedule. He turns against the regime after military leadership forces him into a grotesque test of loyalty involving his fiancée's dissident brother.

The oldest son and heir apparent of the dictator. Known for his wild, playboy lifestyle and brutal treatment of women, he represents the regime's unchecked privilege. Following the attack on his father, he attempts to assert control over the military and exact vengeance.

One of the conspirators who holds a fierce personal vendetta against the regime after losing access to his daughter. During the highway ambush, he is accidentally shot by a fellow conspirator and falls into the hands of the secret police.

Agustín Cabral's sister and Urania's aunt. She is an elderly, physically frail woman who fiercely defends her brother's honor. She struggles to understand why Urania abandoned the family, firmly believing Agustín was a model father and statesman.

Urania's cousin, once her closest childhood playmate. Now a stout matron whose family suffered financial ruin after the fall of the Trujillo regime, she harbors mixed feelings of affection and subtle jealousy toward Urania's successful, independent American life.

Urania's niece (Lucinda's daughter), a young woman who has never met her estranged aunt before this visit. She represents a potential bridge to the future, offering unconditional affection and promising to maintain contact.

One of the conspirators involved in the highway ambush against Trujillo. He drives the second car that races to block the dictator's vehicle once the shooting begins.

A former general who joins the conspiracy against Trujillo after being dismissed and humiliated by the regime. He attempts to find a safe haven for the assassins in the chaotic aftermath of the attack.

One of the conspirators involved in the plot to assassinate Trujillo. He waits in the final car along the highway, positioned to assist in the ambush.

The Bountiful First Lady and wife of Trujillo. She attempts to move massive amounts of money to Switzerland without his authorization, indicating her lack of faith in the regime's longevity.

A former United States Marine sergeant who trained Trujillo early in his career. He remains one of the dictator's most loyal American supporters and openly worries about the deteriorating relationship between the Dominican Republic and the United States.