In April of 1817, a Bow Street Runner summons me to a Berkeley Square ballroom where a young dandy had been stabbed to death during a society ball the previous night. The prime suspect: my former commander, Colonel Brandon.

Instead of denying the charges, Colonel Brandon allows himself to be arrested, and claims, to my amazement, that the lady he’d stayed protectively near at the ball all night is his mistress. It soon becomes clear that I am the only person not convinced of Brandon’s guilt–all present, including Brandon’s wife, believe he committed the murder.

Colonel Brandon’s reticence to tell the truth proves to be the greatest obstacle in my race against time to prove the stubborn man’s innocence.

The hunt for evidence to clear him uncovers dark secrets that go back to the Peninsular War and the origins of the private battle Brandon and I have waged on each other for some time.